Continuing an old family tradition I prepared our Italian Christmas Eve meal, a simple feast featuring seven fish dishes:  shrimp, scallops, haddock, herring, a risotto with lobster and crabmeat, and pasta with olive oil, garlic and anchovies

The veggie?  Wonderful cherry peppers stuffed with my grandmother’s recipe that includes breadcrumbs, olive oil, garlic, onions & anchovies.

Feast of the 7 Fishes

Add a fabulous Reserve des Cleons Muscadet (Grandma Marie said the French stole all the Italian’s best recipes and wines!) and you have a meal that brings back many memories of Christmas past.  Oh, add the bottle of fine Italian red wine used to keep the chef focused.  It was a long and exciting afternoon of preparation.

Of course, the ample supply of leftovers will serve as our Christmas breakfast … a great way to start the day.

By the way, we went to see “The Guilt Trip” earlier today.  A fabulous flick worth seeing.  Being an only child made the story quite powerful.

Merry Christmas.

Keiko and I attended the wedding of two of my first students at UMaine –– Ben Martin and Amanda Brown, 2007 –– on Saturday, September 1. Both were marketing majors and had taken a number of my courses. They were excellent students and had remained in touch with me over the years. I was pleased to be invited to attend the wedding, held at Wolfes Neck Farm in Freeport, Maine.

The ceremony was held at a beautiful site overlooking the Gulf of Maine and the bride arrived with her father on a tractor pulled trailer. The reception, held in a large old barn, was elegant in its simplicity,

Ben and Amanda visited with us and their comments about and memories of time spent in my classes were a powerful testimony as to why I love teaching.

The decent from the summit was more difficult than I imagined it would be. The steep angles combined with technical requirements were compounded by traffic moving up the mountain. Given the condition of my boots, I needed to be extra careful to secure my footing. The guide rope where available was of little assistance and use of the pole was critical. On less rocky portions, it was easy to begin sliding or slipping. Maintaining an even keel became quite the challenge.

The task placed great pressure on leg muscles and knees. Unfortunately, I did have a misstep and injured my right knee just before Station 8. We found at first aid station when we reached station 8 and received a role of duct tape. Keiko did a great job of taping the soles back onto the shoes.

After a brief rest, we proceeded at a slower but steady pace. The route never seemed easier going down and the duct tape did not hold. The jagged nature of the rocky path chewed it up and I was forced to removed the torn tape and soles at station 7.5.

Proceeding in my moccasin-like footwear we continued and were within view of station 6 … after which I new the route was much easier and of less an incline. Station 5, our start point was near!

At that point Keiko and I received calls on our mobile phone from the Rescue Service. Keiko had sent out photos of my boots from the summit and many friends and family members were concerned. The Rescue Service was alerted and met us at station 6.

Everyone seemed more concerned than I was and they insisted that I rest. I must admit the mattress the station staff arranged for me to lay down on felt really good. My only request was for a coke … and Keiko produced one.

Two young men from the Rescue/SWAT Service insisted on trying to carry me down to station 5. I reluctantly agreed to a piggyback lift but 210 pounds of “dead” weight on that trail was dangerous for both them and myself. Fortunately, they had brought a pair of service boots with them. By Japanese standards, I have large feet and they did not expect them to fit me. They were about a half size to small but I pressed into them and continued, with their assistance to head for station 5 under my own power. Except for one short extremely difficult section where they insisted on carrying me through, I reached the base station walking and smiling all the way.

After 17 hours, we were off the mountain. It was nice to have members of the Fujikawa family there to greet me and I was deeply grateful for the assistance of the Rescue Service.

It was quite the adventure; a thrill of my lifetime. I have yet to fully appreciate the totality of my experience. Without question, it was the most physical challenge I have ever endured. I had to dig deep down to get up and down that mountain. The constant support, encouragement and patience of Keiko and Kase were critical to my success. I needed to deal with a host mental and emotional demons –– and a sense of fear (potential physical pain and failure).

It took a few days to recover physically –– helped by the trip to the hot springs.

I conquered Mt. Fuji. In that sense it was a credit to the physical and mental shape of a 68 year old guy. More importantly, Mt. Fuji taught me a great deal about myself, and helped me understand and appreciate so many lessons of life.

I now understand why generations of Japanese have worshipped this majestic mountain and climbed its slopes to the summit. Renewed and energized by the experience, I look forward to the days ahead.

Station 9 to the Summit ––

Reaching Station 9 was a major accomplishment and goal. We climbed through the final cloud layer, were able to see a moon-lite starry sky and then a beautiful sunrise. Getting there was not a simple matter as the incline of ascent was quite steep and rugged.

The photos accurately display my excitement, joy (and relief). We celebrated and rested.

Looking up we could see our next goal, the summit. As you can see from the photo, we were not alone. This was the first sense I had of the number of climbers. Previously, in the darkness I would see lights moving up the mountain, like so many fireflies.

The increase in the number reflected those who had climbed to the upper stations earlier and sleep the night in huts –– my recommendation for anyone thinking of taking on this adventure. At this point we had been climbing with limited rest stops and on the mountain for 7 hours.

The path to the summit (through rest station 9.5) was extremely step and the most technical part of the climb. I tried not to think about coming back down as a focused on making a steady progress. Happily, I felt more confident and refreshed at this point than earlier. The lack of sleep and food, pain from the boots that continued to deteriorate, and the increasingly colder temperature seemed to fade away as I continued to focus on reaching the summit.

Seeing Mt. Fuji’s remaining snow and glaciers as I climbed was a stark reminded of the hostile environment that enveloped me throughout the experience.

I cannot at this point really recall everything that went through my mind at this time, except the motivational memory of the message from the book “The Little Engine that Could” –– “I think I can …. .”

Reaching the summit was an unbelievable experience. Fist pumps, high fives all around …. we did it! Nine incredible hours

On the summit we took photos and laid down (albeit on magna rocks) for the first time and rested. Despite the cold temperature, the bright sun was warming and calming. We consumed water, trail mixes and energy gels to reenergize our bodies and tried to not think about getting down.

I had the added complication of the condition of my boots. Both shoes had lost the soles. The tape was gone. I recognized I would begin the decent with my feet essentially protected by my socks and a lite layer of leather. The image of a Samurai from an earlier age making the quest in sandals or barefoot popped into my head … and that is how I prepared to navigate a way down Mt. Fuji.

From Station 7 to Station 9 ––

I will let the photo gallery tell most of the story.

Two points worth noting.  First, upon reaching Station 8 the sole of my left boot fell off the shoe.  Desperate, I asked another climber if he had any tape?  To my surprise, he offered up a small role of adhesive tape and Keiko did a great job of securing the sole back onto the shoe.

Second, reaching Station 9 and being able to see the sunrise and having the summit in view was a deeply emotional moment.  I was both proud and thankful of safely reaching this point.

Keiko, Kase and I celebrated and rested, seeking renewed energy to make the final push to the summit.