231016 - Journey

I’m trying to capture adventure in words, in pictures. The pictures are absent, electricity being a scarcity; words filled with a lack, hopelessly grasping at that which has been. A journey in the rurala Nepali mountains, encounters with cute police, beautiful locals, helpful Samaritans, and bold foreigners walking alongside us. A walk within, now no longer alone but as two. A smile reflecting the sunshine of oour surroundings, a pair of eyes concealing the implosion of a star. An anchor of safety in the wilderness; no longer despised but viewed with the respect of that is yet to be overcome. Barefeet we cross the border at sunrise, inbetween 15-hour bus rides the walk is appreciated. For 2 days we are held up by police at a small village, there we learn the intricacies of our broken tent in a storm; and the mesmerizing dance of the Nepali children. A riot at the police station is taken less seriously when nature feeds anotehr seed. A night spent in a moldy basement is taken with more gratitude than the luxurious hotel I found myself in a month prior - and it saves us from the darkness on a treacherous road that would have meant oblivion. The last night we sleep with a kitten - Biscuit - and warm our hearts with the comforts of 4 walls and a roof. It would be the last for a long tiem. She asked me if I think the locals know what beauty surrounds them. It is alive within them, shining forth from their heart in every smile, laugh, movement; in every expression and everything left unknown. This I answer, this I know.