WEBVTT - S04 Episode 4: Always Already (Pt.2 of 2) 0:00:10.480 --> 0:00:16.520 This is unexplained, Season four, Episode four, Always Already Part two. 0:00:24.600 --> 0:00:27.800 It had been two days since McEntire had so carelessly 0:00:27.840 --> 0:00:31.280 followed the Maya Runa into the depths of the Amazon rainforest. 0:00:32.320 --> 0:00:35.120 That night, having strung up a hammock on the edge 0:00:35.120 --> 0:00:39.160 of the camp, he lay awake, replaying those words over 0:00:39.280 --> 0:00:44.120 and over in his mind, some of us are friends. 0:00:45.400 --> 0:00:48.880 How could the chief have communicated this without uttering a word, 0:00:49.560 --> 0:00:53.800 let alone not speaking English? Did he have access to 0:00:53.840 --> 0:00:57.720 an ancient form of communication, he thought, abilities that had 0:00:57.760 --> 0:01:02.360 long died out in more contemporary societies. Or had McEntyre 0:01:02.600 --> 0:01:06.080 merely picked up on a general sensibility and conjured the 0:01:06.120 --> 0:01:11.160 thoughts on his own? What, then, did it mean that 0:01:11.240 --> 0:01:16.920 only some of them were friends? McEntire awoke the next 0:01:16.920 --> 0:01:21.119 morning with an acrid smell of burning rubber assaulting his nostrils. 0:01:22.040 --> 0:01:24.920 He lifted his arm to check the time, but there 0:01:24.959 --> 0:01:28.400 was no watch on his wrist. His camera and shoes 0:01:28.600 --> 0:01:32.680 were gone too. Stumbling into the middle of the camp, 0:01:33.040 --> 0:01:35.720 he found Red Cheeks and some fellow warriors of the 0:01:35.760 --> 0:01:40.280 tribe standing around a fire, with a suspiciously dark plume 0:01:40.319 --> 0:01:44.080 of smoke rising up from it, and on top of 0:01:44.080 --> 0:01:50.920 it were his sneakers. McIntyre grabbed them, putting them, still scolding, 0:01:51.080 --> 0:01:54.760 onto his feet As Red Cheeks and the others crowed 0:01:54.840 --> 0:02:00.560 with laughter. McEntyre breathed deeply, doing his best to control 0:02:00.600 --> 0:02:03.400 the anger now swelling up inside of him, as he 0:02:03.440 --> 0:02:08.040 looked desperately for his camera, the one thing that justified 0:02:08.040 --> 0:02:13.160 his stupidity at getting lost out there. Just then, the 0:02:13.280 --> 0:02:17.840 chief appeared and approached him. I need to know what happened, 0:02:18.320 --> 0:02:29.240 came the voice in McEntire's head. Many others had appeared 0:02:29.240 --> 0:02:34.239 by now, crowding round the fire. The chief looked first 0:02:34.280 --> 0:02:38.200 at Red Cheeks and then to Macentyre, before turning his 0:02:38.240 --> 0:02:41.600 back and walking away. As the rest of the village 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:47.000 moved in behind him, Macentyre shouted out to them, but 0:02:47.160 --> 0:02:52.880 nobody responded. It was not uncommon for tribes to ostracize 0:02:52.880 --> 0:02:56.760 individuals to the point of invisibility. If they no longer 0:02:56.760 --> 0:03:02.640 observed them, they no longer existed. Macentyre couldn't afford to 0:03:02.720 --> 0:03:06.600 let that happen to him, so he began to jog. 0:03:08.320 --> 0:03:11.840 He started slowly at first, on a steady line circling 0:03:11.840 --> 0:03:15.519 the entire camp. By the fourth lap, he was running 0:03:15.560 --> 0:03:19.600 at pace stamping and flailing his arms every time he 0:03:19.639 --> 0:03:24.600 went past the chief, determined for him not to ignore him. 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:29.560 Slowly the villagers began to take notice. Red Cheeks had 0:03:29.639 --> 0:03:33.959 noticed too, stepping forward from the others with his hand 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:38.800 tightly gripped on a club. For a moment, Macentyre thought 0:03:38.840 --> 0:03:42.400 he might attack him, but something was holding him back, 0:03:43.440 --> 0:03:48.280 and then he saw the chief watching him. Hoping he 0:03:48.320 --> 0:03:53.160 had done enough, Macentyre finally came to a stop. The 0:03:53.240 --> 0:03:57.680 chief regarded the stranger for a moment, then, as Macentyre 0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:03.280 watched in complete amusement, he started to jog, also taking 0:04:03.320 --> 0:04:07.160 the exact same line as McEntyre, but in the opposite direction. 