I heard the news last night that Sir Edmund Hillary had died.

I kind of resent the attitude of many mountaineers that idolize extreme achievements. They train in ultra-modern facilities, spend tens of thousands of dollars on high-tech equipment, and then push themselves to the brink of death for what often amounts to little more than bragging rights.

But there are a few who are different. And I get the impression that Hillary and Tenzing were two of these. Clearly, Hillary did not see the summit of Everest as the crowning point of his life achievements, but instead became compassionate about the impoverished people of the Himalayas and devoted his life to bringing them education and health care.

In my life, I hope to always find small adventures of my own, but I hope my biggest adventure will be investing in the people around me.

If you are at all fascinated by the mountaineering world and the characters it produces, I would like to recommend a very good book, Eiger Dreams by Jon Krakauer. A very good read, and a very good listen too, if you can find a copy of the audiobook (Brooklynne and I listened during a NC to MT road trip a few years back).