Is life an endless series of mountains to climb?

“After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended...”

A Russian friend, the brilliant photographer Masha Osipova, published this text on Facebook today.
And immediately feelings of sadness were experienced.
For a friend to see life in that way.
Because it seems to express defeatism.
Like life is a hopeless course of things one can only passively suffer.
Life being only an endless series of mountains to climb and responsibilities to have.
And although once on top a vista can be enjoyed, by stealing a view, obligation is felt to go down quickly to suffer climbing a new mountain.

It is a way of handling the own life as almost a burden.
Like a tough job.
A martyrdom.
An exhausting, permanent expedition.

And life is like that.
That is, if one chooses life to be in that way.

Life can be the way of the Cross.
Or…….. life can be a beautiful and graceful dance.
It is all in the mind and heart which approach to life one chooses.

However, the way one chooses to see life: it is not always a choice.
In many cases it is an imposition.
Things can happen in the life of a person that decide how life is experienced.
Infiltrating and dominating the point of view with which life is approached.

A good example we find in the statement of the friend.
“After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.”
Indeed, if that is what life has to offer, to get as the only reward of climbing a hill to see many more hills to climb, life sucks for sure.
What an exhausting, demoralizing and de-motivating exercise life is, when it is seen in that way.
No wonder people with that philosophy in life will at one point just sit down halfway a hill and give up.

Stopping their process of growing.

But, is it true that in life one finds on the top of the hill only more hills to climb?
Yes and no.
It is up to ourselves once arrived on top of a hill to come to conclusions.

One conclusion to consider is that each hilltop reached, can be the last one in life.
Because in principle possibly the climber can shortly after reaching a top die.
Before to start climbing the next hill.
Hence, the hills that can be seen from the top reached, are not necessarily the next ones to climb.
When that is realized, the importance of the hilltop on which one is standing becomes of much greater importance.
And what lies possibly ahead, diminishes in importance.
It is about the relevance between where one is versus where one may go.

A practical and pragmatic person will quickly decide that the hilltop reached is the best ever and the next ones are for another day to worry about.
To be able to enjoy 100 % where one is without being bothered what may or not may come.

To worry about the future and have that influence the actual moment of living, comes from not having eliminated yet the power of the imposition.
Past experiences at a younger age disrupt existence often profoundly.
Often they have a deep and long emotional impact.
That keeps a person in the past through memories and traumas.
When somebody is haunted by the past, one is worried about the future.
And consequently, the landscape of life is perceived as a series of cruel mountains to climb.

Dealing with the past and being able to leave that behind makes one reach hilltops without much effort.
Where one dances celebrating life as the perfect party.

Let’s dance, Masha!