As we all know, I don't do well with change. I have a hard time adjusting to things that deviate from The Plan. Today my friend/climbing partner/tripmate shared the news that his hand would indeed need surgery and he is unable to go to Ecuador as planned. The injury is the result of an unfortunate spill during a training hike in the snow and ice a few weeks ago. Until today, I had largely put it out of my mind that him not going was a real possibility. I was trying to exercise my magical thinking skills-- If I wished hard enough for it to be nothing, then it would be nothing. His physician made it clear however that he cannot climb. As my climbing partner put it, he can not even hold an ice axe, nor put weight on it, nor self arrest to save himself or others he is roped to on the glacier. I know its the right way to play it, but it sucks nonetheless. I'm glad he has trip insurance to recover some of his cost, but I feel bad that he's planned for so long for this and trained so hard, and now its put on the back burner. Selfishly, I feel bad for me too.
I hope he will still listen to me drone on and on about the minutia that I have been up until now--- like the gear reviews, climbers blogs, and crevasse rescue videos ad-nauseum. And I hope to bring him back some realistic information as to what to expect on HIS climb to the crater when his hand heals.
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