Wolf Eyes by C.R. Coburn

  **~**

  Waving Willow was already up that morning. She had walked to the creek and filled a large jar full of water. She had added wood to the fire and removed some of the ashes. Some of the spent ashes she put into a large round bowl that had a hole in the center of the bottom. She placed the bowl on a tripod just outside the door. She then put another container underneath the hole and filled the bowl of ashes full of water. The water drained slowly through the ashes and came out the hole in the bottom of the bowl. When it came out it was a yellowish, opaque color. This was lye water that she used for making hominy and to soften the dried corn before grinding it in to meal.

  Then she woke the children, and when Three Baskets came out, they all went to the creek for a swim. The children fully enjoyed the water this time of year, and for these little ones, the new place meant some exploration. Waving Willow and Three Baskets kept a close eye on the children.

  The children were two girls and a boy. All were between the ages of four and six. The oldest was a girl, and Three Baskets knew her to be called Iskunosi Kofoshi or Little Quail. She had helped take care of the other two when they lived in the cave across the river. Little Quail and Three Baskets had become good friends. Most of the time Little Quail acted very grown up. This fact was discussed with Waving Willow, who had also noticed the same thing.

  Waving Willow and Three Baskets liked each other immediately and were quickly becoming companions. Waving Willow would talk about Wolf Eyes, and her eyes would light up as she described how he was with the children. Three Baskets listened with great interest, asking questions about how Waving Willow had met Wolf Eyes.

  Waving Willow began to explain. It was in the summer, three years ago, that they had met at the Green Corn Ceremony. She had seen him come into the village that day, traveling with a brave whose mother lived in the village. She had been courted by several braves of the village, but had not decided which one she would accept. This new one she liked right away. She had let him catch her looking at him to see if he would notice her – and he did notice. He would start moving toward her, and she would find some way to avoid a direct contact with him. She kept him interested by looking at him and letting him catch her at it. This game of hide and seek went on for most of that day.

  “We both joined in the game of Akabatle, knowing that we were playing it to meet each other. We would take turns trying to knock the trickster off of the pole with a ball. We had great fun and laughed at each other’s attempts. I knew he could have knocked it off easily, but he did not. He finally let me knock it off, and he caught it for me. He handed me the prize, but the real prize was he.

  “He pursued me through his friend’s mother, and finally I consented to meet him. We took long walks beside the creek at dusk, and he told me about his life at his home village. He never returned to his home village; he has been here ever since.”

  Waving Willow inquired about the status of Three Baskets. The time seemed appropriate since they had just discussed her own relationship with her husband. Waving Willow asked, “Was it very hard for you when the village was attacked? Did you lose anyone?”

  Three Baskets thought a long time, “Yes, I lost my mother, father and uncle, along with two brothers and a sister. I‘m going to miss them terribly.”

  “How old was your sister?” asked Waving Willow.

  “She was one winter older than me, I think nineteen this year.”

  “You were close?” asked Waving Willow.

  “Yes, very close,” said Three Baskets.

  “We won’t talk about it,” said Waving Willow. “It is too soon.”

  “It is ok,” said Three Baskets, “I have had lots of time to think about it.”

  “Okay, if you want to then,” said Waving Willow.

  “Well, now for me,” said Three Baskets, “it’s like starting my life all over again. When you have a good family, and everything is going great, you take it for granted that that is the way that it is going to be from now on. But that is not how it is. Life is a very fragile thing, and every day must be lived to its fullest, because it may be the last. Now I can remember back to the good times and see the smiles on their faces and think what a good life we have had. I hope that they have found their way to the Great Spirit and are living happily with him in the upper world.”

  “I am sure they are, Three Baskets,” said Waving Willow.

  “My sister and I were close – the best of friends,” said Three Baskets. “We both liked the same brave, but now she has him all to herself in the upper world. We were all together the night before the raid on our village. We were just enjoying each other, singing songs.”

  “Let us not talk about it anymore today, Three Baskets. We will talk about it later,” said Waving Willow. “We will talk about it a little at a time, okay?”

  “Okay,” said Three Baskets.

  Waving Willow said, “I know a brave that has eyes for you, Three Baskets.”

  “Oh”, said Three Baskets. “Who is he? Do I know him? Let me guess. Is he Red Talon?”

  Later the two women got the children out of the water and went back to the house and ate grits and dried meat. Then they went to the field to pick the corn.