Cedar Woman (48 page)

An
h
alf
ho
u
r
p
asse
d
,
and
then
a
no
t
h
er.
Still
h
er
m
o
t
h
er
and
Tell Wo
l
f pray
e
d
,
so
m
eti
m
es
chanting,
s
o
met
i
m
es
s
i
le
n
t,
t
h
eir
m
ou
ths
m
oving
w
i
th
t
h
eir
e
n
treaties.
Sl
o
wl
y
,
s
l
o
w
l
y
,
her
fa
t
h
e
r
’s
b
ody b
e
gan
to g
lo
w.
T
h
eir
h
eart
beats
s
e
p
a
rated,
b
u
t
c
o
n
ti
nu
e
d
t
o
beat
i
n
un
is
o
n
.
L
e
na lea
p
t to
h
er feet!
Her
fat
h
er
was ali
v
e!

²⁹
_{Tdun-khash-ee
-
lahs
–
The
Spirit
Helpers}

³⁰
_{Tda-koo-skha
h
n-skhan
–
soul}

³¹
Cha-noom-pah
–
pipe
or
sacred
breath

As
Zit
k
a
Mi
n
e
p
r
o
ph
e
sie
d
,
Peter
re
m
ai
n
ed
in
c
o
m
a
for
a f
u
ll
fo
u
r seasons.
On
t
h
e
a
nn
i
vers
a
ry
of
his
acc
i
dent,
his
eyes
f
l
uttered
open
and he
m
u
r
m
ured
o
n
e w
or
d
:

“
Mary.”

Lena
lay
on
t
h
e
bed
s
h
e shar
e
d
with
her
g
r
a
nd
m
oth
e
r,
a
n
d re
m
e
m
b
ered.
She
re
m
e
m
b
ered
that
Z
itka
Mine
prophes
i
ed
that
h
e
r father would
teach.
Her
brow w
r
i
nkl
e
d
as
she
c
ons
i
d
er
e
d
this extraord
i
n
ary state
m
ent.
S
h
e
cont
i
nu
e
d
to re
m
e
m
b
er:
her
fat
h
e
r
st
ru
gg
l
ing
to learn to walk
a
g
ain,
talk
agai
n
.
Str
u
g
g
li
n
g
to
eat
o
n
h
i
s
ow
n
,
t
o
rea
d
,
b
u
t
n
e
v
er str
u
ggli
n
g
t
o
l
o
ve
a
g
ain.

He was as e
n
twi
n
ed with t
h
e
he
a
rt
o
f his
w
i
fe
as
b
ef
o
re
the accident.
Daily
Lena
watch
e
d
the
ni
m
bus grow brighter and
s
t
ronger. Str
on
g
er
t
o
o
w
ere
t
h
e
heart
b
eats
of
her
p
ar
ents,
beating
i
n
u
n
i
s
o
n
.
D
a
y
b
y
da
y
s
h
e
watc
h
ed
h
i
m
st
r
u
g
g
le
,
an
d
s
h
e
was
i
n
a
we
o
f
h
er
fa
t
h
er
’s a
b
ility to
en
d
u
re.

S
h
e
watc
h
ed
h
i
m
p
atie
n
tly
l
e
arn to
talk
agai
n
,
to
c
o
m
m
u
n
icate,
to voice
his
feel
i
ngs
a
nd dre
a
m
s. She
w
i
t
n
ess
e
d
his
pa
i
n
as
t
h
er
a
p
ists worked
with
h
i
s
we
a
k
en
e
d
l
im
b
s,
teac
h
ing
him
to
walk
again,
to
p
e
rform

tasks
as
si
m
p
le
as
hold
i
ng
a
spoon.
S
h
e obs
e
rv
e
d
his
cour
a
g
e
a
s

stra
n
g
ers bat
h
ed
hi
m
,
e
m
ptied
his
b
e
d
p
a
n.
His
love f
o
r
his
wife,
d
aug
h
ter and
m
o
t
h
er, and f
o
r Dean
and Nellie when t
h
ey ca
m
e to
C
o
l
u
m
bus
to
see
hi
m
,
was
evi
d
ent
in
t
h
e
glow of
his eyes
and
his patience
i
n
r
e-
learni
n
g
e
v
er
y
t
hi
n
g he had
d
one b
ef
o
re wit
h
o
u
t
t
h
i
nk
i
n
g
, was
a
less
o
n
t
h
e
y
o
un
g
L
e
na w
o
uld n
e
v
e
r
fo
rget.