Old Friends
It had been a while since their last meeting. The climber had learned a lot from his old friend. From his first tentative steps into a new and exciting, vertical world.
With his old friend he had learned how to place gear, how to look for foot and hand placements, how to counteract the push and pull of gravity, how to balance, how to move, how to control his natural fear of falling and harness his adrenaline surge for his own purpose.
Now the climber was back.
Unencumbered by rope or rack he would show his old friend the skills he had learned and fine tuned. He was climbing well these days, a confident E5 leader. His old friend still only severe.
No need to chalk up. Off and up on large holds, the rock feeling good under his touch, the moves quickly remembered as each sequence fell naturally into place. He felt comfortable climbing with his old friend.
The dance continued. Step, step, pull, step, step, reach, step, step, smear, gaining height quickly, adrenaline pumping,
Suddenly the upward momentum stopped. The climber was struggling with the moves. He was off route. A blank wall up and off to the right. Standing just in balance on small holds he could see his old friend off to the left smiling and beckoning him back onto the route. But the holds were just out of reach.
Fighting now to control his breathing, the climber felt his left leg start to tremble. Could he work out a sequence that would bring him back to his old friend now silently watching?
Crimping hard on a small, incut hold, the climber made his move, his feet smearing on the blank rock, desperate for purchase, rocking over and finally catching the jug offered and gratefully accepted, but then off, spinning, falling………..
The climber lay broken on the rocks below staring up at his old friend who looked back down, blank, impassive, severe.