September 17

We live in a remote Himalayan village at around 14,000 feet, surrounded by high altitude jungle and not far from a raging river that we must cross by a very old iron-cable bridge. There is a small monastery and a small nunnery in the village, and many caves in the nearby mountains. We grow vegetables, barley, and corn in small plots, and some of us have boars, pigs, yaks, or goats. Bear and takin roam the nearby forests. Our region is known from afar for its healers, and many visitors come for treatment by the many doctors and ritual healers in our community. We mainly live in large wooden houses set along the steep slopes of the village.

On September 17 there were rumors that a terrible hailstorm might happen in the next week. Crops and houses could be destroyed by the grapefruit-sized hailstones people were predicting. Some people are saying that someone in the village did something to offend the local spirits, and that’s why a hailstorm might come; other people are sure that it is a black magic ritualist from across the river who would cause the disaster, because of some offense committed by someone in the community. Luckily, an amulet seller was said to have been selling rare protective amulets in the Deer Park.