Grand Prismatic sat silent in the background, her grandeur dwarfing the pandemonium surrounding her. She was indifferent to us, the millions of specs passing through her orbit.

I breathed a sigh of relief that my earlier hasty decision hadn’t killed whatever was residing in there. If it was between Darla and the life of the creature, I’d decided I wanted the creature to survive. I just hoped Darla would survive too.

I could only make out the first two lines: “I can do now” and “I have to be strong,” both with translations to Spanish next to them. I wondered about the circumstances that prompted writing these phrases down and placing them where they couldn’t be missed.

The moment I pulled into my campsite in Mammoth Cave National Park and shifted into park, my whole life went from 80 miles an hour to zero. The tears came quickly and fiercely. I was so alone.