Hello, my name is Frank and today I want to tell you my story. I am a man very passionate about what I do; I always liked extreme things. Thanks to the constant support I received from my father, who had a lot of money, over time I became a very arrogant person, with no respect for anything. I thought everything was within my reach. Every day I did something extreme with my life, from surfing in the icy waters of the North Pole to walking in the Sahara desert. Nothing was impossible, and I belittled everything... until the fateful day I underestimated a mountain.
My arrogance gave me the confidence to climb one of the most dangerous mountains in the world: the famous Mount Everest. I thought it would be so easy. So much was my arrogance that I decided to climb without any particular guide. It was me, my pride and my vanity against the mountain. Of course, for this I had practiced for months, strengthening myself both physically and mentally to be able to undertake this challenge. Without any fear in my being, I headed to the most dangerous side of the mountain to climb.
At first, everything went very well. I climbed a good stretch of this impressive mountain. I was already at about 10,000 feet and I felt unstoppable. Sometimes I stopped to do stupid things, like insulting the mountain, telling it that it was nothing for someone like me, not knowing that, little by little, I was digging my own grave. It seemed that the mountain had ears.
The hours passed and I continued to climb the mountain without any problem, although already at a slower pace because the weather began to change abruptly. With some fear, the night surprised me, and I had to reach a small ledge. The wind did not stop blowing, and with difficulty I set up my camp to survive this turbulent night. I set my alarm early so that I could continue and finish this trip. It seemed that my confidence was being placated by the mountain storm.
The next morning, when my alarm clock went off, I noticed that my tent was still being moved by the strong winds. This all seemed very strange to me, so I went outside and saw that it was still snowing heavily, and the air was rushing hard. Annoyed by the situation, I told myself that this stupid mountain was not going to get the better of me. With difficulty, I put my things away and continued moving forward, infatuated with following my route. This time I was climbing with much more difficulty; I had become slower than usual. I had to use some oxygen that I had brought with me to be able to resist the intense weather. I am a highly competent person and was well prepared, so much so that I didn't even imagine I would need to use oxygen. Anyway, I continued up the mountain with a lot of problems. I only had the goal in mind, being a very stubborn person. When I was relaxing because I felt I was doing well, I slipped on a slope I was climbing. The winds were so strong that I was swept into the air, taking me far away from the route I had marked.
Now I was very scared, as I fell in an unknown place. By a miracle I didn't break anything when I fell, because my backpack cushioned the blow. The wind was still blowing hard and I, somewhat annoyed, thought that the mountain was playing with me. What a childish thought, come to think of it! I pulled out my map to try to locate myself, but the strong winds snatched it out of my hands. I cursed this mountain even more. I tried to use my cell phone, but I had no signal, and it was not working properly. It was very strange, it seemed as if there was some kind of magnetic field in this area.
With no more to do, I kept moving forward despite the immense wind that was blowing. Fortunately, my clothes were still keeping me alive. Hours passed and the atmosphere became darker than usual. I began to hear noises, like moans, they were like wailing. I started to get scared; I could have sworn I saw a person walking quietly in the snow, but I could not see him clearly because of the storm that did not stop. I pitched my tent once more, but seeing that my supplies were low, despair overcame me.
The next morning, the storm had not gone away and the sky was still dark. The noises around me did not stop and fear gripped me. Desperate, I asked the mountain for forgiveness, not knowing what to do. I ran away, trying to find a way out. In my desperation, I fell down a cliff and reached an area I did not recognize. I got up, somewhat dizzy, and as I touched the ground, I felt a hand that was not mine. When I turned around, I saw something that made me freeze: a body frozen in the snow. I panicked and got up suddenly, walking quickly away.
Devastated, I thought that would be my fate as well. I knelt down and, in tears, asked the mountain for forgiveness. My tears were freezing on my face, and the pain was unbearable. Already resigned, seeing that the mountain did not answer me, I decided to surrender. I lay down on the ground, waiting for death. As my suit was still warm, I took off all my clothes, staying in my underwear, waiting for the mountain to do its job.
