Hello, stranger, if you don’t mind me asking,
     What is the mountain you are climbing?
     What is that which holds your heart?
     Because lately it seems as though
     We are all defined – no, bound – by
          The magnitude of a test score or an income,
          The number of zeroes accessorizing the prices of our cars,
          The exclusive name of a superior college.

Hello, stranger, if you could spare me a minute,
     What is that which awaits you at the peak?
     Because lately it seems as though
     All there is to look forward to – to hope for, to be proud of
          Is a fancy framed diploma gathering dust on office walls,
          Promotions, one after the other, that keep us clambering for the top,
          The altitude of a penthouse in order to better see the view
          Of a city twinkling with lights, yes – but also rotting from the roots.

Hello, stranger, if you were to ask me the same questions,
     What is the mountain I am climbing?
     I wish to answer that
     When I am old, maybe ninety-nine, if I get to live so long,
     I refuse to let my life be defined
          By the measure of perfected standardization when I was seventeen,
          By the glittering name of Alma Mater when I was twenty-two, 
          Or by the expanse of my paycheck when I was thirty-five.
     No, instead, I wish to be remembered
          For the delicious things I cooked for my grandchildren who love me,
          For the number of trees I planted in a sea of city,
          For the way my laughter rang in response to the simplest of jokes.
     Instead, I wish to remember
          A hundred friendships built throughout a century,
          A million mistakes made fresh every day,
          And one long love story with my lifelong Romeo.

Hello, stranger. You see, all of us are climbing.

Those who are climbing mountains made of glass
     Are sure to crash into a thousand shattered shards. 
But those of us who are climbing the eternal mountains
     Will stumble and fall, bump and bruise,
     Will pick each other up, brush off knees, and laugh
For throughout the trek, we have become friends.