"Are You Going to Let Your Husband Climb Again?"

It's amazing the questions and remarks I have been getting from people when they hear about Dale's experience on Mt. Rainier.

"Let's keep that boy home!"

"A thrill seeker, is he? One of those adrenaline junkies?"

"You need to keep him off the mountain for a while."

"Are you going to let him climb again?"

In my heart, I know people ask this because they care. I get it. But when I tell people that he has plans to climb again, I am getting a lot of raised eyebrows and "Hmmm....s" and "Ohhhh.....s". I had one friend flat out argue me and imply that he was basically reckless and putting his dangerous hobbies before his family.

That would be like me saying to someone, "I've noticed your husband has gained a lot of weight around his mid-section. That drastically increases his chances of dying from heart disease, you know." Or to my friend Erin, who is married to a cop, "Erin, I know Matt is beyond passionate about his job and loves it with everything that he has, but don't you know how many police officers die in the line of duty each year? Maybe he should find a new line of work, at least until your two children are grown."

Honestly, to give you a little insight to our marriage, we don't "let" or "not let" each other do anything. Listen. Dale loves mountain climbing. He is not a thrill seeker or an adrenaline junky. He likes to physically challenge himself and meet his goals, and there's a big difference. The guy has never even tasted alcohol. He is responsible and reliable, and if climbing mountains lights his fire, well, then I am behind him all the way.

You can't live your life in a safe little bubble. In 1998 my husband was diagnosed with stage II Hodgkin's Lymphoma. One of his tumors took up 1/3 the width of his chest. My point is...life is meant to be lived. What if I said, "No way, no more mountain climbing!" and he had another giant tumor growing in his body?

We support each other. He knows how passionate I am about my missionary work...even though I could catch Malaria, or AIDS, or Dengue Fever, or die from food poisoning, or in a plane crash, or I could die on the way to the airport. He backs me up because he knows I come back from those trips a happier, more grateful person who counts every blessing and doesn't waste a single moment sweating the small stuff.

I know how lucky I am to have a husband who supports my dreams, and I want to fully support his dreams, too. He is an amazing husband, and he deserves that from me. And yes, he has signed up to attempt the summit of Mt. Rainier again in September...and I'll be there, sitting at the computer watching his satellite tracker, cheering him on the whole way.