0:04:08.960 --> 0:04:12.080 He continued until he had completed the same amount of laps. 0:04:12.880 --> 0:04:17.279 Then a thought came into Mcentyre's mind, the face of time, 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:22.679 and then he realized they thought he had been putting 0:04:22.680 --> 0:04:25.920 a spell on the village and the chief was trying 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:30.839 to reverse it. Having finished the last lap, the chief 0:04:30.880 --> 0:04:34.040 stared again at McEntyre for a moment, then went back 0:04:34.120 --> 0:04:39.040 to his hut. Now witnessed again by the tribe, McEntyre 0:04:39.160 --> 0:04:42.080 returned to the fire and pulled the remains of his 0:04:42.120 --> 0:04:46.480 watch from under the ash. His last connection to time, 0:04:46.600 --> 0:04:52.000 as he knew it had now gone. Just then he 0:04:52.080 --> 0:04:56.479 caught sight of something odd dangling from a branch. It 0:04:56.560 --> 0:05:00.760 was a roll of film. Then saw the monkey in 0:05:00.800 --> 0:05:04.400 the tree above it, holding his precious camera in its hands. 0:05:06.320 --> 0:05:10.120 McEntire watched helplessly as it tore off the back and 0:05:10.279 --> 0:05:14.040 threw what was left of it somewhere deep into the undergrowth. 0:05:22.160 --> 0:05:24.280 Though he was relieved not to have been cut off 0:05:24.320 --> 0:05:27.479 from the group, losing the camera was a tough blow. 0:05:28.880 --> 0:05:33.119 He slumped to the floor, exhausted. At the very least, 0:05:33.440 --> 0:05:36.160 he still had two rolls of shot film in his pockets. 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:39.279 If he should ever make it out of there alive, 0:05:39.640 --> 0:05:45.000 he thought. Just then, a girl he had decided to 0:05:45.040 --> 0:05:49.400 call Monia, walked past. He had seen her lying with 0:05:49.480 --> 0:05:54.280 red cheeks before, and assumed they were a couple. In 0:05:54.320 --> 0:05:56.760 her hair, she wore a blue piece of the wall 0:05:57.040 --> 0:05:59.679 he had left out by his camp when he first arrived. 0:06:00.960 --> 0:06:04.080 He noticed her nails were now painted the same color too. 0:06:05.520 --> 0:06:08.919 It was as if Macentyre's presence was already staining and 0:06:09.000 --> 0:06:13.360 corrupting these people, a reminder perhaps of how quickly an 0:06:13.400 --> 0:06:20.720 isolated culture could become tainted by others. Later, after bathing 0:06:20.720 --> 0:06:24.279 in the river, newly replenished, he was greeted by the chief, 0:06:24.600 --> 0:06:27.960 who offered him one of his beautifully crafted arrows with 0:06:28.080 --> 0:06:32.920 bristles made of bore hair. A peace offering, perhaps, thought Macentyre, 0:06:33.560 --> 0:06:35.719 who gave him the belt he had weaved in return 0:06:37.440 --> 0:06:41.080 at the chief's invitation. Macentyre then followed a small group 0:06:41.120 --> 0:06:44.520 of children into the forest and watched as a shaman 0:06:44.880 --> 0:06:47.360 gave them a lesson on the many plants and insects 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:52.640 of their habitat. Then the chief approached him again, and 0:06:52.920 --> 0:06:57.320 thought appeared in his head. You must run away, it 0:06:57.440 --> 0:07:04.599 said Macentyre looked confused as they stood silently together. More 0:07:04.640 --> 0:07:09.440 words appeared in McEntire's mind. The tribe had been attacked 0:07:09.480 --> 0:07:13.320 before by white men who came from the sky. They 0:07:13.320 --> 0:07:16.920 were now on a journey to escape it all. But 0:07:17.080 --> 0:07:22.000 how thought McEntyre. In response, by returning to the beginning, 0:07:22.520 --> 0:07:28.200 came the reply, Yes, thought McEntyre, This was why they 0:07:28.240 --> 0:07:33.000 seemed so restless, and why they were starving themselves. The 0:07:33.120 --> 0:07:36.360 chief called it a journey to the beginning, but as 0:07:36.440 --> 0:07:42.200 McEntyre understood it, it was a journey to death. The 0:07:42.320 --> 0:07:45.960 chief was offering him the chance to leave and save himself. 