Summit Fever

When Rachel Earl's young husband, Harold set out to climb Mount Everest.

Rachel found herself vacillating between enthusiasm and anxiety, so I had been living in a nomad okay and get like he's not signing right now in the very next time that I got a call from hand here tends to pair Harold on the found and when he was so excited I just started bawling because I fear it was. Is he in a good place cannot even trust what he's saying. I know I know this Summit fever is still real and I think my has been hot and there's nothing I can do at this moment and this could cost him his life. This is family life today.

Our hosts are Dave and Ann Wilson and Bob Lapine. You can find us on one family life today.com when you're a young wife and your young husband is on one of the most dangerous journeys on the face of the earth be processed. If I do for today from Rachel and Harold's welcome to family life today. Thanks for joining us have a quest you know something that you just thought before I die, I want to conquer. Bob you know where my vision is your quest. Very good. If you have as much less that mine was when the Super Bowl yeah with the Detroit Lions never have never had a secret dream quest. I think this is a quest and that was to climb Mount Everest. Seriously, I would've loved seeing when he asked that we are doing this even start. I think I read the book, Everest and then I watched the movie I was. I always love climbing we like walking through a park.

She just up on top of the tree off of because everything like a little leaving South Africa and I my son and I got up at four in the morning he was 13 at the time and we climbed with it was a mountain that people are climbing on the time that we declined and we didn't even tell anybody.

We left it was dangerous, was probably so dumb, but it was exhilarating and awesome to climb Mount everything with his client about last week five grandkids under the age of five. We went up with 12 yeah our center middle son is Indians. He loves the client lives in Colorado. He's like were all going to go on this little two hour deal. It's up the thing back like okay it was six hours was grueling. We have one-year-olds on our shoulders 03 are getting wet around your neck like it was it was non-like his worst day of my life is for to be in the presence of somebody who fulfilled your real deal.

That's pretty big deal is not a pretty big deal that is not Bob Lapine got Harold and Rachel are all striving us to get on family life today. Welcome back because he thinks rather seriously and you got, you know what I've never met in my life.

He needed somebody that climbed to the summit of Mount Everest. Your turn.

This big thing from George originally side zero climbing experience. I don't know about these guys. A lot of our listeners know because of the blog that you do the girls family blog that's on YouTube. You've just written a book that tells not only your story, but the Everest story.

It's called higher calling and it does walk through something like this was a dream of yours that goes back to high school junior high.

How did it start here.

I had this dream when I was a kid at West Point.

I wrote out on my bucket list on their forget sitting in my barracks room and I wrote out from 1 to 10.

The top thing going to do my lifetime and the number one thing was climb Mount Everest. Why try. So for me I think this is the fact that I'm from Georgia. I never like the cold. I never like climbing hills and so I wanted to put myself in a situation to see what I was capable of.

It's the hardest situation exactly yeah that's kind of just who I am as part of the reason why wanted to join the military and then go to the old guard was to put myself in situations so that I could grow and evolve as a person as a leader and so when you wrote that on your list. Did you already have this long distance relationship with your girlfriend when you wrote that I did, which complicated things to share with her wrote down the neck pain before you not at first. Alexa came up with it and I decided the best time to do it was actually right after graduation right after we would've gotten married, so this will all take place. The story in our first year marriage trucks had a big phone call to call rates on their forget it. I was nervous.

I was nervous of how she can respond to all Texas you know one person to say special your spouse to be like know nothing of it. Especially given the time I had zero climbing experience right so I called her and I told her about it and honestly I did not get the response I was expecting at all weight limit. What did you think she would respond like so I I had thought that she would always be very apprehensive but maybe supportive with enough supporting documents and evidence I prepared. You can imagine yeah my barracks room you think down the facts, you know, here is ready to propel me prepare and climb and train that's not how it went and your boyfriends on the phone saying your fiancé babe you know this thing. I'd like to do just what I want I will know what you think about really love to climb Mount Everest. Is that how he said it is very nonchalant honestly think too much and slip it in there. He really thought that we had just previously cleaning a trek out to the Messiah tried out in Africa that were planning on getting together but it wasn't working out and so this is kind of like the pit he knows I never okay to roost in the Army you are okay with me. It really was just like okay this is kind of the pit. You know, I didn't know how sure he was about but I was open to listening. So I just said okay what if she were to said absolutely not. I would like to get deep. I would like to have told you that I would've said okay I understand you know this is not where we have to be together in this because that's what relationship is about. I the time.

