Taking Risks

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“Sometimes it’s riskier not to take a risk. Sometimes all you’re guaranteeing is that things will stay the same.” – Danny Wallace

A few years ago, a man fell into the crater of Mt. St. Helens while taking a summit picture. He was standing too close to the edge when a huge piece of corniced snow fell off taking him with it.

When I heard the news, I thought, “Oh geez, I probably stood on just corniced snow there too.” On St. Helens, which blew a great deal of its top off when it erupted in 1980, it’s hard to tell where the actual rim is and the pull to look into the crater is powerful.

Taking risks, hopefully wiser ones than that, is the subject of my Wise & Shine post this week: Life: Risky Business.

(featured photo is me on the rim of Mt. St. Helens)

18 thoughts on “Taking Risks”

    1. That’s a good question. In the case of Mt. St. Helens, the cornices are over the crater bowl where the snow has built up more and more of a ledge so if they fall, it’s not an avalanche down the mountain, it’s a trip into the crater. I am far from an avalanche expert so I don’t know about other mountains.

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  3. Fun fact: I’ve never hiked Mt. St. Helens, but I was in WA, and not far away, as a little girl, when it blew. As you might imagine, it made quite an impact! Okay, now I’m off to read your post on W&S! 😃

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  4. There’s a difference between taking physical risks and emotional risks. There can be an overlap, but I consider them two different things. I won’t make myself vulnerable physically, but I will make myself emotionally vulnerable.

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  5. What an interesting lesson on the best time to climb. I would never have guessed that the best time to climb is at nighttime cuz things are frozen in place. We’ll now I know.

    I realize your post wasn’t so much about climbing but about what we subjectively open ourselves up to with risk. I think, like you, with parenting, so much of it is subjective – like making ourselves vulnerable, or letting our daily fumbles humble us, and owning up to our mistakes and missteps as parents.

    Another wonderful post, Wynne.

    PS. Thanks again for the letter. Will share it with T this weekend. The week has just been so chaotic and I wanna savour the letter with him without the noise of the week. Take care!

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    1. I like your list of subjective parenting risks – making ourselves vulnerable and owning our mistakes and missteps. Yes!

      Thanks, Ab. No hurry on the letter but hope T finds it fun whenever you get around to it. And I hope the weekend is restful for you all!

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  6. Thank you for sharing!!.. be it physical or emotional, “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or it is nothing.” (Helen Keller)… 🙂

    Until we meet again..
    May your day be touched
    by a bit of Irish luck,
    Brightened by a song
    in your heart,
    And warmed by the smiles
    of people you love.
    (Irish Saying)

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  7. One of my biggest regrets is never climbing Mount St. Helens. It’s something I always wanted to do, and figured was possible because it’s a non-technical climb. Alas, I never got around to it, though I did hike 9 miles across the pumice plain and back for a close-up of the waterfall in the crater. I just love that mountain so much!

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    1. Wow – 9 miles across the pumice plain?? That sounds awesome! It’s a cool mountain for sure. The couple times I climbed we went at the very end of the spring season so that the permits weren’t so limited – and it makes for a long day climb. Maybe you’ll do it yet!

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  8. I was exploring this exact thought myself, when pondering why I subject myself to risk of injury with the things I do. But like the Wallace quote, sometimes not taking a risk is the risk in itself. And there are plenty of risks at home alone, so I might as well pursue my interests and the risks that come along with them. Thanks for sharing, Wynne!

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