0:07:48.320 --> 0:07:52.040 McEntyre looked out into the jungle and weighed up his options, 0:07:53.120 --> 0:07:55.880 but there was no question that his best chance was 0:07:55.920 --> 0:08:00.000 to stay with the tribe as long as he could, 0:08:00.040 --> 0:08:10.800 looked back at the chief and shook his head. Over 0:08:10.840 --> 0:08:14.640 the next few days, McEntyre began finally to adjust to 0:08:14.680 --> 0:08:18.920 the rhythms of the jungle. He survived about of diarrhea 0:08:19.520 --> 0:08:22.320 and spent most of his time listening for sounds of 0:08:22.360 --> 0:08:25.840 a plane, waiting in vain for the Maya Runa to 0:08:25.960 --> 0:08:30.760 up sticks and move on to the next destination. On 0:08:30.840 --> 0:08:36.040 the sixth night, McIntyre woke in the dark. Then he 0:08:36.040 --> 0:08:42.200 heard it the unmistakable roar of a jaguar. Moments later, 0:08:42.640 --> 0:08:47.079 and excited red cheeks appeared carrying a flaming torch, beckoning 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:51.720 for the photojournalist to follow him. Sensing a chance to 0:08:51.800 --> 0:08:55.920 finally prove his worth and win him over, Mcenttyre cautiously 0:08:55.960 --> 0:08:58.880 headed out to him as more hunters appeared from out 0:08:58.880 --> 0:09:02.480 of their huts, and soon they were charging through the 0:09:02.559 --> 0:09:06.800 forest in pursuit of the wild animal. Hearing more jaguar 0:09:06.840 --> 0:09:09.920 cries in the distance, macntyre did his best to keep 0:09:10.040 --> 0:09:12.680 up with the balls of flame, bobbing and weaving through 0:09:12.679 --> 0:09:16.080 the trees ahead of him, until suddenly they came to 0:09:16.120 --> 0:09:20.319 a stop by a large thorny bush. Rushing toward it, 0:09:20.760 --> 0:09:23.559 Macntyre was just about to stop when one of the 0:09:23.679 --> 0:09:27.360 hunters pushed him hard from behind and sent him tumbling 0:09:27.640 --> 0:09:31.600 into the thorns. He cried out in agony as the 0:09:31.679 --> 0:09:35.560 barbs stuck into him, many breaking off while still under 0:09:35.600 --> 0:09:41.640 the skin. Stumbling to his feet, Macntyre found himself alone 0:09:41.679 --> 0:09:45.439 in complete darkness, with no sign of the flaming torches 0:09:45.960 --> 0:09:50.200 and no sign of the hunters. Of course, he thought 0:09:50.920 --> 0:09:55.000 there had been no jaguar. Either he just wanted him gone, 0:09:55.760 --> 0:10:01.160 or Red Cheeks had tried to kill him. Macentyre realized 0:10:01.200 --> 0:10:06.319 with alarm that those thorns could also be poisonous. As 0:10:06.400 --> 0:10:08.840 quickly as possible, he did what he could to pull 0:10:08.880 --> 0:10:12.240 them from his skin in the dark, but many, especially 0:10:12.240 --> 0:10:16.720 those on his back, he could not reach. He waited 0:10:16.720 --> 0:10:20.600 for a moment, expecting some effect from the poison, but 0:10:20.760 --> 0:10:27.000 nothing came. Scratched and bloodied, he listened out for any 0:10:27.000 --> 0:10:30.040 sound of the camp, but heard only crickets in the 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:33.560 occasional cry of a macaw somewhere in the canopy above. 0:10:35.360 --> 0:10:37.640 Unable to see anything more than a foot in front 0:10:37.679 --> 0:10:41.360 of him, he decided to stay put until first light. 0:10:43.200 --> 0:10:47.160 Moments later came the gnats, assaulting him from all over, 0:10:47.880 --> 0:10:52.240 nipping and biting at its body. Each time he swatted 0:10:52.240 --> 0:10:55.560 them away, they seemed just to come back in greater numbers. 0:10:58.040 --> 0:11:01.120 Needing to find any kind of shelter, he eventually settled 0:11:01.200 --> 0:11:04.960 under some roots, taking care to scare off any poisonous 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:08.600 creatures that might have been lurking there. And there he 0:11:08.679 --> 0:11:20.720 remained waiting out the rest of the night. Maclntyre woke 0:11:20.960 --> 0:11:25.480 at daybreak, his body shivering with cold and itching all over. 0:11:27.360 --> 0:11:30.560 Finding the bush of thorns again, he soon located a 0:11:30.600 --> 0:11:34.520 path near by. After following it for a few minutes, however, 0:11:35.320 --> 0:11:41.080 the path split in two. Exasperated, he took one and 0:11:41.200 --> 0:11:46.800 headed down it. Hours later, maclntyre broke through into a 0:11:46.840 --> 0:11:51.440 clearing with a flush of excitement. He spotted chainsaw marks 0:11:51.440 --> 0:11:54.400 on the trees and wandered if the loggers were still close. 