第一次听到这个故事是在和一个朋友吃饭的时候。
我们随便聊到登山，不小心触动了她的记忆。用了一个多小时，她流着泪给我讲了1996年5月的那场珠峰登山事故。
当时并不太理解这个故事的意义，也没去留意她给我的一些关于这场悲剧的剪报。
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其实故事的经过很简单。
一个拍摄环幕电影的摄影队攀登珠峰，在最后登顶过程中突然遭遇暴风雪，33人中有8人罹难，包括4名导游、2名摄影师、2名舍帕人（尼伯尔山民）。
下面是《时代周刊》关于这场事故的报道开场白，介绍罹难的导游之一，新西兰人ROB HALL的生命最后时刻。
“It was clear to anyone listening to the Mount Everest radio traffic that Rob Hall had decided to die. Fal Hall, there seemed to be little drama in the decision – but for someone in his position, there rarely is. In the brutal cold and almost oxygen-free air found at Everest altitiudes, a sort of wozzy resignation sets in. Decisions to climb or descend, rest or trudge on, get made with a fatalistic shrug. At the moment, Hall was shrugging toward death.
David Breashears and Ed Viesturs were in radio contact with Hall as he made his decision. Filmmakers and climbers who had known the famous guide for years, they were 2,400 m below him, in the relative safety of a mountainside campsite. Hall, on the other hand, was 120 m shy of Eeverest’s 8,848-m summit – the highest peak in the world – stuck on an outcrop where he had spent the night after a sudden blizzard pounded the mountain. The situation was probably not survivable, and yet the other climbers were determined to help Hall live throught it. “Think about Thailand,” Viesturs said. “Once you come down, we’ll tour the beaches and finally see those skinny legs of yours out of a snowsuit.”
Hall laughed weakly, but didn’t stir. Quickly, someone in camp patched a satellite call to New Zealand, where Hall’s wife, pregnant with their first child, was waiting. “I’m looking forward to making you completely better when you come home,” she called to her husband when the connection was made. On top of his mountain, Hall may have smiled. “I love you,” he said. “Sleep well, my sweetheart. Please don’t worry too much.” No one ever heard from Rob Hall again.”
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自从四十多年前舍帕人TENZING NORGAY和新西兰人EDMUND HILLARY第一次登上珠峰后，又有700多人登顶成功，同时，也有150余人在攀登中丧生。
有许多不具备身体或经济条件的人，会在山下的营地用望远镜看别人登顶。更有些第一次登顶失败后，几年后再次来到珠峰攀登。
这是种怎样的诱惑，又是种怎样的执著！
是什么，让他们冒着付出生命的危险去作如此的攀登？
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如果说文中一开始认为“HALL决定了选择死亡”似乎有些是夸张，那么最后通过卫星电话和他妻子的告别，则毫无疑问已流露出“生离死别”的意味了。
其实ROB HALL作为一名有经验的珠峰导游，其生存的能力极强。在一夜的暴风雪之后，登顶队员（约二十人）中死伤惨重，但ROB HALL仍活着，虽然已经没气力动弹了。
如此执著、强健的人，一夜之后，决定舍弃生命。
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我碰到过横强的人，也遇见过软弱的人，最奇妙的是两者共存于同一人身上。长年顽强地同疾病搏斗，然而突然有一天，决定放弃一切治疗和希望；或是爱情，炙烈的爱的火焰熊熊燃烧，为了一个莫名的原因，毫无声息地突然熄灭。
执著或舍弃，全在一个念头。
人的精神，真是一个不可思议的存在。
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在那次交谈后，我曾看过两部反映登山遇险的电影，其中一部是《垂直极限》。不过，回味起来，总觉得只有这个真实的故事触动了我的心灵。
以我的能力，根本无法把这个故事里蕴涵的启示和美写出来。
真正的作者应该是永远的珠峰和处于极限下的人的精神。
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附注：文中报道摘自“Mountain without Mercy”《TIME》1997/10/20。另有若干书籍介绍那场悲剧，如《Into Thin Air》（有中文版），《Everest: Mountain without Mercy》等。
作者：云南老虎
日期：2001年11月30日
作者：shanxitiger
