Top Time Tip #98
Sir Edmund Hillary - A Man Who Changed His World
17th January 2008
Wow, here we are in 2008.
Down Under we've had the best summer weather in years – sun, calm still days and all the delicious joy of summer holidays. If you've sent me an email since about December 17th I'm not even going to apologise for not answering! Life balance is alive and well here in New Zealand at this time of the year! An almost complete break from email is WONDERFUL therapy. (Sanity gap strategy – have at least one email-free day per week. You'll feel much fresher for it.)
A couple of days' work wriggled past me this week, but once this ezine goes I'm taking another week's holiday - a ‘Big Number' birthday celebration this coming weekend requires a further week of serious relaxing with family and friends. Some would say it seems to be one long holiday here - I'm working on it, brothers and sisters!
All the very best for the year ahead, and may all your endeavours bring you delight.
Sir Edmund Hillary - A tribute to a humble man who changed his world
All over the world tributes are pouring in to the family of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man to conquer Everest back in 1953 and a man every New Zealander is proud to claim as ‘ours'. But let me leave my Canadian/Aussie friend Cath DeVrye, author and speaker, to talk about him: her memories epitomise the ‘Sir Ed' many knew.
“I had the privilege of meeting Sir Edmund Hillary on a few occasions and was in awe of my childhood hero when invited to his home in New Zealand. Although well into his seventies at the time, he retained a larger than life presence. And, for an international icon, the first man on top of the world, he remained one of the most down-to-earth men I've ever met.
“‘Just call me Ed,' the former bee keeper encouraged.
“Unlike those ‘famous' for fleeting appearances on reality television shows, Sir Ed made his mark over decades of true human achievement - and somehow managed to remain humble throughout. The same feat today would have resulted in multi-million dollar endorsements and minders but he chose to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground and remain in the same modest family home.
“It's easy to be disappointed when meeting a living legend but my respect only grew as time passed. A humble hero, he seemed surprisingly almost shy when questioned about his achievements. I asked if he had visualized and always known he would be the first man on the roof of the world.
“‘No,' he replied. ‘Of course I had a goal. I wasn't just tramping around and found myself on top of Everest. However, I didn't know I would make it because there were so many uncertainties. But, what's the point of having a goal if you know you're going to make it? What's the challenge in that?'
“I realized his wisdom behind that question and that we often don't set our personal goals high enough, settling instead for mediocrity. Sir Edmund was just one of many members of the British climbing team and apparently - as someone from the colonies - was not part of the ‘A team' for the ascent. Instead he was relegated to the ‘B team'. However, when the primary climbing party turned back, Sir Edmund and Tenzing Norgay plodded on; without the technology available to climbers today.
“Well over six feet tall even in his 80's, Sir Ed was a big man with a big heart; both literally and figuratively. He claimed that his biggest achievement wasn't the first foot print on Everest. Instead that one step allowed him to make a more lasting footprint on the planet via the Himalayan Trust he founded and fundraising he was able to do. To date the Trust has built over 26 schools and hospitals in the Everest region.
“Most people have no desire to risk their lives climbing a mountain but we all have those figurative mountains in our everyday lives; sometimes seeming like insurmountable challenges looming large above us. But, whether we're on a mountain or off, we still need to tackle those challenges in the same manner one climbs a mountain…one step at a time - and not make mountains out of everyday molehills. As Sir Ed once said: ‘It's not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.'
“His legacy of good works will continue to be passed on. It matters not most that he was the first man to stand on top of the world - but what he stood for his entire life. Thanks Sir Ed for your inspiration!”
Catherine DeVrye www.greatmotivation.com
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