Early the next morning we set out to the Allegany State Park. The Rabbi explained that the park had sixty-five thousand acres of land and was quite isolated in parts. Moreover, it had numerous primitive forested areas and the soil there, if extracted from the right area, would be perfect for preserving the highest ethical nature of the golem. As we moved through the park, Rabbi Gerschem seemed to know exactly where to go. It was apparent he had been here before. We finally stopped next to a swamp, at the base of a tree that had huge twisted roots growing out of the ground, like giant tentacles. All around were thick clouds of fog. They rose up from the swamp like shrouds of vapour and enveloped everything. As soon as I stepped out of the car, I was damp with sweat. I tried to catch a breath but the steamy air was suffocating hot. The Rabbi donned a pristine white robe he took from the trunk of his car and provided one for me as well, a third was for the golem. ?or purity, ?he said. We set to work, but in truth it was the Rabbi who laboured away on his hands and knees. I mostly watched in awe but every now and then wondered what a rational, educated man like me was doing in a remote area of a national park, playing in the mud. If anyone happened upon us, I have no doubt that with white robes that cascaded to our ankles, they would have thought we were part of some cult. It didn? really matter though ?I just wanted to see Rachel again, to tell her I loved her. The surface of the swamp was very still as Rabbi Gerschem worked away, every now and then an insect skittering across. I touched the water with my hand, it was strikingly warm and I could see to the bottom where all manners of green plant growth resided. A short distance away, a brightly-coloured yellow and black salamander rested on a moss-covered rock that jutted from the water and at my feet, two brown-spotted frogs plopped through the mud. The Rabbi used his hands to form the figure, whispering in Hebrew, not a word of which did I understand. praying for success in this endeavour, ?he explained. ?ver here, ?he said, motioning to me. ?he fingers.?I got down onto my knees and formed them as best I could but they looked less like fingers than spindly tree branches.?t? o.k.?assured the Rabbi. ?e only need a general outline.?After an hour, the mud figure had been carved. It lay there like an alien being, brown, bloodless. ?his can? work, ?I said in desperation. The Rabbi was not through. He layered on more mud onto the forehead and using a twig like a master craftsman, carefully shaped a word with Hebrew lettering MET.?He turned to meet my disbelieving eyes. 't means ?ruth.?Hebrew letters have substance within the world, ?he advised. ?n the right hands, they can be harnessed to create great power.?He covered the creation with a piece of cloth. ?e must let it harden in the sun.? As we waited, nary a word was exchanged between us. We sat in the front of the car and rested, mud an But Rabbi Gerschem left the car just as I was about to voice my doubts. He stood above the mud figure and removed the cloth. The mud had hardened sufficiently but there was a large crack running down the middle of the breastbone and the Rabbi set about repairing it with water. Then he got onto his knees and bent down low to his creation, blowing into the nostrils.What happened next will sound unbelievable but as God is my witness, it took place before my disbelieving eyes: The inanimate shape began to glow like the embers of a red-hot fire, and the fingers and toes started to sprout nails, the head, black hair. I took a few steps backwards. This was black magic, the devil? work. The Rabbi ordered me to get a bucket that was in the back seat.