Renny's Epic Failures

I've had some conversations with some good friends lately who are eager to cut their teeth and head out on some adventures.  They're young and - in a nod to Joseph Campbell - keen to look not for the meaning of life so much as the experience of life.  Some of them asked for advice. 

I was reminded of the story Tom Kimbrough told at Renny Jackson's retirement party years ago in the Tetons.  Renny, of course, was the long time head of the climbing rangers in Grand Teton National Park and was Leigh Ortenburger's later co-author of the definitive guidebook in that range.  

It was late in the night and speaker after speaker had regaled the crowd with one of Renny's bold climbing adventures or first ascents.  Kimbrough then slowly wandered up to the center and held the crowd for a moment in silence before this introduction, "Everyone here has talked about Renny's bold accomplishments, but I'm here to talk of his spectacular failures."  It was a masterful pivot to describing why Renny was alive after all these years: His good judgement and ability to turn around when the odds were dicey. 

Why issue rules of thumb and guidelines when you can tell a story?