Janferie Stonesuperstition and the dark jealousy and underlying violence of Maya
nature. I did not know how to reply. I had read narratives (Laugh-
lin 1976 , 5 – 6 ) that followed the pattern described but found it inter-
esting that in this account it was the women themselves who had en-
gaged in spirit battle, when usually it was the shamans who fought
for the souls of their patients. I thought this might have to do with
Vera’s own powers, dormant while she was in the childbearing phase
of her life. Alyssa’s revulsion for the superstition and the dark magic
that had resulted in actual injury seemed compounded by her com-
plicity in paying for it. Moreover, I sensed that she had distanced her-
self over the years because she had a genuine fear of being caught up
in the malice, something to be considered when the bond between the
self and native contacts is weak or broken.
Favret-Saada ( 1980 ) describes such a fieldwork dilemma, in which
life-threatening danger arose as she explored witchcraft in the Bo-
cage region of France. The inability to cope with the inexplicable may
lead the person external to the culture to put distance between the
self and the field. But on this hot June evening, I found it fascinating
that Alyssa had switched to a narrative mode, echoing the cadences
of Vera’s voice, to try to resolve some of the issues that had arisen in
that moment. I also felt that telling the story had lanced some of the
venom from the situation. Whatever the current state of their rela-
tionship, Alyssa and Vera had long been friends, and we would all
have to trust that it would work out for a few days. Reluctantly, I did
leave Vera’s family there, the issue of the dog unresolved, so we might
all get to our separate flights.
Incidents such as this one resist easy interpretation. In the life courses
of the people involved, they remain sore until, as in this case, time can
heal the anger and fear. Four years later, in May of 2004 , when Vera
and little Alyssa visited again, Alyssa was once again living on the coast
while her daughter attended high school. She, her daughter, Vera, and
little Alyssa spent time together reestablishing the sense of extended
family. Little Alyssa does, however, remain afraid of dogs.
I could not readily absorb this incident into my work. Such experi-
ences resist academic description, obtruding like rough stones in a de-
ductive flow. The perceptual warp we experienced in the aftermath of