I have to tell you, I never thought the human body and mind  could be pushed to this level. Joe Simpson taught me something  in his incredible journey of survival.
For Joe Simpson to descend 19,000 feet from the Andes Mountain with a useless right leg was an unbelievable accomplishment. There are few people in this world that can  accomplish that with two legs. The physicality of the situation is truly amazing. I feel that the mind is the key to survival. Once you give up mentally then you will succumb to the situation and the physicality of it all.  I think survival is a natural instinct for people. If your not surviving then you are dying, at the very least in life you  need to survive. That's not all you want to do in life, but  when your mind and body are in distress, human nature has a way of surviving. Survival was the main objective for Joe, when you can shut down all other issues and just concentrate on surviving you will give yourself a chance and I think this is what nature tells us to do.
     I thought it was very interesting the way Joe and Simon interacted with each other after Joe's accident. Joe watched Simon's face as he first looked at Joe's injured leg. We were able to hear what Joe was thinking about and what he thought Simon was thinking. Joe didn't want Simon to feel it was no use and that Joe's broken leg was his death certificate. Joe knew from that point on that, if he were to survive he would be risking Simon's life in the process.
     This story is not only an amazing account of survival but one of friendship and bravery. Simon's coarse of events are just as compelling as Joe's. Joe showed a tremendous amount bravery, physical and mental endurance by alive and continuing to work toward survival rather than toward his death. Simon on the other hand was physicaly in good shape, he had no broken bones. He did have frost bite but he could easily descend down the mountain on his own. Simon's bravery manifested in the way of  him helping his friend and in turn risking his own life to a very high degree. Joe wasn't sure how Simon would take the news about his leg. For a few minutes Joe thought to himself  that maybe he should lie and say that he only twisted his leg and that it was not broke. He felt if Simon thought the injury was bad enough  then he would consider Joe a dead man. When only two men are climbing and the coarse is as rigorous as the Andes Mountain and one of the men brake a leg it is almost inevitable that the person with the broken leg has signed their death certificate. Almost inevitable because Joe and Simon pulled it off. Although Simon didn't think so, until a few days later when Joe came crawling into camp.
     Simon was ready for the challenge. He didn't let Joe down, he immediately started to think of ways to get Joe down safely. When they couldn't think of any safe ways they decided to lower Joe down 350 feet at a time. Once at the end of the 350 foot rope Joe would brace himself and Simon would lower himself. I think the award for bravery in this story might belong to Simon. Joe certainly owes his life to him, if it were not for Simon , Joe would have died, this I am certain of.
     The story had me thinking to myself what can compel these men to endure such a treacherous adventure. One wrong move and your dead, one rock that is less secure than you had thought, one leap that was further than you had anticipated and it's over. Also the relentlessness of mother nature and the severe weather climates on these mountains. I think it is an interpersonal thing with these intriguing people They are competing with themselves and that can be some sturdy competition.
     Simon began lowering Joe as if he were in a race for his life. He was only worried about getting down, he methodically and frantically seamed to be on a mission to lower Joe as quickly as he could. It was as if  he stopped he would not be willing to continue. Perhaps so he wouldn't think of the danger he was putting himself in Despite Joe's cries to slow down, Simon forged on he wasn't hearing it. They had a good lowering system that was fast and unfortunately painful for Joe. If Simon hadn't moved along so fast, at the time of the rope cutting Joe would of been much higher on the mountain and it could of made it impossible for Joe to make it back to camp.
     When Joe finally crawled into camp, it was Simon who insisted on moving Joe right away after looking over his injuries. Despite Joe's pleas to rest and eat another day. Simon took charge in these situations because Joe was not able to think for himself. Simon was a true friend who showed bravery and the ability to think and perform under pressure. I also thought that Simon showed great character when he told Richard the truth about what happened on the mountain. Simon knew he would suffer criticism for his actions on the mountain and he could of just said," Joe fell " no one would of known the difference. Courage is doing the right thing when no one is watching.
     I hope if I was being  pulled off a mountain, I would have the ability and the clarity to cut the rope. I am not sure I would of thought about it. When I was reading the story I never thought that he was going to cut the rope, until he pulled the knife out. Then I remembered in the introduction that they discussed the cutting of the rope. I think the hard part is to cut the rope as a last resort,. after going over all other options before sending a man to his death.
     I'm not sure I learned anything profound about myself. The biggest lesson I learned is about honesty. I was very impressed with Simon's courage to tell the truth about the events on the mountain. I found the book really enjoyable and entertaining, it might be the best book I have ever read. I'm no book worm but I have read a bunch. I would love to see a movie version of  Touching The Void. I had trouble picturing what was happening. Joe Simpson is a very detailed writer and he was beautifully descriptive about all the aspects of the story. I still couldn't grasp or imagine what it looked like. I certainly felt a part of the story, I was pulled in from the very beginning.