The Thunder-Spirit Night time--the orange Clouds withhold oncoming rain; Afar the thunder Lingers to oblivion: Restless are the ways That fulfill unspoken dreams Their lives amongst us, As time that summons passing As a startled bird To wake us in the moonlight Of a winter sleep. Douglas Thornton
September 21st, 2014 Bhimtang 3800m. by Larkya La Pass 5160m. You close the metal door of your stone hut in blank wet darkness; a few hours later you wake in darkness again, but the door opens on a vast expanse of stars and the horned moon descending to the peaks of the mountains. Space and the all-encompassing universe feel not so far away; the difference is realization. The weather had calmed, no wind was blowing, and the silence of morning and breakfast began ringing in the dinner hall. The keeper was there, no worse for the wear, and all were speaking of the fine day with eagerness and angst. We left at dawn, and by the time we reached the moraine of Larkya Glacier, where there rested a beautiful jade-like pool of absolutely still water, the sun was shining brilliantly on the high summits. The snow that had fallen the night before brought the good fortune this morning of showing us the tracks of a snow leopard which had followed our trail until just after th