At 29,028 feet (8848 metres) Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world. The first serious attempt to conquer Everest was made by an Englishman, Maurice Wilson, in 1934. But his assault on the mighty mountain ended in failure: what he considered to be the climax of his life turned out to be an anti-climax.
A veteran of the First World War, Maurice Wilson was so eager to stand on “the roof of the world” that he forsook his successful family business in pursuit of this aim. He expended all his capital on a secondhand aeroplane in which he made the six thousand mile journey from England to India, finally landing in Purnea, on the Nepalese border. Refused permission to proceed any further in his aircraft, he sold it and continued his journey towards Everest by way of Darjeeling and Tibet.
As he approached the last leg of his journey, all he had with him was a small tent, some rice, an automatic camera and a few other minor items. But he kept on climbing until he reached the height of 19,500 feet. April 21, 1934 was to be his 36th birthday. He planned to make the day even more memorable by standing on the summit of Everest on that day. With a few days remaining, he wrote these words in his diary: “Only 13,000 feet more to go. I have the distinct feeling that I’ll reach the summit on April 21.”
Soon after writing these confident words, a violent storm overtook him; the savage Himalayan weather conditions prevented him from climbing any further. He was forced to descend to his previous base. He was never to continue his climb. No one knows what happened to him next, but when the Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay was climbing on the mountain one year later, he found Maurice Wilson’s body and next to it his diary. The words that he had written a few days prior to his birthday were the final words he ever wrote. Maurice Wilson wanted to take his own picture on the summit of Everest. The eye of his automatic camera, he hoped, would capture his moment of triumph. But on April 21, there was no Maurice Wilson to rejoice in his own triumph, and no camera to witness it.
The saga of Maurice Wilson is, in altered form, the saga of everyone in this world. Everyone considers himself to be ascending towards the peak of good fortune; but in reality he is proceeding towards a destination where only death awaits him.
Some live only to cherish ambitions of success in this world, and die without seeing their dreams reach fruition. Sometimes the very objects of one’s desires elude one in this world. And if one finds what one seeks, it is the opportunity to derive full satisfaction from one’s finding that eludes one. Finders, then, are no better off than losers. Anyone who seeks the world is bound to lose out in the end. This is an undeniable fact of life, but few are those who realize it.
How bankrupt man is, but how wealthy he considers himself to be. How uncertain life is, but what trust man invests in it. Man is proceeding inexorably towards the unknown country that lies beyond death, but he reckons that he can build success for himself in this world. How ignorant are those who consider themselves wise in the ways of the world. What failures are those who consider themselves among the highly successful. □
The setbacks of life can be
a blessing in disguise
On August 9, 1984, an Iranian airbus was hijacked to Rome. One of the 294 passengers was a baby, Nasifem Porham, from Tehran. On release, all the passengers were given a routine medical checkup. When Nasifem’s turn came, it was found that she suffered from a serious heart malformation needing an immediate operation. An Italian doctor said that the hijacking of the aircraft had probably saved the baby’s life, for her aliment had been unknown before she was released from the plane. The operation was expected to be performed in Rome by Italian doctors.
The most powerful man in the world
powerless before the weakest creature
On the night of Sunday, August 30, 1984, a chirping cricket invaded the bedroom of Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Regan. Both the First Man and Lady were awoken by its sound, but though Mr. Reagan went back to sleep, his wife Nancy could not. Thinking that the cricket must be hiding in some plants, White House custodians removed them from the room, but at 4 a.m. on Tuesday night, the cricket once again raised its chirping sound, and again Nancy Reagan could not get back to sleep. Only when the radiator vents were taken apart and sprayed with insecticide did the cricket fail to reappear, but it had left its mark: expecting to hear the cricket again, the First Lady stayed wide awake.
