2. Chalk Up and Let Go

Finding Balance on the Wall of Life

Morning Mantra for a Climber

First thing in the morning, remind yourself: today, I’m gonna run into some real characters—people who are gonna be needy, ungrateful, cocky, shady, jealous, or just straight-up bad partners. But here’s the deal: they’re like this because they don’t really get what’s good or bad in life. I do. I know that real goodness is solid and strong, and that real failure is weak and ugly. And I know that every one of these people is, at the core, just another human, cut from the same cloth—not in blood, but in mind, in spirit, in this weird cosmic partnership we’re all in.

None of them can actually mess me up—because they can’t make me be anything other than who I am. And I can’t hate them for it either. We were made to work together, like hands on the rock, like feet finding a hold, like your upper and lower teeth—aligned and cooperating. Fighting each other? That’s unnatural. Getting pissed and ghosting people? That’s the real failure.

Let Go of the Extra Weight

What am I, really? Just a body, a bit of breath, and my own mind. So forget the distractions—drop the extra gear, quit overtraining, stop stressing about sending that route. My body? Just a temporary mix of blood, tendons, bones, and skin—fading, changing. My breath? Just air—coming and going, never the same. But my mind—that’s where I have control. And I’ve been around long enough to know I should stop letting it get dragged around by impulses, stop whining about what happens, and stop dreading what’s ahead.

The Universe is Set Up Right

Everything happening is part of some bigger flow. What looks like randomness isn’t—it’s all connected, even the weird luck of the draw. Whatever happens is what had to happen, and it’s good for the whole system—including me. Nature takes care of itself, and I’m part of that. Change isn’t a threat; it’s just the movement of things, like the wind shifting or the tide coming in.

This should be enough for me. Let this be my belief. And for the love of all things, let go of that obsession with books, theory, and trying to intellectualize everything. Don’t let me die a dude who just read about life instead of actually living it. Go out with gratitude, light, and steady.

Quit Stalling and Climb the Damn Wall

Think about how many times I’ve told myself, "Tomorrow, I’ll start living the way I should." Enough. The clock’s ticking. The mountain’s not waiting. I’ve had chances, I’ve been given time, and I’ve wasted enough of it. Time to wake up and own my place in this world, to live the way I was meant to—not half-in, half-out, making excuses.

Every hour, I need to be focused, steady, and strong—like a climber mid-route, committed. Move with precision, keep it real, be kind, stay free, stay fair. And let go of all the mental noise. I’ll find that clarity if I treat every action like it’s my last—cut the random nonsense, stop dodging the hard parts, quit playing to the crowd.

It’s simple, really. If I can just stick to a few things, life can be smooth, fearless, and dialed in. And if that’s all the universe asks of me, why should I ask for more?

Get Over Yourself

Stop disrespecting yourself. You don’t have forever. Almost your whole life has already passed, and you’ve spent too much of it worrying about what other people think, letting them set your course. Time to cut that rope and go your own way.

Why let external junk knock you off balance? Give yourself a break. Stop chasing some new idea of happiness and just *be*. Most people are just flailing, climbing without a plan, burning out because they don’t have a direction.

If I keep my focus on what actually matters—what’s in my control—nothing else can shake me. Stay centered, act with intention, and move with the flow of things, not against them.

Philosophy is Just Good Beta

All this boils down to one thing: living well means keeping my mind steady and clean—unshaken by fear or pleasure, not putting on a show, not needing approval, not reacting to everything like a newbie panicking on a climb.

Whatever happens is part of the same current that brought me here, and the only way through it is to trust it. Death? It’s just another move in the great sequence. The same way every hold eventually gets left behind, every climber eventually moves on. So why be afraid of a process that’s natural? If the universe isn’t scared, why should I be?

At the end of the day, life is short, the body is fragile, the mind is tricky, and the future is uncertain. So why waste time? Stay light, move smoothly, and trust the route. Because in the end, everything—every climb, every fall, every triumph, every failure—vanishes like chalk on rock.

So why stress? Just climb.