"All moments past, present, and future have always existed, always will exist. The Tralfamadorians can look at all the different moments just the way we can look at a stretch of the Rocky Mountains, for instance. They can see how permanent all the moments are..." (Vonnegut 27).
The picture shows a mountain range (in this case, the Appalachian Mountains) extending into the distance. Mountains are used to illustrate the Tralfamadorian idea of time, that all points in time exist simultaneously and permanently. Each mountain is a different moment, still present alongside the others.
I think that this is an interesting concept. It seems to emphasize that events are connected, and that the past isn't some forgotten thing that is gone forever once it has occurred. I also wonder if some of the tragedies Vonnegut suffered in his past helped him to form this view in the novel. Vonnegut's mother committed suicide when he was a child, and his sister died of cancer when he was an adult. He also witnessed the devastation and lives lost in World War II, especially at the bombing of Dresden. The idea might appeal to Vonnegut that all of those people weren't truly gone; if the past is just as real of a moment as the present, and some beings could visit different points in time, those people would still exist. Death wouldn't be an end for everyone.
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