21Mom woke me up, moaning in pain. I was furious at myself for falling asleep without reading the journal. And I didn’t have much energy for compassion. I was just worried about staying alive.
The sun had barely risen when Lama said we had to get going. There was evidently another mountain pass that we had to get through before the end of the day.
Mom took a pain pill and started limping. Before long, she was in a better mood.
“Look at that,” she said. “A griffin vulture. I got to get my camera.” The bird appeared to be as large as me, as if it could eat me alive. It barely flapped its wings as it soared past us. Mom fumbled with her equipment. “Oh s**t. I missed it.”
But a couple of hours later, she didn’t miss the half-eaten bloody yak, with maggots crawling all over it.
Mom’s head
