Fire, Burning Desire

I’ve finally got a working computer again, and I’m stoked to get back in the writing zone; my life is incomplete without writing, in many ways. The first benefit is the meditation and head space I receive from writing, the second is that writing is my profession, how I feed myself; writing is my life, what I have to offer the world.

           

Officially it is still spring, but in Durango it feels like summer. It feels like a hot summer is on the way, we’ve already had fires popping up near town. This is my first summer in Durango, and something feels burning inside of me, a burning desire to experience life to the fullest, and manifest some dreams of mine.

I once heard someone say that the most common rhyme in music was fire and desire. After I heard that said, I’ve heard that rhyme all the time. And once a fire is in your heart and soul, there is a desire for it to grow.

My personal fire right now is on many fronts: the desire to become the best climber I can be, the dream to manifest my goal of becoming a successful writer, and that search for love, or as Johnny Cash says it better “flesh and blood needs flesh and blood.”

 Since I’ve last blogged I also have taken a job, a part time gig at my favorite Mexican restaurant in town, called Zia Taqueria. It feels good to be working in a kitchen again, and I’ve realized how much I missed that type of work. Many of my coworkers are Mexican, and I’m stoked to work on my Spanish. Plus there’s just something about the Latino spirit that moves me, the work environment there is really enjoyable.

I love climbing so much, more and more every day, and currently I’ve got a goal in mind, which usually helps me dedicate my energy to a dream. The goal is to do a Birthday Challenge in the next couple of weeks. My birthday is in December, which is a terrible time of year to do a proper rock climbing Birthday Challenge, plus the older one gets, the more difficult the challenge becomes. Recently I was talking with a climbing partner of mine, Badger, and we realized our birthdays are a mere three days apart. We are also only a year apart in age, he’s like a “brother from another Mother”. So, we decided we would do a mid-year challenge. Today will be our first training session at the local Golf Wall, as we build up to doing 34 pitches in day. So psyched!

I can’t overstate how much fire is building is my heart and soul right now, it’s almost a little overwhelming. I feel it leading to living my dreams, which is what the essence of being human is about, right? Please comment below to tell me what you are feeling, what wildfires are brewing in your heart, and what storms are starting to release thunderous bolts of lighting in your world.

peace,

Luke

Man on Wire, Following Dreams, Opportunities

Last night I finished the film, Man on Wire, about a Frenchman who wire-walked between the Twin Towers in New York City in 1976. It was a fascinating film, and there was a very uplifting tone to it. Phillipe Petit was a man who followed a dream, and achieved it. Those type of people inspire me.

Our world is full of people who follow dreams, yet ruled by those who live in fear. There are notable exceptions, but most people don’t realize their true divinity and potential.

I am not a writer who focuses on the negative, and that is not the intention of this piece. This piece is about following dreams. It occurred to me this morning that following your dreams is also about following opportunities that lead you to your dreams.

I have now lived in Durango, Colorado for one year. I have been reflecting on this because the paper I write for here, The Durango Telegraph, is going to have me write a piece tentatively titled, A Year of Dirtbagging in Durango. This is a dream come true to write something like this.

I came to Durango following a vision. I wanted to make a new start in life. My dream job at the college in Gunnison became a nightmare when I was given a boss, who was like the wicked witch of the west. So instead of living in fear after she cut my job to half-time, I resigned and looked to follow my heart where it would lead. I envisioned that I would make it on my own, finally write my first book, and publish The Climbing Zine as a career.

A year later I have finished my first book Climbing Out of Bed, and The Climbing Zine is building a format to become financially stable. We’re not there yet, and although there are moments of doubt and frustration, I am still following my dream. The reality is that although I have very little money, I am happier than I have ever been. That realization is enough for now, and I know I must continue to work hard to manifest the dreams, so they become reality.

Whatcha Gonna Do On The Planet Today?

Well, it's back to the blue bird skies up here in Durango, Colorado and I'm psyched to see them. My kind of weather. It's meant to snow in the winter, and I'm glad we got some snow on the mountains, but this blue bird weather is what does it for me. I've been spending way too much time in front of a computer lately, and I want to try and bask in the sun for a bit today. A few things first.

As I wrote yesterday I'm leaning towards self-publishing Climbing Out of Bed. The question of whether to self-publish or go the traditional route is heavy on my mind. I guess I need to meditate on it for a minute. So that's what I'll do.

In the midst of my angst of what to do with my book, a new friend reached out and shared a piece she wrote, inspired by some words that I wrote. So I wanted to share her piece, I Love, Love. Check it out.

Also, to try to boost our readership of The Climbing Zine I've been sharing stories on rockclimbing.com. If you're looking for a sneak peek into Volume 4 my piece A Climber in the Winter of his Content just went live. If you're looking to savor the entire zine together don't read it though :) The title is opposite of something I wrote a number of years back called A Climber in the Winter of his Discontent. The difference is actually climbing in the winter versus not.

