Author and mountaineer, Saray Khumalo has penned a book about her summiting of the world’s highest mountain to inspire the African girl child.
Khumalo was the first black African woman to have summited Mount Everest back in 2019.
Her new book, My Journey to the Top of the World, details her experience climbing Everest and shares the life lessons she learned along the way.
The author said her book is a “basket of reflections”.
“I wrote the book because people kept asking me about my experience and were inspired by my story to make changes in their life,” she said.
“I want to inspire the African girl child to show that they can do this, they can keep moving forward in life,” she added.
Khumalo spent her childhood in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo and later pursued a corporate career in South Africa. While navigating marriage and motherhood, she always had one overarching ambition, to reach the summits of the world’s highest mountains.
She first climbed to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro, but Mount Everest was her ultimate goal.
After three unsuccessful attempts, the fourth time seemed to be a charm for Khumalo. Although a success, she suffered severe personal setbacks, serious health issues and life-threatening injuries, which are detailed in her book.
Khumalo said it was a humbling experience because she never took anything for granted.
“It gave me a voice and allowed me to show the world that someone like me could and that we are capable of anything. We too can step on top of the world,” she said.
“I realised that while Mount Everest is not for everybody, each person has their own Everest,” she added.
“We don’t need to physically get on top of the world to overcome our challenges, but giving up is not an option.”
Some of her other achievements include being the first black African woman to ski to the South Pole. Khumalo works as a leadership and transformation coach, where her work focuses on working with women executives and entrepreneurs.
Khumalo has founded a non-profit company, Summits with a Purpose, which uses mountaineering to raise funds for promoting literacy and education. With the funds raised, they help build physical and digital libraries in disadvantaged schools.
Tune into the Weekend Argus Facebook page on Tuesday, August 23 at 12PM to listen to Khumalo sharing her experience of climbing Mount Everest.