0:11:55.559 --> 0:11:59.200 Though he found the practice objectionable, he realized too, with 0:11:59.240 --> 0:12:02.440 a touch of irony, that these people might also be 0:12:02.520 --> 0:12:07.920 his best chance of survival. Moments later he found the bodies, 0:12:08.880 --> 0:12:12.720 four of them in various states of decay, being steadily 0:12:12.760 --> 0:12:16.000 devoured by an endless line of army ants and other 0:12:16.080 --> 0:12:20.679 small creatures. MacIntyre did his best to cover his nose 0:12:20.760 --> 0:12:25.280 from the smell and swatted the flies away. Then he 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:29.600 noticed the arrows sticking out of their chests. The flights 0:12:29.679 --> 0:12:32.640 made of bare bristles, just as the chief had handed 0:12:32.720 --> 0:12:38.640 him the day before. The men Amazonians, too in their 0:12:38.679 --> 0:12:42.600 way with families of their own to support, had likely 0:12:42.640 --> 0:12:45.839 been dropped in by helicopter to prepare a formal landing 0:12:45.880 --> 0:12:52.960 spot for developers. They were unlikely to be found. MacIntyre 0:12:53.200 --> 0:12:56.440 made a note of the chainsaw serial number, hoping it 0:12:56.559 --> 0:13:02.200 might help identify them. Later, continuing on, feeling more and 0:13:02.280 --> 0:13:05.800 more itchy all over his body, he noticed a puncture 0:13:05.800 --> 0:13:11.360 wound on his arm beginning to swell unusually. Taking his knife, 0:13:11.840 --> 0:13:16.440 he dug into it and pulled out a small, wriggling maggot. 0:13:18.559 --> 0:13:23.360 Many hours later, with the heat and humidity intensifying, Macntire 0:13:23.440 --> 0:13:26.760 stumbled on in a state of near delirium, having lost 0:13:26.760 --> 0:13:30.240 all comprehension of distance as he felt his entire self 0:13:30.520 --> 0:13:36.160 being absorbed into the buzzing vibrancy of the forest. Then, 0:13:36.559 --> 0:13:40.760 hearing the sound of water, he staggered toward it, breaking 0:13:40.800 --> 0:13:46.000 through into a scene of unparalleled beauty. Before him, under 0:13:46.080 --> 0:13:50.880 dappled sunlight lay a small river beach of untied white sand, 0:13:51.640 --> 0:13:55.559 at the foot of two high and narrow waterfalls cascading 0:13:55.559 --> 0:14:00.360 off the face of a vast green mountain. Macntire flopped 0:14:00.360 --> 0:14:04.480 onto the beach and threw his head into the water. Then, 0:14:04.520 --> 0:14:07.079 after taking a short rest to pick more maggots from 0:14:07.160 --> 0:14:11.200 under his skin, he carried on, hoping to follow the 0:14:11.240 --> 0:14:20.520 stream back to the river. Seconds later, he collapsed. Are 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:23.480 you always taking care of your family? Do you often 0:14:23.520 --> 0:14:26.600 take care of others and not yourself? Now it's time 0:14:26.640 --> 0:14:29.840 to take care of yourself, to make time for you 0:14:29.840 --> 0:14:33.280 you deserve it. Teledoc gives you access to a licensed 0:14:33.320 --> 0:14:36.120 therapist to help you get back to feeling your best 0:14:36.400 --> 0:14:40.080 to feeling like yourself again. With tele adoc, you can 0:14:40.120 --> 0:14:43.600 speak to a licensed therapist by phone or video. Therapy 0:14:43.600 --> 0:14:46.880 appointments are available seven days a week from seven am 0:14:47.000 --> 0:14:50.920 to nine pm local time. If you feel overwhelmed sometimes 0:14:51.280 --> 0:14:55.560 maybe you feel stressed or anxious, depressed or lonely or 0:14:55.600 --> 0:14:58.240 you might be struggling with a personal or family issue. 0:14:58.680 --> 0:15:02.760 Tele Adoc can help. Teledoc is committed to facilitating great 0:15:02.840 --> 0:15:06.320 therapeutic matches, so they make it easy to change counselors 0:15:06.320 --> 0:15:10.720 if needed. For free teledoc therapy is available through most 0:15:10.760 --> 0:15:15.120 insurance or employers. Download the app or visit teledoc dot 0:15:15.160 --> 0:15:19.080 com Forward slash Unexplained podcast. To day to Get Started. 