In 1971, Erica Elliott arrives on the Navajo Nation as a young schoolteacher, armed with good intentions and almost no understanding of the culture she’s entered. Isolated, discouraged and unable to communicate, she nearly leaves—until she begins learning the Navajo language and, with it, a way of life that will change her forever.
Living among the Diné as a teacher, sheepherder and eventually a trusted member of the community, Elliott is welcomed into homes, ceremonies and sacred traditions rarely shared with outsiders. She witnesses extraordinary moments of healing, including the elders praying away a tumor on her neck, survives fearsome encounters with a mountain lion and a shape-shifting “skinwalker,” and hears a Navajo grandmother speak a prophecy that will guide the rest of her life.
This intimate, mystical memoir is a breathtaking immersion into a spiritually rich culture — and the moment a young woman’s destiny quietly takes root.
