Climbing Mountains

There have been a number of stories in the news these days about a man who died on Mount Everest, while quite a few people walked by. A few stopped, but nobody stayed for long.

Mostly the stories have been about the ethics of the situation. Of course they don't all agree. Ethics are a personal matter, after all. One thing they all say is that it wasn't the first time and won't be the last time, and mountain-climbing is dangerous. I can't argue with those facts. They say the man was dying and nobody could have saved him in that situation. They also say the man probably saw as many as 40 people walk away and leave him to freeze to death. That's the part I am having trouble with.

The expedition to climb Mt. Everest is for most people a once-in-a-lifetime event. It costs a lot of money, time, and effort. There's got to be a huge sense of pride and accomplishment in being able to say "I climbed Mount Everest." I don't thtink I could follow that with "And I walked away from a dying man that I could have comforted or at least sat with, so I could finish my climb." Is it really that important to stand on top of a really big hill?