Valley of the Flowers-India

Valley of the Flowers-India

Thunderstorms and heavy rain pounded the valley all night long. We awoke at 5am with the rattle and smoke of the generator. No more sleep for us, so we packed our daypacks after some sugared tea and started hiking towards a bridge over a lovely waterfall and into the pine trees. The trail climbed and […]

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Rain

Rain

Listening to the rain slowly start its pattering, one, and then another until the night was filled with a steady rhythm broken by occasional thunder in the distance. Half awake I dream of childhood memories of the spring thunderstorms in Nebraska. Dreams of the cool breeze that would blow in through my open window as […]

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Homework

Homework

The sun had set and the room became dark except for the glow of the small metal stove. Candles flickered with every draft that seeped into the room. At one end was the Tea House owner’s small son.  He was slumped over a worn manuscript, his fingers wrapped tightly around a pencil. One candle illuminated […]

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An Eternal Fire

An Eternal Fire

“Not another temple,” I thought as our driver insisted we take yet an extra detour. This one sat in the hills up another winding narrow road. We walked over and were led through the front door to the central chamber where a smoldering fire filled the room. This was where Shiva married Parvati.  The ash […]

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Yak Attack

Yak Attack

The outbuilding where we slept had no door. Two levels of simple wood bunks provided an area to unroll our sleeping bags. We had all settled in and begun to doze off when a loud racket of hoofs and snorting had all of us sitting up and grabbing for lights. As he shined his light […]

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