So for those curious here is my reason why in a couple of days time my Dad (61) and I will be climbing the roof of Africa.
What started out as a bucket list idea over 3 years ago, climbing Kilimanjaro was just that, an IDEA, something I should maybe do at some point on my life when it’s the RIGHT TIME.
At the beginning of this year I had decided that 2017 was the RIGHT TIME to climb Kilimanjaro. I had a job that I thoroughly enjoyed, I planed to climb in September, and I had calculated how much leave I would need, I worked out my savings, a plan to start getting fit, at the time there was no reason to not climb Kilimanjaro, everything in my life was stable and this was the right time,
No,
this was the perfect time!
However life as we all come to learn at some point or another is never consistent and full of obstacles and it did what life does best and threw me a curve ball. Less then a month after making this commitment to myself, we were informed that our company doesn’t have enough money for us to continue working and in about 3 months time they will have to close their doors and we will all be retrenched.
Wait…
What just happened?
Everything was fine, I was happy, I enjoyed my job, it was going to be my income to fulfilling my commitment,
I don’t know what’s going on but this is just a bad dream,
Right?
WRONG!
It wasn’t a bad dream it was a harsh reality, one I didn’t quite know how to deal with, here I am just 29 years and retrenched,
‘that doesn’t happen to people like me’ I thought,
but it does, and it did,
life doesn’t choose who it happens to, it happens to all of us in different forms.
So what now?
Still struggling to swallow this very hard retrenchment pill, I decide that I made a commitment to myself in the beginning of the year and I’m going to honor that commitment, yes at the time everything was perfect, and now is not exactly the right time, but that is a poor reason to not follow through with something you want. I may have lost my job, but I haven’t lost my desire to fulfil my dreams.
So I decided that job, or no job I was going to do this and if it meant digging into my savings to cover the costs then so be it, but I will not run away from it just because the circumstances changed. Fast Forward about 4 months later and here I am, a couple of days left before I start my 7 day climb to the roof of Africa with my dad.
Growing from Adversity!
The last couple of months consisted of waking up early, or rather Dad waking up early and then kicking my ass out of bed, every weekend around 6am Saturday and Sunday for a park run, or hiking (I Can’t remember when was the last weekend I slept in late), my gym visits have increased from 2/3 times a month to 3-4 times a week, my body has ached from exercise pain at least twice a week every week. It’s been brutal!
But here’s why it was all worth it, concentrating on getting into shape for the climb, took my mind off losing my job and put me in a better mental space, physically I was becoming fitter, and slowly things started coming together, I found a new job not long after, and I am in better shape than I’ve been in years. I’ve pushed my body beyond boundaries I never knew existed. We got to be outdoors in nature every weekend we even managed to see springboks close up (A bit to close for comfort at some point), zebras, wildebeest and so much more than I would ever have been exposed to if I decided to not follow through with this commitment because it wasn’t the right time.
So to answer the question why Kilimanjaro?
It was a bucket list idea, which then helped pull me out of the rut I was in. Now I get to go on one of the biggest adventures of my life. I don’t know if I will make the summit but I know that I get to attempt it with the man who has pushed me and motivated me not just these last couple of months but my whole life even when I fought against his efforts. If anyone is going to help me push through adversity and make that summit it’s my Dad. Together we have pushed ourselves beyond so many boundaries already and our journey hasn’t even began. So don’t wait for the right time, just do it!