Don't think I was mature enough to make that decision right.

I think that because my entire life I had only focused on me. Harold earls right. I wanted to go to West Point. I want to join Army.

This is my life and my future which is natural right when you're single. That's all you think about, but this was really the first time in my life that I also had someone else to consider. So at the time. I think that I probably would've kept pursuing for Ryan and is not the right answer. Absolutely not. I think that through time and through our marriage. I think that I've grown and be able to have that perspective that I didn't back then.

The origin of the ever said okay. Was number two on your well what was number two.

Oh man, I came away okay short and clearly as did it dawn on you wait he's serious about this, and although I didn't realize Everest is dangerous yeah right little bit over time where I would realize he is staying up all night researching a incense. I started asking questions I think we had just come back from a trip to Canada together so you're married at this point we were stealing and gain that point, I think, are celebrating 19 year anniversary or something of dating and I just ask the hard questions of how much does it cost, I how do you think you're going to make this happen and how you get it train all of those questions and he had answers for them and so I was like you have to take this seriously. Now a lot is hard something to know about Harold is he is not determined guy so I know he says he's going to do something that he is and so I had to delete and also know we are going into our marriage and so I can choose to support him through this.

Or if I down to be something that easily separates us right off the beginning, which is something I didn't want to do you remember the point that you thought he could die during a lot of different points but specifically when he was climbing the very first point was when I was in Colorado visiting a another military spouse and there was a snowstorm happening I just gotten off the phone with Harold where he told me that he was going be climbing down from advanced base camp data base camp and right after that call, he told me to be praying because of the weather people can easily get hurt right after I hang up the phone I get an email from Tommy my cousin was also on Everest as a base case manager telling you there is a horrible snowstorm but not to worry because in order to be safe. They are going to stay put and let it pass. I knew they were not staying safe because they were again climbing back down and I try to call Harold back. He didn't answer. I didn't know if he knew Tommy, Neil, and that is when I dismember breaking down on the floor in my friend's house is crying telling like this could be it.

Like I could very well lose my husband and this is just beginning really of the track before you this very emotional things on Everest. Something I learned about Rachel and I learned honestly about love through her was she had that choice to make, whether she was missed for me or not. And not only did she say like hey I support you. She said hey what can I do to help make your dream happen since this is your dream. This is now my dream as well on the run this race with you is like she stayed up late with me at night.

You are creating logo ideas to helping with funding ideas. It became our dream together and honestly that's something that we've taken with our marriage. From this point forward when you created your YouTube channels like that was us together because that was your dreams with like okay what can I do as a supporting husband to make this possible.

Whether it's a book. Whatever it was we've always had that mentality and I think it's made us so much stronger in our marriage because of it.

Instead of going to separate way.

And it's easy for couples to do so.

You have to take on the risk as well and you know I'm never climbed in the research to what is the risk.

How many people like it yes to some stats to give you some context in 2014 there was actually an avalanche.

So I did this in 2016 and 2014 there was an avalanche that killed 16 people, was actually the member we are watching the news and also a lady by the name of the Newco Garonne and she was the wife of a Sherpa house washing interview and check out a small child with her during the interview and she lost her husband and for me I think that's when it really started to set in that this is real. This is dangerous. This isn't fun and games, a bucket list item.

This really is life or death. You know, the more reading I did about the stats when you learn that you know 5% of the people. The summit end up not coming down because they die, you learn about the high-altitude pulmonary edema that happens it makes people, you simply died because of lack of oxygen you hear about just the pure people die simply out of exhaustion. That final pusher climate for more than 30 hours and literally people will die out of pure exhaustion, their body just stops. So I think the more I really started to dive into that. I realize, hey, this is no joke.

This is not something to play around with this is not some and play around our marriage, and quite honestly it was upfront. It was a pretty selfish thing to me right because I had it easy, right eye icon endeavors, but on the back and rituals can be the one that didn't have husband if I didn't come back right for me it was me pursuing my dream for her.