0:15:19.480 --> 0:15:23.320 That's t e l a d oc dot com slash 0:15:23.400 --> 0:15:33.600 Unexplained podcast. McEntire slowly opened his eyes and found himself 0:15:33.640 --> 0:15:37.240 back in the Maya Runa camp as shaman busied themselves 0:15:37.280 --> 0:15:41.360 about him, sucking out the worms and tending to his wounds. 0:15:42.520 --> 0:15:47.400 He had been rescued hours later. After drifting in and 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:50.760 out of consciousness, he was finally strong enough to stand. 0:15:51.800 --> 0:15:55.120 Walking round the village cautiously. He saw no sign of 0:15:55.160 --> 0:15:59.960 red cheeks anywhere, while all about women, men and children 0:16:00.360 --> 0:16:05.000 were making a huge pile out of all their possessions. Everything, 0:16:05.040 --> 0:16:08.760 it seemed, from axes and bows to calabashes and spears, 0:16:09.400 --> 0:16:13.800 was being thrown away. Then he saw it, the body 0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:17.640 lying inside a funeral basket propped up inside one of 0:16:17.680 --> 0:16:21.120 the huts. It was only when he drew near enough 0:16:21.440 --> 0:16:24.560 for the flies to scatter away from the face that 0:16:24.680 --> 0:16:30.960 mac Intyre recognized the red painted cheeks underneath. Recoiling in horror, 0:16:31.560 --> 0:16:35.160 he stepped back outside in a daze. There was no 0:16:35.240 --> 0:16:40.400 sign of Red Cheeks its friends either. Some of us 0:16:40.560 --> 0:16:45.840 our friends, he thought to himself. Looking up, he saw 0:16:45.840 --> 0:16:49.000 the Chief standing by the pile of tools, ordering a 0:16:49.040 --> 0:16:52.640 fire to be lit next to it. All of it 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:58.040 was broken up and flung into the flames. Spotting MacIntyre, 0:16:58.600 --> 0:17:02.720 the Chief came over to join him. They were holding 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:06.760 us still in time. When it is burned, we will 0:17:06.800 --> 0:17:12.160 move away, came the voice in McIntyre's head. Where two, 0:17:12.600 --> 0:17:19.600 he thought in reply to the beginning. In bewilderment, McIntyre 0:17:19.720 --> 0:17:22.040 took a seat on the edge of the camp and 0:17:22.200 --> 0:17:25.280 watched as one by one the huts were torn down 0:17:25.440 --> 0:17:30.240 and flung into the fire. Then, finally, the basket containing 0:17:30.240 --> 0:17:33.400 the body of Red Cheeks was also placed into its 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:38.719 hungry flames. Once it had all been destroyed, just like before, 0:17:39.280 --> 0:17:43.360 the group promptly filed into a single column and marched 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:49.439 headlong into the jungle. On their journey toward the beginning, McIntyre, 0:17:49.560 --> 0:17:52.399 feeling the two rolls of film still safe in his pocket, 0:17:53.359 --> 0:18:04.040 rose to his feet and set off after them. For 0:18:04.119 --> 0:18:07.320 two days and nights they walked, stopping only for short 0:18:07.400 --> 0:18:11.600 rests and the occasional drink of water. No food was consumed. 0:18:13.240 --> 0:18:17.680 This was finally, it, thought Macentyre, They would walk until death. 0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:22.760 On the second morning, he made up his mind, at 0:18:22.760 --> 0:18:25.399 the first sight of a serious body of water, he 0:18:25.400 --> 0:18:29.040 would leave the tribe and take his chances alone. In 0:18:29.119 --> 0:18:32.600 the meantime, with the pace now barely more than a crawl, 0:18:33.200 --> 0:18:40.160 with many limping painfully, they continued forward. But then from 0:18:40.160 --> 0:18:42.320 out of the trees came a stream of new but 0:18:42.480 --> 0:18:47.760 familiar faces with tattooed lines around their mouths and noses 0:18:47.840 --> 0:18:52.679 pierced with whisker like spines, And soon they were surrounded 0:18:52.680 --> 0:18:56.600 by them, greeting them with wide smiles and warm embraces. 