I can't pick up a new book yet. My heart is broken and I've been crying intermitently since I finished it. It took me a week to read the 1st half and one late night to read the 2nd half. Once they started for the summit I couldn't put it down. Jon is a very good writer. Even though I knew the outcome I still felt hopeful and excited, amazed at the beauty, while they made the summit push. And I was crushed as the descent unfolded. Rob Hall's morality in staying with his client, Beck Weather's totally unlikely survival, Scott Fischer's illness, Lopsang Jangbu's guilt and grief, Yasuko Namba's being left for dead while she was still alive and all the others in the story. I guess it is because it is true that it has affected me so deeply. Everest is still in the news this week with people walking past a dying man, unable or unwilling to help; and another man who was fortunate enough to be rescued while in dire straits. Who can fathom why one lives and another dies. I think climbing Everest reflects everything human in us; our strength and will, our foolishness, our hope and longing, our sadness, our weaknessnes, our bravery, and ultimately how we are all connected to one another. Well, I've been joining Jon in the sobbing snotfest. I know what it is to fail to save someone. And I would like to thank Jon for introducing me to all those he wrote about, including himself and giving me the chance to love and care about them all.