I could see glowing lava and a huge plume of volcanic ash spewing from the mouth of the beast this morning as dawn broke in Jogjakarta. It’s not yet clear if this constitutes an official eruption, but the awe and worry I feel this morning is as palpable as the growing plume on the horizon. I know people up there. People I like. People in Kaliurang who have refused to leave their animals and homes behind. Yesterday, I talked with the wives and children of some of those people staying in the evacuation camp. I find myself wishing it’d all be a false alarm.


The good news is that it seems to be reaching its eruption stage slowly. The ash and heat clouds have seeped out, the goats have started coming down the slopes, and with them many of those who stayed behind. If it erupts slowly, most will be safe. I certainly want that more than the story I came here to tell.