Process

They watched a lone soul climbing the Mountain of Eternity from the outskirts of the village. No one could tell who this person was. A hunter saw them climbing while out in the forest one day, and soon, many villagers gathered into the forest to try to catch a glimpse of this lone climber. An elderly man brought a telescope, and each took turns to observe.

The Mountain of Eternity stretches all the way up to miles of cloud cover that never leaves. Those who climb it are on a journey that may never end. The elders believe that only the foolish or the arrogant claim it is possible to reach a top because no one who has climbed the Mountain has ever returned after they breached the cloud covers. Many townspeople think they reach their end once they touch the clouds. The gods watching strike them down for their folly.

It takes at least three weeks for anyone to reach the cloud covers of the mountain, so a few curious people set up camp in the forest to observe. They wanted to see if they could witness the moment a person is taken into the heavens by the wrath of the gods.

The mountain, unlike many other mountains, contains caves that can go anywhere or nowhere. The climber often took detours and disappeared into these caves to only come out higher through an exit further up. The people were surprised such a climber would know their way so intimately among the caves. They wondered if this climber had explored these places before.

The strangest thing about this climber, however, was not that they knew their way around caves. Soon enough, the observers would be entertained by the odd movements the climber made. This climber would often times go back down and in zig zag motions before going back up again. Most of the movements seemed erratic and uncoordinated. Was it a dance or ritual?

The people joked that this climber was really a performer for the circus, and a few left laughing. News of this strange climber reached other towns quickly, and within two days, there was a small gathering of tourists with their own gear, watching them maneuver their way up the mountain. The people were curious, and they wanted to pry into this odd world they did not understand.

About a week into the climb, the observers noticed that the climber had slowed down and spent more time in the caves. Perhaps they were losing hope in ever reaching the top? The people were disappointed by this turn of events, and the crowd grew smaller. There wasn’t much entertainment in watching someone lounge away in the darkness.

By the second week, the remaining observers watched as the climber started to climb horizontally. Instead of climbing upwards, the climber was oddly going through great lengths of difficulty to move in the wrong direction, thought the adults. Although unexpected, the group did not reach out to say much to the villagers that left. There was no reason to arouse their interests in something so mundane. The kids, however, were strangely captivated by this change. The adults could never understand why, but the kids whispered secrets along themselves that they could never truly demystify.

By the third week, the group had diminished to a group of five people. They ate together, played together, worked together, and went to sleep together. They prayed together that this person would reach the top safely, and each day, they lit a candle for them. The youngest member composed a hymn for this traveler and sang it every morning. The oldest member painted the scene to memorialize the occasion. One member, the most invested, made a journey map that captured all the paths the climber took. But the third week came and passed, and the climber did not reach the top. The group—except for one—disappointed and exhausted and a little embarrassed, went home.

Many weeks went by as the climber danced their way across the mountains. The lone observer recorded all. In the sunshine, in the moonshine, in the snow, and in the rain, they awoke to their duty. No one knows how long this dance went on, but when it finally ended, on a faithful morning, the observer had watched as the climber breached the cloud covers and disappeared into the light of the sun. The observer finished the journey map, looked at their finished work, and wept.

At long last, they could see the meaning behind the wild and strange movements. The observer saw the message, but knowing this was only a message that only they would understand, they buried the journey map in the ground, and went home. In a few months, another climber would be spotted, and a new observer would be at their side. A new dance would begin.