Kerri tied in and made her way to the top of the cliff in short order while I belayed her . ( Belaying someone basically means you 're taking up the slack in the rope as they climb using a belaying device so they do n't fall too far if they lose contact with the rock and lowering them when they ' ve finished climbing . ) I went next and followed a slightly different route at the bottom that avoided a small oak tree that was growing in a slightly inconvenient location . Eventually the route I was following converged with the route Kerri followed and I made it to the top .
Question: What may be the reason for belaying ?
The answer to the above question:


To provide security for the person climbing .