Disclaimer: For my Non-American citizen readers out there, I won’t blame you for skipping this journal but you might find it interesting to delve into the oxygen deprived mind of a proud American from a small farming town in California!
Happy Independence Day to all of my American friends and family out there! On my rest days, we have a lot of downtime to read, write, nap, eat, watch movies, and one of my favorites, reflect. Today, I’m going to deviate a bit from my normal journals to share my gratitude for my country. Why? Because the United States provides me the freedom to chase my dreams and I think that is pretty damn cool.
I want to start with an analogy because they can be a fun way to share ones perspective and since I am a Los Angeles Lakers fan, I’m going to use Lebron James as my example. For those of you that live under a rock, he is a basketball player who recently burned Cleveland for the second time by signing with the Lakers. Anyway, back to the point of my analogy, over the past 10 years, he has been the best basketball player in the world but during that time that have been better passers, better 3 point shooters, and better rebounders. What makes Lebron James great is that he does almost everything really well and is a dynamic player who makes those around him better. It’s possible to find areas in which he can improve and he definitely has his off games but no one can deny that he is a great player. Because of this greatness, he is constantly in the spotlight and often, we overlook the successes as the norm and focus on his failures.
That analogy was a shot from the hip but I think it’s a darned good parallel to how many Americans judge our country. With great responsibility comes great scrutiny, as it should, but please don’t over-scrutinize to the point that you forget our countless blessings.
If success is built on learning from failure and greatness can by simply defined as considerable success, greatness can only be attained by learning from countless failures. As American’s we need to remind ourselves of this when our nation falls short, learn from it, and then strive to be a force of positive change. Don’t succumb to joining the peanut gallery epidemic.
Perhaps you have not had the opportunity to travel the world and your perception of America is only through the American lens. That’s completely ok but as a climber and traveler, who has the opportunity to visit some less visited destinations, I am constantly challenged to reflect on what it means to be an American. Make no mistake about it, it can be an uncomfortable and heavy burden that comes with a lot of scrutiny but I welcome it. I see myself as an ambassador on each of my journeys with the opportunity to be a positive force and change the perception of American’s throughout the world.
As I made my trek to K2BC, I had the great opportunity to interact with the porters. These people are residents of the Gilgit-Balistan region of Pakistan, an impoverished region that lacks most of the amenities that we Americans take for granted in our everyday lives. As I walked the valley, it was impossible to ignore the incredibly positive dispositions of these locals, despite the tough conditions. They were grateful for the opportunity work and sincerely excited to have the opportunity to learn more about us Americans. This served as a sobering reminder of the incredible blessings that we have in the United States and the individual responsibility that we have to change the perception of us around the world.
If you have one takeaway from this message, I hope that it is an appreciation of the freedom and opportunity that the United States provides to its citizens. Forget about your qualms with the current or previous administrations. Forget about that recent Tweet or a policy that you disagree with. Why? Because our generation has a tendency to only focus on the here and the now. We have been conditioned to desire instant gratification and are quick to forget the big picture. Take a few minutes on this Independence Day to consider the blood, sweat, and tears that our parents, grandparents, great grandparents, and so on have shed to shape this great nation of ours.
Do not take that freedom for granted. Instead, I hope that you will cherish it, use it to make a difference in the world, and, of course, chase your dreams!
Even when she is on the other side of the world, Mom is looking out for our team with Freedom Peanut M&M’s. They lasted about 3 minutes. love you, Mom!
Great posts today. Make America proud. Parental observation: looks as though you are losing weight already. You are going to need your strength to pull Geoff and Jesse up the hill. Eat more M & Ms and Pakistani BBQ. Love, Dad
Thanks, Dad! Don’t worry, I’m probably still the biggest guy on the mountain, just like those marathons! You know I’ll always be ready when needed.
Wonderful post you wrote for The Fourth of July. Judy Chase
Thanks you, Judy! It was from the heart.
You make us proud, John! God bless America and God bless you, your team and your journey. Be safe.
Well said, John.
Wow what a potent post. It’s great to be reminded that all of us can play a important role in how people view our amazing country. Thanks for representing our country with positive action and attitude.
Spoken like a true American. The M&M’s look great, just need to add hot dogs and apple pie. BBQ Is close.
Take care, your true fun and dream coming soon
John, I am so excited to follow you on this amazing journey. Know that your Heritage family is eagerly watching you as you follow your dreams.–Mrs. Boss
Hi John,
Farmor and I were very pleased with your 4th of July blog. We are proud to have a grandson who feels this strongly about our country. Thank you John.
We are having some Danish company this sunday and Monday. Elleen and her husband and daughter, Ellen is my cousin Alex’s daughter. Ellen was an au pair with the Cattani’s when their girls were small. This was before you were born.
The weather here in Arvin is typical for this time of the year.
Our prayers are with you and your team for safe trek.
Love Farfar
John- Uncle Bruce and I appreciate your putting out that message of openness and honesty, for we too are grateful Americans. The flags (American for the Fourth of July and prayer for our mountaineering godson) are flying proudly in the front yard!
There are so many people that I know from our generation that should read this and remember what it took to get where we are and that we have a bright future ahead of us. Thank you for posting!
When I read the above amazing post / essay… I was so very proud of you! You expressed beautifully what we should all remember, as Americans! I do believe that traveling to other countries and interacting with the locals, gives us SUCH an appreciation of all that we have here!
Another thought that entered my mind was… Why was it such a battle to get you to write your English essays in school??? And here you are just brimming with beautifully expressed words… with no prodding from Mom!
I wondered how you were going to spend the day. I see you had your priorities straight. Celebrations here in LA were lively. Picnic and a concert at the Hollywood Bowl and and even an afternoon at the beach with some Arvin neighbors. The drive home was crazy as I think there wasn’t a block in LA that wasn’t shooting off illegal fireworks. The entire sky was one explosion after another. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of it didn’t light up your sky.