One of the great mountains in the Alps is very popular with climbers because it has a rest house halfway up. Still and yet, the trek up to this house is not for amateurs, it’s a long climb up to that point. If the climbers start out early in the morning they’ll usually get to the rest house by lunchtime. Over the years, the owner of the house has noticed an interesting and recurring phenomenon. When the climbers get to the house, and feel the warmth of the fire, and smell the good food, several will always give into the temptation and say,”I’ll just wait here while you go up to the top. When you come back down I’ll join you and we’ll go to the base together.” As the climbers who remain in the house sit by the fire or play the piano or sing mountain climbing songs, a glaze of satisfaction comes over them.

Meanwhile the rest of the group puts on their gear and treks to the top of the mountain. For the next couple of hours there’s a spirit of happiness around the fireside; everyone’s having a good time in the cozy little lodge. But by 3:30 the atmosphere in the house changes and it starts to get quiet. The climbers take turns looking up at the top of the mountain and are silent as they watch their friends reach their goals. The attitude in the house has changed from fun to funereal as they realize that by remaining in the rest house they settled for second best. Those who were willing to pay the price, to delay gratification, to take only a short break and then proceed up the mountain, reached their goals. The temporary comfort of the rest house caused some climbers to lose sight of their purpose. And that can happen to any of us. Don’t we all have sheltered places in our lives where we can retreat from the “climb”–and lose sight of our goals? Who are the happiest people in the world? Healthy people? Wealthy people? The happiest people in the world are those who are living their dreams!