Resigned and freezing on the ground, my eyes began to close and a deep sleep came over me. I no longer felt pain and, little by little, my vision faded. With the last lights in my eyes, I saw a huge human-like beast, about ten feet tall, approaching me. It was a completely white creature; I thought it might be the legendary yeti. In my mind, I knew this was my punishment for underestimating the mountain. After that, I closed my eyes completely. Everything went black and I felt nothing. I remembered all my acts of vanity and pride throughout my life and thought that this was a worthy end for me.
I woke up suddenly thinking that I had died, but great was my surprise when I realized that I was in a kind of bed made of stone, with a thickly padded fur that served as sheets. When I looked around, I saw that I was in a kind of improvised house inside a cave; there was even a fireplace that heated the place. Very surprised, I didn't know what had happened when, suddenly, a voice was heard saying: "you already got up". At the same time, a huge person entered, almost three meters tall, if I calculated correctly, he was two and a half meters tall, with a white coat and a huge white beard; only his eyes were visible. This person was the one I had mistaken for the yeti. Incredulous, I asked him what this place was and who he was.
He told me that he was a mountain hermit and had lived here for a long time. I realized that this man had inspired the legend of the yeti. He went on to tell me that long ago he found a hidden cave in this mountain that provided water and shelter, so he decided to make it his home and meditate. He completely isolated himself from humanity, learned many things from the mountain and taught me the value of the mountain, that he was like a person to be respected. His words filled me with regret; I knew that I had been arrogant with the mountain and that I did not give it the necessary respect.
After a while, Temzin, that's the name of the mountain man, took pity on me and, seeing my regret, decided to take me in for a while. He taught me survival skills; the huge man knew Mount Everest like the back of his hand. He taught me how to find food and how to hunt some animals; of course, we had to go down the mountain a bit and, at other times, go up to hunt. It was a wonderful time; I spent a whole week with my friend Temzin. He was a very kind person.
After replenishing my strength and learning from this imposing figure, I decided to leave the place and say goodbye to Temzin. The man was a little sad, but at the same time happy because I had made a friend. Temzin had gathered all my things and handed them to me so that I could go on my way.
After I left the place and went out at a pace I was more familiar with, I turned to look at my friend, but he was gone. I told myself that, for someone so big, he was pretty fast, and continued on my way. On the trail, which was now safer, I began to think about whether this was really what I was looking for: to conquer the mountain. A doubt entered me and I reflected on the decisions I had made in my life. I was about to reach the summit; I was at 8,000 meters, not far away, but something in me told me that I should not continue advancing. I braked suddenly and only saw the summit; I laughed and then I started to go backwards. Coming down the mountain, I had nothing left to prove. Mr. Temzin had opened my eyes and I decided to grow up for once. The mountain changed my life.
When I finished descending the mountain, a group of people were waiting for me with my father, very worried because I had been missing for a long time. I calmed my father down and told him that I was lost, but that I had found my way home. This was also part of my way of life. My father hugged me and told me to stop doing annoying things like that. I replied that I had nothing to worry about anymore, because the mountain had taught me a lesson. On the way, my father told me that the yeti had been seen around and that it had plucked some medicinal leaves from a neighbor's crop, but he told me that these were just silly rumors. I realized that Mr. Temzin had taken good care of me and I thanked him in my mind for all the trouble.
After some time had passed, I decided to change my life. I took up archaeology, and my father was glad that I gave up that absurd life of danger. Now I am studying mythologies and archaeology; perhaps the other myths are also unknown men, hahaha! And that's all in my story. It only remains to tell you not to be influenced by your conceited thoughts, because life will always bring you down from your cloud, as it did with me. Remember that youth is not eternal to waste it on nonsense. Greetings and take care of yourselves, survivors!