Mountains are cathedrals: grand and pure, the houses of my religion.
I go to them as humans go to worship . . . From their lofty summits,
I view my past, dream of the future, and with unusual acuity,
I am allowed to experience the present moment, my strength renewed,
my vision cleared. In the mountains, I celebrate creation.
On each journey, I am reborn.
--Anatoli Boukreev