2 We Salute You!

2 WE SALUTE You! The air in Nepal was cold and dry. "Wow, our clothes look like they came from our time," said Annie. "Right," said Jack. Annie and Jack wore parkas with hoods, gloves, wool pants and hats, and hiking boots. Jack's notebook was in a pocket of his parka. Two large red backpacks were on the floor. "Wow! These are nice packs!" said Annie. "I wonder what's in them." "Yeah, why are they so big?" asked Jack.

Jack and Annie each unzipped a backpack and looked inside. "A rolled-up sleeping bag!" said Jack. "Cool," said Annie. "We can sleep anywhere we want." "So, where are we?" said Jack. He and Annie looked out the tree house window. They'd landed in a small hemlock grove. Beyond the woods, everything looked dreary: a

brown, wintry pasture; lonely stone huts; and treeless gray mountains. "It's gloomy here, too," said Jack. "You can say that again," said Annie. "It's gloomy here, too," said Jack. Jack and Annie leaned out the window. Beyond the hemlocks was a stream. Two young girls in red dresses were kneeling on the bank. Both had flowing, dark hair and were talking and laughing while they worked. They were scrubbing a pile of wooden plates and bowls. "We can ask them about the Gray Ghost," said Annie. "Come on! Let's go down." "It's a start," said Jack. Annie slipped Morgan's rhyme into a pocket of her parka. Jack put their guide book into his backpack. Then they climbed down the rope ladder. Jack and Annie walked out from the hemlock grove and headed to the stream bank. When the girls caught sight of them, they cried out with excitement. They put the bowls aside and jumped to their feet. Each girl pressed her hands together and bowed her head. "I salute you!" they called out together. Annie copied the girls. She put her hands together, too, and bowed her head.

"We salute you!" she said. "I'm Annie. He's my brother, Jack." "I'm Mina!" said the older girl. "She's my sister, Fuli."

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The younger girl gave them a big grin. She was missing her two front teeth. "Are you travelers?" asked Mina. "Yes!" said Annie. "We're hikers, actually." "Did you come to our village for the festival?" asked Mina. "No… we're just hiking," said Jack. "We came from America," said Annie. "We're looking for something called the Gray Ghost of the Mountains. Have you heard of her?" "No, I haven't," said Mina. "They should ask Tenzin!" Fuli said. "Who's that?" said Annie. "Tenzin is the storyteller in our village," said Mina. "He knows all the stories about the mountains." "He was once a mountain guide!" said Fuli. "Yes, Tenzin used to lead climbers," said Mina. "He carried their gear, made their tea. But he no longer does that." "He doesn't do anything now," said Fuli in a sad voice. "Why?" said Annie. "Because he's too sad. He was left all alone," said Fuli.