Getting back in touch just like that

[nand...@gmail.com]

Hey friends,

 

Thought of getting in touch with you all just like that, as it has been quite a while since I had been meaning to do so. (neither is this an anniversary thingy, though I miss Jafar’s monthly updates!)

 

Of late, my mind has been regularly wandering back to our days at Kili and almost whole of last Sunday was spent going through a lot of pictures snapped at Kili, really cool (though family didn’t really agree)! The wine indeed has got better and better, Serhan & the bottle is still full in spite of taking regular swigs!

 

Recently, had been reading about a lot of accidents in the mountains, what with the unfortunate incident at Everest base camp about 2 months ago – it was the worst incident ever since mankind attempted to conquer Everest. The fact that it happened around 19,000 ft around the base camp that some of us were planning to go made me relate to it even more. The plight of Sherpas only got me to revere even more about the efforts of Nick/Asumani/John & their team who took good care of us.

http://online.wsj.com/articles/sherpas-fate-and-the-dangerous-business-of-everest-1400780100

 

A silver lining has been the news that a girl of 13 years old conquering the summit and almost becoming the youngest on top of Everest. Very inspiring story, esp. when one considers her background and the fact that she had to attempt from Tibetan side.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-27599570

http://news.discovery.com/adventure/extreme-sports/13-year-old-climbs-everest-youngest-female-ever-140527.htm

 

Last week, climbers went missing and are presumed to have lost their lives at Mount Rainier.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/06/02/officials-say-search-for-missing-mt-rainier-climbers-too-risky/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140602-mount-rainier-mountain-climbing-liberty-ridge

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2645140/No-chance-survival-Six-climbers-missing-Mount-Rainier-presumed-dead-authorities-say-never-able-properly-search-area.html

 

Going through these reports, I have really come to cherish our days together more and be thankful that we all came back in one piece. Also, may God bless those who took the decision to turn back last year when a few of us attempted Rainier.

 

These have also made me appreciate what we achieved even more now esp. in the kind of shape (round) I find myself! Its soon going to be 2 years since we did it and maybe we have to plan some kind of get together, to again go through our memories at Kili/Rainier as well as be thankful for the privileged lives we all lead.

 

Missing you all! I went back a year of our message and found that Blake Patricia has turned a year old (belated wishes & blessings) and Helen’s b’day is coming up soon on the 11th. (Where the **** is Raj?).

 

Cheers,

Nandoo

 

[Serhan Secmen]

Nadoo, thanks for the thoughtful email. I too was thinking of our last climb attempt

 at mt. rainier. When we could not make the summit and had to turn back because of the safety issues, it was not a disappointment for any of us - and i am proud of our group for having that sentiment.

my heart and mind oscillates between two seemingly contracting ideas: one is reinhhold messner's motto "without the possibility of danger, adventure is impossible"; the other is, we are responsible to our existence, to our friends and families such that we would never put ourselves -or each other- at any type of physical danger.
I think the zest that makes the journey interesting is to find that mental challenge (seemingly dangerous, but actually safer than crossing an average street), and ability to conquer it with the help and encouragement of each other. that's why i like climbing the mountains, in the way we climb them: in style and with friends i trust!

btw, i love the "Where the **** is Raj?" lets start a hashtag #whereisraj see how much traction we can get.

Aysu and I are tackling our next climbing challenge at italian dolomites this july. it will be an official wharton leadership trip, and i cannot wait to share the learning we will have with y'all on our next trip.

Cheers

Serhan

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[Sam Jha]

Nice email Nandoo!

 

Not to pile on the list of accidents but I just saw another one.

 

Intel exec among those feared dead in climbing accident 

			Intel exec among those feared dead in climbing accident A vice president at Intel is among the six climbers presumed dead in a climbing accident.
			View on money.cnn.com	Preview by Yahoo

 

Serhan - I am glad you guys gave up when the conditions became too risky.

 

Regards,

Sam

[nand...@gmail.com]

Hey Sam/Serhan,

 

Great to hear from you guys. The intel VP was involved in the same accident on Mt. Rainier.

 

It takes lot of courage at times to take the right decision, at times you have to let the ‘head’ take over your ‘heart’, esp. when life is at stake.

 

My immediate thought after Kili was to go on searching for higher summits, tougher climbs and some other crazy ideas. But, we always have to consider the probability and downside of risks and there is no point in putting oneself in greater dangers, if you mean the world to at least one person. There is no dearth of challenges in life, getting back in a more ‘acceptable’ share is currently one I’m looking at!

 

I felt it may have been a depressing message, so wanted to purge it out a bit. #whereisraj. He is always the one remembering birthdays and usually the initiator of a chain of messages along with Jafar.

 

Serhan/Aysu – all the best with your trip to Italy, I am sure it would be wonderful and you’d find some time to check out the local scenery.

 

Hoping to catch up with you all one of these days!

 

Ciao,

Nandoo

xoxo

[Rajesh Unni]

Dear Serhan / Aysu,

 

All the best friends and have fun.

 

Please do share your learnings with us. Would have loved to do this but just that clocking time at home is being closely monitored these days J

 

Cheers,

 

Unni

 

From: gok...@googlegroups.com [mailto:gok...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Serhan Secmen
Sent: Tuesday, June 3, 2014 8:10 PM
To: Go Killi Group
Subject: Re: Getting back in touch just like that

 

Nadoo, thanks for the thoughtful email. I too was thinking of our last climb attempt

[Joelle K Tramel]

Thanks, Nandoo! Blake just turned one over the weekend. We are having a lot of fun with all our girls!

Nice to see everyone's name pop up on email :) I have a picture of mt.Kili hanging up in my living room that is the center of every conversation when someone new comes into our home. Also, my brother just shared that Nick Basso started his own company on Kili: friendsofkili.com. 

Miss you all!

xo

Joelle

[nand...@gmail.com]

Hi Joelle,

 

Nice to hear from you and Blake is looking so cute!

 

I checked out Nick’s site and it seems quite awesome. He always seemed to have that entrepreneurial spirit and wish him all the best! Came across the ever smiling face while browsing through!

 

Cheers to all, hoping to hear from more of you!

xoxo

Nandoo