It's difficult at best when a hero passes on to the next chapter. On May 6, 2023, the world lost a great light with the death of Dr. Tom Hornbein, a remarkable climber, doctor, father, husband, inspiration, and friend. I will forever miss his spirit and friendship, and be forever inspired and motivated by his example.

Never let success hide its emptiness from you, achievement its nothingness, toil its desolation. And so keep alive the incentive to push on further, that pain in the soul which drives us beyond ourselves. - Dag Hammarskjöld

Everest came down off Everest. It became, in a climbing sense, just another mountain to be approached and attempted within the context of our past experience in the Rockies, Tetons, or on Mount Rainier. Not quite, really. But much of the battle lay inside. That battle was nearly won.