Balloon Boy, Oh Boy
Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man to climb Mount Everest, had many inspirational quotes attributed to him, among them, "it is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves."
This seems to suggest that the mountain needs not be an actual mountain, or the highest point on Earth--the mountain can be whatever man sees as his own personal adversity.
Ever present, hovering above the horizon, this seemingly unattainable, awe-inspiring "mountain," inspires both adoration for its beauty and fear for it's ability to crush not just a man's body, but his very soul. When this personal mountain is conquered, man gains something valuable, intangible and life-enriching, something he can carry with him the rest of his days.
Oddly, this man's mountain seems to be fitting his entire body inside a giant, fully inflated balloon. Sadly, there can be no glory without adversity. This is the adversity part.
For the triumphant conclusion, here's his next attempt, when he, to once again borrow a phrase from Sir Hillary, "knocks the bastard off."
h/t Miss Cellania
