Women of Everest Preparing for Climb to the 'Roof of the World' Alison Levine has had two surgeries to repair a damaged heart. Midge Cross is diabetic and has survived breast cancer. 珠峯女人 準備登上世界屋脊 Alison Levine經歷過兩次心臟手術。Midge Cross患有糖尿病，還是乳腺癌的倖存者。 Neither woman is the type to let those obstacles stand in the way of their adventuresome spirit, so they headed for the "roof of the world." 但是，這些障礙不能阻擋她們愛冒險的精神，她們正在向"世界屋脊"進發。 They are part of a team that set out this week to become the first group of American women to reach the summit of Mount Everest. The other three are Coloradans Lynn Prebble, Jody Thompson and Kimberly s had to turn back at 24,000 feet because of altitude sickness. Had she reached the summit, the 58-year-old grandmother would have been the oldest woman to do so. 作爲本週啓程的一支登山 隊 隊員，她們將成爲登上珠穆朗瑪峯頂的第一批美國女性。該隊的另外三名隊員是Cdoradans lynn Prennle, Jody Thompson和Kimverly Cark。在到達24000英尺高度時，Cross因發生高空病而不得不返回。如果她攀上了頂峯，這位58歲的奶奶將是到達此高度的最老女性。 But she was never hell-bent on that goal. More important, she says, is the commitment to stepping outside her old comfort zone. 但是，她永遠不會放棄這一目標。她說，更重要的是保證自己走出老年舒適而平淡的生活。 "So I become a bigger person," says Cross, "a more knowledgeable person and, I think, a better person for having taken the risk." The other four women are pushing on, hoping to reach the summit within the next couple of days. Cross說："這樣我就能成爲一個了不起的人，一個更有見識的人，我認爲，吃遍苦中苦，方爲完美人"。另外4位婦女仍在攀登，希望在以後幾天內登上山頂。 All are experienced climbers, including Levine, a 36-year-old business executive from San Francisco who organized the team. 她們全是經驗豐富的登山者，其中36歲的Levine是一位來自舊金山的企業經理，她組織了這支登山隊。 She says she was looking for skilled climbers, women who could take two months off from their jobs, women who could leave their families behind for an extended period. And women who had a certain attitude. 她說，當時她也四處尋找既有登山經驗，又能脫離工作兩個月和長時間離開家庭的婦女，而且這些婦女要有積極姿態。 "Everybody's got a lot of energy, a lot of spirit, a lot of heart and some mental toughness," Levine says. Levine說："她們應具有充沛的體能、飽滿的精神、不乏熱情和堅韌。" Cross agrees, pointing out that these women weren't interested in leading safe, predictable lives: "I remember when I was a kid, my mom would buy American cheese, with every slice wrapped. And I thought, 'Whoa, this is not the kind of life I want to live, with every slice wrapped.' " Cross同意她的說法，她指出，這些婦女對安逸的，按部就班的生活沒有興趣。她說："我記得，在我小時候，我母親買回來美國奶酪，看到一片片被包裹着的奶酪，我想，天呀，我可不想要這種每一層都裹着的生活。" And so they trained, for months, fully aware that 180 people have died trying to scale the world's highest mountain, which comes in at 29,035 may not have testosterone, but they do have teamwork that is uniquely female. 她們訓練了幾個月，同時，充分地意識到，這座世界上最高的山高達29035英尺，已有180人爲攀上它而喪命。她們可能沒有雄性激素，她們卻有獨一無二的女性組成的團隊。 "It takes us longer when we have to go to the bathroom," says Levine with a chuckle, "because, you know, it's just more complicated for us. So we're patient with each other through those times, too, where a group of men might not understand." Levine嘿嘿笑着說："我們方便時很費事，也花時間，所以我們只好耐心地排隊，而男性登山隊員對此是不會理解的。" Levine has already reached the highest point on six continents: North and South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania and Antarctica. Everest - in Nepal on the Asian continent - would make her seventh. Levine已經登上過6個大陸的最高點，即北美、南美、歐洲、非洲，大洋州和南極洲。位於亞洲大陸尼泊爾的珠穆朗瑪峯將是她的第7個目標。 She is careful not to raise expectations, but says "tenacity, persistence and a strong spirit can carry you further than just muscle alone." 她不想有太高的期望值，但她說："不僅僅靠肌肉，頑強、堅持不懈和強大的精神能使你攀得更高。" When they last spoke to ABCNEWS from base camp, the women had already had a very humbling practice climb up to 24,000. 當他們與從大本營來的"美國新聞廣播公司"說這番話時，她們已經登上了24,000高度。 "At camp three, it was very difficult. We were very uncomfortable," said Cross. "I've never had such a bad headache in my whole life." Clearly, she was not able to overcome that physical limitation; Cross did not make it past the 24,000-foot mark on the final push to the summit. But she will be there in spirit with the others if they make it to the top. Cross說："在3號營地，情況變得困難起來，我們感到很不適應。一生中都沒有如此激烈的頭痛。"顯然，她不能克服生理極限了。在向山頂衝刺時，Cross沒能越過24000英尺高度，但她的精神將與隊友們一起衝擊"世界屋脊"。 "Everybody's really excited to go up and do it," says Levine. "Because this is it." Levine說："大家無比振奮地向上攀登，因爲，珠峯就在不遠處。"
