Gerry Pye
Gerry Pye is a former RAF engineer officer and chartered aeronautical engineer. After retiring from the RAF he ran his own aerospace business and spent many years as an Open University Associate Lecturer specialising in engineering and global development management. He began writing on military history and aviation in 2000, and became a full time freelance writer in 2022 after a successful expedition to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. He lives in Huntingdon with his wife Karen and he has a son, Joseph, who followed in his fathers footsteps to pursue a career in aeronautical engineering.
Adventure, mental wellbeing, memoir
***
Reflections from the Top of the World
Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest free standing mountain in the world. It can be climbed successfully with minimum technical skill, but the physical and mental challenges are huge. The secret to conquering Mount Kilimanjaro is to just keep going, a maxim that applies equally when facing the trials of life, such as bereavement, heartbreak, and loneliness. Loneliness is perhaps one of the most insidious legacies of the COVID-19 pandemic. People increasingly live alone, work alone and play alone; disconnected from society through the modern cultures of home working, absolute dependence on smartphones, and the ability to stream television and cinema into their living rooms on demand. These factors conspire to break the connections between fellow human beings, and this can render recovering from bereavement, heartbreak, and other life trials especially hard. The enforced isolation of lockdown served to normalize human disconnection, which has arguably blighted the nation's mental health. Reflections from the Top of the World presents a powerful alternative philosophy of connection, mutual endeavour, and achievement. A philosophy that does not necessarily require individuals to climb the world's highest free-standing mountain, but one that encourages reflection on the root causes of sadness and joy. The ultimate conclusion is a convincing belief that whatever life throws at you, there will always be new happiness to look forward to if you just keep going.
