What does a mountain mean to you?

I recall an interview with artist Sarah Swett, on Weavecast where she talks about drawing:

A lot of that has to do with noticing what you like, noticing what shapes please you.  I think that is one of the most essential thing is – any kind of a creative person is not getting caught up in – what colours look good?  What shapes look good?  What does a tree really look like but what shape of a tree makes me feel good?

And I've been asking myself that lately, only about Mountains instead of trees.

Of course, not all mountains are the same. The mountains of Hawaii are volcanic, and different from those here in the Alps. Where are different from the Sierra Nevadas of home. And the Santa Cruz mountains- do those really count as mountains.

There are a few artists who come to mind when I think of mountains:

Georgia O'Keefe

Cezzane

Hokusai

The real question is; What does a mountain mean to me?

And now, more specifically, what do the Alps mean to me?

Twice a week I take the train down, and back up the mountain for German lessons. On my train ride, I have flashbacks to a lecture from Dr.Movassat, the most amazing and inspiring art history teacher from San Jose State University where I earned my BFA.

In her East Meets West course (highly recomended!) she showed two slides.  

Friedrich's Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer, or Wanderer Over the Sea of Mist.

Travelers Among Mountains and Streams, ink and slight colour on silk hanging scroll, by Fan Kuan, c. 960–c. 1030, Bei (Northern) Song dynasty.

And I feel like I'm living in these two worlds. 

I  must say that these two images are dominating my thoughts of what a mountain means to me, right now.