Sublime: awe-inspiringly grand, excellent, or impressive. The very definition of sublime not only defines what it means to scale a vast range of mountains but it also subverts the other emotions that come along with climbing a mountain such as fear and panic; emotions that come more naturally to a human being when faced with the unknown and unexpected. As many mountain climbers, geologists, and explorers have conveyed throughout history, when faced with a terrifying or life-altering experience, one changes internally and emotionally no matter how long or short that experience lasts. What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.
It is the curiosity of human beings that naturally gravitated humans to explore, climb, and experience altitudes never before experienced by man; it was the novelty of being the first that blazed the trail toward sublimation. The natural curiosity that humans innately possess not only led to mountain climbing, but it also led to becoming more in tune with the planet that all life forms call home. Walking on a foundation that was not always a solid foundation, the ability to travel from one continent to another, scaling a rock that had perhaps once been a prairie, and observing rocks that encased a small universe within itself allowed humans to connect with not only the present, but also the past.
Observation via curiosity allowed scientists, theorists, geologists, and explorers the courage of conviction to think outside of the traditional and Roman Catholic box. It was nontraditional thinkers that debunked the theory that had been long believed as fact that the earth had been created as is, for there was no room for change or error as was the belief of the Roman Catholic church; everything is created perfect in God’s eye. The theory of Pangea, earthquakes, oceans, glaciers, and the shift of tectonic plates gave way to the discovery of extinct species, the collapses of empires, and also allowed present day society a portal if you will to the past. What was most admirable and interesting about these particular theories was the delicacy that each theorist practiced regarding societies faith, belief systems, and scientific discoveries. Burnet’s theory regarding the great flood allowed both science and religion based theories to exist without totally falsifying the other, for if the great flood had taken place and due to the lack of water, then surely there had to be less land than water. It was this theory that allowed the seven-day creation story to remain and also allowed the theory of an ever-changing planet to form.
The discovery and exploration of the planet not only inspired society to educationally and historically advance itself, but it also inspired people to explore and fall in love with the beauty and dangers of the world that we inhabit. Reality also came into play with exploration which I found admirable, for one person’s interpretation of reality is different from another. What someone takes away from an expedition depends entirely upon that person and their experience, how they view nature, and the type of emotion one is looking to gain from such an experience. As William Blake stated, a tree can move some to tears of joy and in the eyes of others, it is only a green thing which is in the way. It all depends upon individual reality.