She had a lot to lose right she wanted family. She wanted kids, your reading these steps will serve her time when you went wait I got a wife now.

Maybe I need to just put this stream aside and people.this is not just me. I've got to cure her. I wish that I could tell you that I was wise enough to say yes, but that was in my personality back the night. I on the mountain Mexico summit fever. It's when you have a desire to summit so badly that you'll do anything to make it happen and I feel like I had that before I even got to the mountain. Write it up when I had put in so many hundreds of hours you know the rorty news articles about there so much things about it that I was fullbore head. No matter what it is that smart.

No, not at all, but I do think that God can take those personal desires and personal quests and turn them into something beautiful along the way and you are also doing for good cause.

It originally wasn't like that originally was honestly like out of a selfish pursuit write something I'm not proud of it is natural right I wanted to climb Mount Everest. We help put together the first Army team to go in climbed Mount Everest and I had a mentor command Sgt. Maj. Todd Burnett who I look up to more than anyone.

He was a cancer to major West Point. What I didn't know is how much I looked up to him, but he also struggled with PTSD 2.1 day he was to take his own life and I know I did at the time.

Some of that I just emulated in every aspect, a such a rock. A started hero had been blown up by more IDs in Iraq and any soldier so everyone looked up to me yet. He had these conflicting wounds internally and so for me that's when it became real because he said hey what you climb for something more more than just for the sake of being the first more than just the sake of your own glory while you bring awareness to an issue of PTSD and soda mental health that is really plaguing our military and I think for me at the time at 2122 years old. I didn't really know but as I got to learn more stories about active-duty soldiers about veterans who were actually going through that. That's what I think there are Everest expedition took on a whole new mission 16 as I hear you say that like don't know you that well just read your book and met you today, but it's like you walk for the unknown soldiers and now you you climb the mountain for unknown men and women that PTSD is that there's a heart and you that's a servant heart truly beautiful, yet I think it's for us and this is were we go back to your Rachel and I are hearts were always in the same place we always are running the same direction of God and us that we want to make a difference right and I think what became so beautiful diverse is like yes it started out as something personal. But the moment it got that mission behind it. That was our mission right I'll never forget.

We were in Tibet we haven't even gotten to the mountain yes was about a 14 day excursion just to get out the base camp and we did a an interview with Fox News in our publicist reach out to me. She said hey I gotta tell you this. There was this veteran that just reached out and said I need to talk to that man. You talk about man. That man was command Sgt. Maj. Todd Burnett.

He was the one doing the interview for us on our behalf raise awareness. We didn't know was that veteran that day. I plan to take his own life and so certainly Burnett was put in touch with them and he actually was able to help him essentially walk him off the ledge and talk with him and get him the help he needs and I wasn't the only time that happened.

And for me I think at that time. At 22, 23 years old. That's when I learned that there is something so much bigger works here then you know a kid climbing Mount Everest in an Army team climbing Mount Everest. Rachel, you're a wife who wants to love and support her husband, who was also watching him do something that is risky and life-threatening. I see two competing desires here right support and you want to be a part of the team and party wants to say. Do not do this. Please how to process all of well I will say, hoping that he found a little bit more purpose there and I had been praying the whole time that God would use the expedition for something more than he nail set when it started to take on that mission. It was giving me a sense of peace now is like I don't know what the plan is here that I trust it… If this was placed on his heart then okay there something here that we not see an ending clearly now, we've written a book about it that we have the opportunity to share with thousands of people so I think this really cool that God really did have his hand through all of the verse Proverbs 69 in his heart a man plans as well as the Lord determine the steps.

I can't think of more evidence of my own life and through the journey of God doing that I thought I was headed in one direction. Yes it was technically not direction but God had such bigger plans for my life than I could ever possibly see from the vantage point that I was a was ever a point on the mountain where before or during for either one of you where you are like that idea. One of my doing right now like I'd love if I could turn the back or even go back three weeks since we should've never taken the step yes I do have no conflicting ideas I had was it the best idea for me to fully support him or should I really had told him this isn't the best idea. I still don't really have the incentive that I like to believe that the best decision was to support them because were here now that I don't now because something still could happen but there was not no man right before Harold went on the summit place and he had just previously gotten sick at their altitude sickness is really common and he had called me on this and just trying about it was near Sicily that day.