0:18:58.040 --> 0:19:02.160 They hadn't been walking to their death, realized McIntyre. They 0:19:02.200 --> 0:19:06.160 had been walking home. Perhaps that was what they meant 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:11.760 by the beginning, he thought. Before long they were arriving 0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:15.440 into another village, much bigger than the previous camps, with 0:19:15.480 --> 0:19:21.080 over twenty huts dotted about. The mood was jubilant as 0:19:21.119 --> 0:19:23.879 the new arrival settled in with the others, and the 0:19:23.960 --> 0:19:29.240 chief was given an especially warm welcome. Then McIntyre spotted 0:19:29.280 --> 0:19:33.320 incredibly that one of the new tribespeople was wearing shorts. 0:19:35.240 --> 0:19:38.320 Could it be, he thought, as he approached him, cautiously, 0:19:39.160 --> 0:19:43.720 trying hard not to get his hopes up. Hello, he 0:19:43.800 --> 0:19:50.680 said in Portuguese, my name is Lauren. Lauren. Yes, welcome, 0:19:51.040 --> 0:19:57.840 replied the man, also in Portuguese. McIntyre could barely stand 0:19:58.200 --> 0:20:03.360 as the relief washed over him. The man named Cambio 0:20:03.960 --> 0:20:06.760 had learned the language after being forced to flee from 0:20:06.760 --> 0:20:11.040 his village when it was attacked by developers. Having managed 0:20:11.040 --> 0:20:14.119 to escape to Peru, he had sought refuge in a 0:20:14.160 --> 0:20:18.080 Baptist mission, where he stayed for three years before finally 0:20:18.160 --> 0:20:24.720 rejoining his people. That night, the ravenous MacIntyre stuffed his 0:20:24.760 --> 0:20:28.080 face on plates of turtle meat and bade you. As 0:20:28.119 --> 0:20:33.320 Cambio explained more about the life of the Maya Runa. Later, 0:20:33.840 --> 0:20:36.800 Macentyre asked him if he ever spoke to the others 0:20:36.880 --> 0:20:41.160 without words, Was it possible that he had been doing 0:20:41.200 --> 0:20:45.960 this with the chief. Cambio's face lit up with a 0:20:46.000 --> 0:20:50.520 look of great surprise. No, he had not, he replied. 0:20:51.560 --> 0:20:55.200 Only the elders knew how to do that, but there 0:20:55.280 --> 0:21:00.000 was nothing more he could tell him about it. After dinner, 0:21:00.760 --> 0:21:04.600 McEntyre noticed some women spitting into bowls and mixing it 0:21:04.640 --> 0:21:09.280 with chopped vines from the forest, preparing for a ceremony. 0:21:09.600 --> 0:21:15.119 He asked Cambio, Yes, he replied, we are returning to 0:21:15.200 --> 0:21:21.240 the beginning. It seemed the mysterious journey was still happening 0:21:21.840 --> 0:21:31.879 after all. McEntyre woke up in the middle of the 0:21:32.000 --> 0:21:37.600 night to find Cambio standing over his hammock, gesturing for 0:21:37.680 --> 0:21:41.679 him to stay quiet. He led the photojournalist toward a 0:21:41.760 --> 0:21:45.159 large hut from which a soft yellow light was emanating. 0:21:47.400 --> 0:21:52.679 McEntyre stepped inside and froze there. On the ground. Before 0:21:52.760 --> 0:21:56.359 him sat the chief, now more regal than ever, in 0:21:56.440 --> 0:22:01.400 a grand McCaw feathered crown, surrounded by other elders and shaman, 0:22:02.280 --> 0:22:05.480 their faces just visible under the flickering of torch light. 0:22:07.119 --> 0:22:11.960 The chief gestured for MacIntyre to sit down. Why did 0:22:12.000 --> 0:22:16.280 you come to us, he asked out loud, as Cambio translated. 0:22:17.880 --> 0:22:21.080 Then Macentyre explained that he had heard of their tribe 0:22:21.680 --> 0:22:26.040 and had come there to photograph them. The men looked 0:22:26.080 --> 0:22:30.920 to each other with concern, and why hadn't he left already? 0:22:32.440 --> 0:22:36.760 He had wanted to before, he replied, But now, if 0:22:36.760 --> 0:22:40.000 he was allowed, he would like to witness them reaching 0:22:40.000 --> 0:22:45.040 the beginning. He needed to know what it was. After 0:22:45.119 --> 0:22:49.080 a moment's pause, the men smiled and nodded in approval. 0:22:50.840 --> 0:22:53.640 You staying here will be good for the ritual, said 0:22:53.680 --> 0:22:58.600 the chief. Macentyre, suddenly unsure again about what he was 0:22:58.640 --> 0:23:02.600 getting into, asked when it will happen, to which the 0:23:02.680 --> 0:23:07.800 chief replied in two days. But how do you know 0:23:07.840 --> 0:23:10.720 what you were looking for? What if the beginning isn't 0:23:10.760 --> 0:23:17.840 there anymore, asked Macentyre. As Cambio translated, the chief broke 0:23:17.880 --> 0:23:22.600 into a laugh. The beginning is always there, he replied, 0:23:23.600 --> 0:23:30.000 it is never over, and with that Macenttyre was dismissed. 