Lastly, I'm trying to be grateful for what I have, and not trying to obsess about what I don't have. I've been getting some love from sponsors, and I'm especially grateful to be an ambassador for Deuter. Looking forward to blogging for them and testing out their awesome gear. Here's a link to my ambassador page.

Rock and Ice article from the Archives

This is an oldie but goodie. A piece that will appear in my upcoming book, Climbing Out of Bed, and was originally published in Rock and Ice Magazine. I was stoked to see they had it posted up online, as I was doing some research for my book.

READ "Naked Disco Dance Party in J-Tree" from rockandice.com.

The start of a new project...

It's a new year, and time to start another new project. This is the start of something new...enjoy!

photo by Jonathan Byers

In a world that had lost its way we sat together at a cliff. It was just the two of us, there, at that moment. Our other friends, the others in the tribe, they were just around the corner, still climbing on the red rocks. We sat together, intertwined, as we shared a beer. Our love was just beginning, yet comfortable enough to know that, here, exactly where we were at this moment, was everywhere we ever wanted to be, as we sat silently, watching the sun set.

Her love and comfort was unexplainable, the greatest thing I’d ever known. As they say the best things in life are free. I hoped she felt the same about me, and by the way she opened her lips to kiss, it was enough of a hint for me to believe she did.

The sunset was dramatic, first a hint of orange and red, and then a dominating red across the sky. Red rock cliffs and towers loomed in the distance, and an occasional bird flew by. I looked at her face and then kissed her lips. I knew at that moment nothing could ever compare to this. So I remained in the moment and kissed her again.

I loved him then, and I had a feeling I would love him forever. Thank God I’d finally found a good, honest rock climbing man. The males in the mountain town culture are diamonds in the rough. I was happy to be growing older, and to be meeting older men. We grew together that evening when we sealed our love in our beloved red rock desert.

New love is perhaps the greatest thrill in life. I’d loved and lost many times before this man, and there was the possibility in my mind that this rollercoaster cycle would continue for my entire life. Then here he was, this lover, yogi, dirtbag, all rolled up in a package, that seemed to be just for me.

But this sunset, in some ways I wished we could just become one with it, and go where it was going. We were new lovers, but in our thirties experienced enough to know sustaining love was a greater challenge than any climb we might attempt together. We had new love, in an old world, a world that needed love more than anything else.

Our friends hiked around the corner to find us content and in love. I would have never thought of it like that then, love is a bold proclamation, but now I know it was love, and I know we were content and in the moment. The group, two other couples that had been couples for some time now gave us a look of happiness, contentment, even a hint of jealously at our new found love. Spiritual seekers of love are always waiting for this moment, to establish a connection of the divine in the outdoor world, a moment that berths hope to every dream that is still alive in one’s heart.

Just like that the sun was setting further down, the red and pink went away and a purple hue hung on briefly. We packed up our backpacks, as we hiked down the cliff, weaving and turning down the red rocks and dirt.

Fire. Fire is the first thought when we return to camp. The cool air of the desert night cries out fire. So we build a fire, and we all huddle around it before we cook dinner. We savor the feeling that we built from the day.

Forget Me Not by Jennifer Lowe-Anker....New Book Review Column for The Climbing Zine

This is a sneak peak into the new column for The Climbing Zine. Volume 4 will be out within a month. Enjoy.

What We’re Reading
Forget Me Not by Jennifer Lowe-Anker
Reviewed by Luke Mehall

“The best climber is the one having the most fun.”
-Alex Lowe

This is a new column for The Climbing Zine, and a space we’ll use each issue to review a climbing related book, new or old, for our readers. For this issue the book is Forget Me Not, written by Jennifer Lowe-Anker, and published in 2008 by The Mountaineers Books.

It’s been a long time since I’ve done a book review, generally I find the process unsatisfying, like writing a term paper in college. So I guess this is more of a contemplation on Forget Me Not, a book I enjoyed immensely, and one that truly moved me.

The book begins like a small campfire, inviting but not overwhelming. Then eventually it grows into something blazing, which fixated me, and I was unable to step away from it. It is her story of love with the late, great climber Alex Lowe, their journeys in climbing and raising a family, and his tragic death in an avalanche in the Himalaya. Following this is a great mourning, and the tale of the new love that was borne with her current husband, and world class climber himself, Conrad Anker, who was with Alex Lowe when he died. Conrad and Alex were also best friends.

Alex and Jennifer’s first days of love were probably somewhat similar to many climbing couples, yet vastly different than most young lovers. They travelled the world together, visiting various climbing locales in the United States and abroad. They climbed together, and suffered the woes of travelling as well. One of Jennifer’s greatest skills as a writer is her brutal honestly, while she graces Forget Me Not with beautiful prose, her honest words sink deep into the reader’s psyche.