I think saying that he wasn't gonna be able to climb and so in that moment me to let him talk about that in a second that I'm in that moment I felt heartbreak for him knowing everything he worked for about then a little bit of relief. Okay, he's not climbing right now so I can breathe. For this moment, I still wanted him to have the opportunity because I knew he was the type of person that might try to do it again and I didn't want to relive that moment I couldn't handle that that the hardest part for me was the very next day so I had been living in on them as okay am good like he's not climbing right now in the very next time that I got a call from him. Here comes chipper Harold on the phone after I just heard that devastated voice before telling me that he's leaving to climb to summit Everest in the next 10 minutes and I'm thinking you are just throwing like everything in your body. How on earth are you capable of going and when he was so excited I just started bawling because that fear was is he in a good place cannot even trust what he's saying right now. I know this summit fever is still real and I think my husband and there's nothing I can do at this moment and this could cost him his life and said that was nothing. The moment that I was like, did I make a horrible decision here, not for thinking that my husband would never be overcome by summit fever and not just as in the case just like were all human and we are us acceptable to you know bad things and making bad choices when Satan I asked him over and over like are you sure you're okay.

Over and over. He said yes and he didn't have summit fever and he was better and that his body was able to climb as petrified.

But then I just told him I loved him like four times over and over. Were you really better known. No actually talk to. I think it's interesting in life, especially for me in that moment I had focus so much on the dream. It was more like a daughter you following me. Am I following you and I was fullbore I was going to simply sacrifice everything quite literally everything. Our future is hard for me to think now we have a two-year-old and a one-year-old little boy especially during writing that book and that having to write those moments in relive those moments in here are two-year-old runaround and crawl on us. It made it very difficult and made it very revealing to me. Sometimes you can get in situations that you're all or nothing mentality. And that's not the right way to be. I wish to say that I would've thought about it differently, but I just wasn't the case. Would you do it today. No, no I would not in my thankful for the most that I had in my thankful for the experience. Undoubtedly it has shaped me as a person as a leader in my faith in ways that I would not be the same man that I am today, but would I go back and relive those moments if I the opportunity, especially knowing what I have now and all the wrist on the table today and if you're talking to a wife whose husband gets fueled by risk risk on the behaviors and the wife is just scared every time he's off to do something where a bone could be broken, or worse could happen you just tell her you just got a pray on trust Lord. I think that's hard. I know that Dave was and still is a little bit total daredevil like stupid kind of things. One of our first date.

He went to the top of this, like this little mountain on roller blades because this is can it be awesome if everything he goes straight down this hill not quite first. You know, just wanted to beat every record and do everything that somebody else couldn't do and I remember in my mind thinking I can control this and be this badgering nagging life.

Part of that was who he was and I see that in our sons to it as you guys were talking and thinking God puts a dream in us and I think that many times it is from God, but God also. I like how he shaped your dream because our dreams. When he put Dennis usually isn't just for us. It's usually for impact for other people and it shapes us. That's my love, Harold and Rachel. Just that you guys it became bigger than just you and I think for Dave. If I were talking to another wife. I would say first of all prayer got some great guy that you are praying nonstop without ceasing. Yeah, I'm sure you Harold and so depraved to ask God how can I support my manager who he is and who you created them to be NP beside him and his dream, but still talk some sense or just talk about your concerns and I think it'll be in again. I didn't climb out of her supply. Kiddo the summit in the ghetto rollerblading down a little hill but that risk-taking spirit that I think God puts in a lot of us and sometimes we hold the back of the times we express it in celebrating that in me, allowed me to start a church. She didn't say don't do it. It was almost as risky as my life, but eventually did ask questions like how we are. I don't know what nobody comes they might, you know, but it was okay, let's go where were going to the top of the mountain.

Why, because God's call is we don't know what can happen, but we have. To take this risk and I think it's a mindset thing so many times we see especially in the Christian world, not on going this is you sit back and you say I'm in a wait and see if God opens the store for me. Rather than saying hey I want to go and see if that doors open and on my prayers.