0:23:38.160 --> 0:23:42.560 The following day, Macentyre watched with interest as the village 0:23:42.560 --> 0:23:46.200 continued to prepare for the ceremony to the beginning, as 0:23:46.240 --> 0:23:49.200 more ingredients were brought from the jungle and mixed into 0:23:49.280 --> 0:23:54.479 pots by the women. That night, he was unexpectedly woken 0:23:54.600 --> 0:23:59.960 by Cambio. Come, Lauren, he says, it is happening now. 0:24:01.800 --> 0:24:05.439 At this McIntyre is led through the dark toward a 0:24:05.520 --> 0:24:10.199 long line of tribesmen. Cambio explains to him that they 0:24:10.280 --> 0:24:13.840 must join the line to choose their new name, the 0:24:13.960 --> 0:24:17.920 name they will take to the beginning. Before he has 0:24:17.960 --> 0:24:21.280 time to think, the entire line takes a big step 0:24:21.320 --> 0:24:26.680 to the left. Cambio nods for McIntyre to join in. Quickly, 0:24:27.000 --> 0:24:30.320 they take another three steps forward, followed by two more 0:24:30.400 --> 0:24:33.920 to the right, then back and to the left, ending 0:24:33.920 --> 0:24:38.439 the movements with a clap. McIntyre does his best to 0:24:38.520 --> 0:24:42.880 dance with them as they go round again, and soon 0:24:42.960 --> 0:24:46.479 the men are beginning to chant as well. But so 0:25:02.400 --> 0:25:07.440 on and on it goes until daylight, when finally they stop. 0:25:09.400 --> 0:25:12.760 McIntyre then spots the chief making his way down the line, 0:25:13.280 --> 0:25:16.640 asking each of them to give their new name, placing 0:25:16.680 --> 0:25:19.600 a thumb print of red uruco paint on their foreheads 0:25:19.800 --> 0:25:25.240 as he goes. Another elder following behind smears their chest 0:25:25.280 --> 0:25:30.640 with crushed jinnipap and gives them a bowl to drink from. Finally, 0:25:30.800 --> 0:25:35.160 it is McIntyre's turn. Unsure what to say, he gives 0:25:35.160 --> 0:25:38.480 his surname, to which the chief nods, then presses a 0:25:38.520 --> 0:25:43.080 red thumbprint onto his forehead, and then comes the bowl 0:25:43.119 --> 0:25:47.480 of fiscous liquid, the concoction of fermented vine juice and spit. 0:25:48.600 --> 0:25:51.720 Unable to back out now, he takes a deep breath 0:25:52.440 --> 0:25:57.119 and drinks heavily from the bowl. MacIntyre had hoped at 0:25:57.119 --> 0:26:01.480 the very least the drink wasn't a hallucinogenic drug. He 0:26:01.600 --> 0:26:13.960 realized very quickly that it was. The men stagger out 0:26:14.000 --> 0:26:18.240 at the line in a daze. McIntyre finds Cambio and 0:26:18.359 --> 0:26:20.720 gestures for him to sit with him as he waits 0:26:20.720 --> 0:26:25.240 for the drug to hit. Before long, he feels the 0:26:25.240 --> 0:26:29.080 warmth of it coursing through his body, feels time and 0:26:29.200 --> 0:26:34.960 space contracting at will. Heading back into the throng, he 0:26:35.040 --> 0:26:38.520 sees the lid of a bamboo container lifted up to 0:26:38.600 --> 0:26:43.840 reveal hundreds of frogs flopping about inside it. Cambio holds 0:26:43.840 --> 0:26:47.080 one up and shows McIntyre the secretions on its back, 0:26:47.960 --> 0:26:52.760 and then drips some onto his tongue. To the side, 0:26:53.480 --> 0:26:57.399 a shaman pierces his arm with a knife, while others 0:26:57.480 --> 0:27:01.000 peel back the wound and drip the frogs cretion straight 0:27:01.000 --> 0:27:05.600 into it all about him. The men are pacing around, 0:27:06.040 --> 0:27:09.360 with some having dropped to all fours, barking and roaring 0:27:09.480 --> 0:27:14.679 as they mimic the sacred jaguar. Through the chaos, McIntyre 0:27:14.720 --> 0:27:18.080 also becomes aware of other men blowing powder into each 0:27:18.080 --> 0:27:22.320 other's noses. After receiving it, the men clutch at their 0:27:22.320 --> 0:27:25.159 faces for a moment, then opened their eyes in a 0:27:25.240 --> 0:27:30.879 distant and vacant stare. McIntyre, who had refused all of it, 0:27:31.440 --> 0:27:34.879 stumbled back to where it started through puddles of vomit 0:27:35.280 --> 0:27:38.040 brought up by some of the more