She writes of Alex’s legendary drive for climbing, boundless energy, and pure enthusiasm, while also reflecting on his moodiness and gloom when he could not expend that energy. She writes of the joys of life, and the sorrow of death; both which Jennifer has fully experienced in her own existence. Interesting in its own right, is Jennifer’s path towards becoming an artist; she is a talented painter, and her work graces the cover of the book.

In these pages are the journeys we all experience as humans, but especially climbers who want to have it all, the freedom of travel and climbing, as well as the foundation of a home and a family. There are lessons to be learned in Forget Me Not that climbers and non-climbers alike won’t easily forget.

Eventually Jennifer’s own climbing is halted with Motherhood, and she no longer has the drive to take risks on major climbs. Alex however continued to explore the world as a guide and professional climber, to Yosemite, Denali, K2, Everest, Antarctica, the Himalaya, Baffin Island, the Great Trango Tower, Kyrgyzstan and beyond, all while Jennifer took care of their three sons, Max, Sam and Isaac.

One part of this book that made it especially enjoyable is Jennifer’s use of Alex’s various letters he would write her, words of love when they were close and afar. If Alex would have lived long enough to getting around to writing a book it would have been beautiful and intriguing; he was someone who had a way with words. Reading his words reminds me the importance of telling someone you love them in print. Thank you for that Alex Lowe.

There are many other elements of Forget Me Not that make this book worth reading: Jennifer’s trust in her intuitive sense, her ability to put the frailty of life in words, reflection on the first days where the internet and climbing came together, and a Mother’s thoughts on risk and climbing.

Eventually the book goes to a very sad place, we as a reader know it’s coming, and the way Jennifer writes made my entire psyche fixated in the pages of Forget Me Not. I absolutely could not put it down, surely the measure of a great book. I was relieved to read about the love she found with her current husband, Conrad Anker, and the love they share as a family with Max, Sam and Isaac. She writes beautifully near the end of the book, “it is love that seems to soothe the anguish wrought by love lost.”

It’s been two days since I was engulfed in the final pages of Forget Me Not. That night left me feeling sad. The next morning though, I awoke, to the sun, another beginning, and a more enhanced realization of the preciousness of life. Forget Me Not is truly unforgettable.

Luke Mehall is currently in the final processes of finishing his first book, titled “Climbing Out of Bed”, which should be released sometime in 2012.

Stokelab and Heather Robinson, The Balance

For the past two months I've been working for the Stokelab, a web site and online magazine that features solely inspiring, stoke-worthy content. This video of Heather Robinson is perhaps one of the most inspiring climbing videos I've posted up there. So smooth and so humble, just wanted to share it up on my bloggy-blog here!

Click here to watch it on Stokelab

Revisiting God’s Crag, Lake City

This summer I’ve mostly been bouldering. For the last month and a half I’ve been getting my climbing fix by getting on my bike and heading up to our local bouldering area called Skyland. Crested Butte is my favorite place in Colorado to spend the summer, and the Skyland Boulders are my all time favorite. Plus, there’s no driving required since the boulders are only a mile and a half of single track away from town. Perfection.

Part of the reason I’ve mostly been bouldering is that I spent a lot of time roping up this winter and spring; and the other part is that several people I know have been involved in climbing accidents. I won’t go into much detail about that, but it always makes me pause and contemplate when such things happen. Is climbing worth the risk? If I died climbing would it be worth it?

I could go in many philosophical directions here, but I simply just want to write about how much I love climbing, and when that feeling is confirmed it’s a revelation.

My good friend Scott is in town, visiting from Yosemite, and he is one motivated dude. He suggested we climb at God’s Crag, down in Lake City. God’s Crag is my favorite sport climbing area, and it’s just about two hours from Crested Butte.

Our session was glorious as we pulled on pockets, encouraging each other, and trying as hard as we could. It didn’t take long to recall that fine feeling that comes after such an effort, in an inspiring environment. It’s that feeling that is better than any drug.

Near the end of our session we moved over to an area where we could cool down. Above us was a trio of climbers near the top of a multipitch line. As I started up the pitch a shower of rocks came down from above, with no warning. The climbers either didn’t call rock, or we didn’t hear them. Either way the incident brought a sobering tone to the evening, and we were grateful that we didn’t get hit by the rocks.

It turns out they dislodged the rocks while pulling their ropes on the first rappel. The rocks ended up giving their rope a mean core shot, and luckily they weren’t hurt either.

Damn. All I wanted was a day without any incident to get me inspired on rope climbing again. Regardless I am inspired. That day left me with that oh-so familiar high that comes after a day at the crag, God’s Crag to be specific.

I’m continuing to contemplate. I want to live a long, happy existence and experience what I was meant to experience. I want to live and love and grow old, while continuing to climb. None of that is guaranteed, and my risks aren’t simply limited to climbing. We don’t get to control our deaths. We’re all simply living out lives on a big chunk of rock floating through space, and risk is inherent to living.

That said, I’ve got the bug back, and I’m psyched to be back on the sharp end.