by Elliot Natz
Note: This piece is published in The Climbing Zine, Volume 10
photo of towers in Canyonlands National Park, Utah by Luke Mehall
Golden era equals a time of discovery
And building of passion
An era of exponential growth
We all have a golden era
An expansion of self-expression
A way to solidify ourselves in our
Perception of the world
Yosemite in the ’60s
Saw a golden era of climbing
Bold new ascents
By bold new methods
Maybe I’m in the midst of mine
Climbing my way to the top of
Metaphorical walls in search of
A way to best express my
Eccentricities in a way that
I believe the world should
Interpret them and to better understand
Who I am and why I matter
Because, dammit
I
Fucking
Matter
Or maybe that’s hubris talking
I won’t know when my golden era was
Until I’m hooked up to machines
That do all the mundane work
For me
Reminding me of all the
Great things I was once able to do
That I once did.
And I can take stock of my life,
Analyzing the good and the bad
The fast and the slow
And I’ll be able to know
Just when my golden era
Was.
While I’m lying there
Amidst the buzzing and beeping
Maybe
I’ll be able to see
That a golden era
Doesn’t just start and stop
But rather accelerates and lulls
And continues from day one
Until those final seconds of life
Grasping onto the last terrestrial parts
Until the golden light shines
And I begin anew
Elliott Natz is a dirtbag with a dog, spending most of his days in and around Missoula, Montana skiing, climbing, and photographing the Bitterroot, Rattlesnake, and Mission mountains.
This piece is published in Volume 10, The Raw Issue, available in print and on Kindle.
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About us: The Climbing Zine was started in 2010 by Al Smith III and Luke Mehall. It continues to the day with the mission of representing the true essence of climbing. Our crown jewel is our printed version, but we also do the interweb thing, and Kindle.
We have also published four books: Graduating From College Me, American Climber, The Great American Dirtbags and Climbing Out of Bed, written by publisher, Luke Mehall.