adventurous drinkers of 0:27:38.040 --> 0:27:42.119 the liquid. Finding a quiet spot on the edge of 0:27:42.160 --> 0:27:46.800 the village, McIntyre dropped back onto the floor and stared 0:27:46.880 --> 0:27:58.840 up at a distant, unknown point above. By the afternoon, 0:27:59.200 --> 0:28:01.840 with the ritual over and the effects of the drink 0:28:01.920 --> 0:28:07.000 wearing off, McIntyre finds the chief. Knowing he will be 0:28:07.080 --> 0:28:10.080 leaving soon, he wonders if he might stay in contact 0:28:10.080 --> 0:28:14.520 with them to trade ideas or help them acquire medicines perhaps, 0:28:15.320 --> 0:28:22.199 But the Chief looks confused. Just then Cambio appears. You 0:28:22.240 --> 0:28:26.520 are at the beginning now, McIntyre, you cannot return to 0:28:26.560 --> 0:28:31.119 your people. They are no longer there. And then it 0:28:31.240 --> 0:28:35.240 hits him, when are we going to die? He asks? 0:28:36.520 --> 0:28:40.920 Now it is Cambio's turn to look confused. We are 0:28:40.920 --> 0:28:47.120 not dying, he said with a smile. The Chief gestured 0:28:47.120 --> 0:28:50.719 for McIntyre to follow him. Moments later, they are standing 0:28:50.760 --> 0:28:54.800 by the banks of a muddy stream. The Chief points 0:28:54.840 --> 0:28:57.680 to a narrow section of it up ahead, then looks 0:28:57.720 --> 0:29:03.080 back to McIntyre. The Beginning comes the voice in his head, 0:29:04.400 --> 0:29:11.840 and finally McIntyre understands it is not home or death 0:29:12.160 --> 0:29:16.840 that they have journeyed to, but simply to a time before, 0:29:18.640 --> 0:29:23.720 a time that always was and always is, a time 0:29:24.120 --> 0:29:27.120 before the objects of the world were smothered by the 0:29:27.200 --> 0:29:31.960 language of humans. The journey to the Beginning was a 0:29:32.000 --> 0:29:35.880 shedding of all that baggage, the burning of those material 0:29:35.920 --> 0:29:40.040 possessions that were holding them still in time, a chance 0:29:40.080 --> 0:29:45.640 to reset and begin again. Now having reached the Beginning, 0:29:46.080 --> 0:29:50.560 perhaps they could find a better path forward. Perhaps now 0:29:51.280 --> 0:29:56.640 they might be safe. And with that also, MacIntyre understood 0:29:56.680 --> 0:30:00.840 something else. If they were to let him leave, it 0:30:00.880 --> 0:30:03.880 would destroy the spell and take them right back to 0:30:03.960 --> 0:30:08.080 the future they had left behind. They would sooner kill 0:30:08.200 --> 0:30:20.280 him than risk that. Over the next few weeks, maclntyre 0:30:20.400 --> 0:30:24.120 tried to accept his fate with no hope of Returning 0:30:24.120 --> 0:30:27.080 home on his own, he focused on learning more of 0:30:27.120 --> 0:30:33.480 their language and helping out with whatever he could, until 0:30:33.560 --> 0:30:37.840 one night when maclntyre woke up to find himself being 0:30:37.880 --> 0:30:44.320 completely drenched as a guttural thunder roared above him. Jumping 0:30:44.360 --> 0:30:47.520 from his hammock, he landed in a streaming torrent of 0:30:47.680 --> 0:30:52.320 knee high water. Only then did he become aware of 0:30:52.400 --> 0:30:58.000 the frantic screaming at the villages. Stumbling about in the 0:30:58.080 --> 0:31:01.680 dark with the flood waters at his legs, he is 0:31:01.720 --> 0:31:05.400 suddenly clattered by a makeshift raft of two locks tied 0:31:05.440 --> 0:31:10.520 loosely together. Falling onto it in seconds, his whisk through 0:31:10.560 --> 0:31:14.080 the trees and spewed out beyond into what is now 0:31:14.240 --> 0:31:18.720 a raging river. Hearing the cries again of the villagers, 0:31:19.240 --> 0:31:22.360 he tried furiously to paddle back to the bank, but 0:31:22.440 --> 0:31:29.600 then he realized this was his chance. Clinging tighter to 0:31:29.640 --> 0:31:32.920 the raft, he let the river take him away from 0:31:32.960 --> 0:31:40.200 the camp and out into the dark. Over the next 0:31:40.320 --> 0:31:45.080 day and night, McIntyre was knocked about ceaselessly by turbulent waters, 0:31:46.000 --> 0:31:50.840 only stopping occasionally to rest and shelter from the unforgiving sun. 0:31:52.800 --> 0:31:56.480 On the second day, raising his head wearily from the raft, 0:31:57.200 --> 0:32:01.760