God lock the door and shin change my direction along the way, rather than just sitting back right. God wants us to live our life he wants us to passionately pursue the passions he puts in her heart that he doesn't want people to remain dormant. That's not the Christians that he wants. He wants people that are on the front lines that are pushing and following their dreams and impacting people and allowing him to steer them along the way.

I think I've said this many times from the pulpit. I don't know if I'm right or wrong, but Mike you hear these testimonies appear in your like, why doesn't God ever do that. My life like when you take a step you be on here telling your story again as if everything works out the way we want. But to climb a mountain, you gotta take the first step to start a church to change your marriage today you don't wait for your spouse, you take a risky scary.

I don't know it's gonna happen step and God will meet you right there so a guy who would have a passionate dream for something where there is risk involved in. His wife is saying I am petrified. This scares me to death.

I don't know if I can sleep at night. If you do this, would you tell that guy be true to your dream or would you say you need to die to self and honor your wife and this is a cut on my wife. I think you like to think you have now sent Hayden get a motorcycle when you're 25, 28, she said no and I like him on, and then at 56 so I get I think that's really important is likable with our one son who's a climber he claimed last year. He said oh yeah, there is this avalanche, and when I said I hope you have the prayer team at least call me a prayer team of people that are supporting you because Bob is having people behind you with a lot of strength of seeking God on your behalf. And I don't think God is ever going to put that desire in your heart that is in direct conflict with your spouse.

Now I think what it maybe is amazing. The timing is not right to be another thing right but I think what you do that and you're exactly right. You go to prayer right you say let's come around this in prayer and see what the bigger messages God.I feel this passion, but you honestly feel something different.

Let's pray around this and see if there's a bigger message here, so true all I know is 2021 on climate ever. I think I would die. You think there is no one size fits all answer for how you approach these kinds of things, but I think what you said, spending time together in prayer seeking wise counsel making sure you've heard one another that you're not just running past one another that if your fears analyze your fears or those rational or irrational fears what other people say analyze your ambition and say is this selfish or is this something God truly put on my heart and you guys and telling your story in the book take us into how you process these things and give us an example of how a couple can do this and what the outcome of those decisions can be the book that Harold and Rachel have written is called a higher calling, pursuing, love, faith, and Mount Everest for a greater purpose go to family life today.com to get your copy of the book or call us at one 800 FL today again the website is family life today.com. The book is called a higher calling by Harold and Rachel earls. You can also order the book by calling one 803 586-329-1800 F as in family L as in life, and then the word today. You know him this week when we are thinking about things for which we are thankful one of the things that comes immediately to mind for us is how thankful we are for you listeners who tune in every day and to connect with us. We hear from you. Sometimes it's when you hear something you don't like him family life today and we appreciate the feedback. We also hear from you. When God uses this program a significant way in your life. And of course that's very encouraging to us. Thanks to those of you listening thanks to those of you who also support this ministry family life today is completely list are supported. If it weren't for listeners like you who make either an occasional donation or who donate monthly as legacy partners. We could not continue to do all that we do. You may already be thinking about end-of-the-year donations. If you are I hope you'll consider family life is one of the places where you can make a urine contribution, and if you can donate today would love to send you as a thank you gift a resource you can use during the Christmas season with your children called the 12 names of Christmas dozen kid friendly Christmas ornaments that explain who Jesus is. Each ornament depicts a different title for Jesus. You can use these as a way to introduce your children to the one whose birth we celebrate in December. Again, the 12 names of Christmas is our thank you gift to you. When you donate to support the ministry of family life today. You can donate online@familylifetoday.com or you can call one 800 FL today to donate and we hope to hear from you. We also hope you can join us again tomorrow. Harold and Rachel earls will be back with us and we'll talk about their decision to live life out in the open online through their flaw in their video blog and explain to you not only why they made that decision.

Some of the challenges associated with the choice between them. For that I will think our engineer today.

Keith Lynch along with our entire broadcast production team on behalf of our hosts Dave and Wilson I'm bumping see you back next time for another edition of family life, family life, to use a production of family life of Little Rock, Arkansas. Accrue ministry help for today hope for tomorrow