~Kaniehti:io~
I wake up to the sound of the fire crackling, my body drenched in sweat. I must have screamed because my mother came to my side to give me comfort.
"Kaniehti:io are you all right? Did you have a nightmare?" she whispers to me with worry in her eyes.
"Yes I am okay, and no it was not a nightmare. It was just . . . just a dream."
"How about you tell me about it?" she asked. I nod, she takes my hand and we walk out of the warm longhouse into the cool night air. She must have noticed me shiver because she placed her wolf pelt over my shoulders. We slowly made our way to the nearest fire and sat on the oak log. I stretched my arms as far as they would go towards the fire, hoping I wasn't too close to burn myself.
"So what was your dream about?" she asked while untying my hair.
"It was about father. He was teaching me how to hunt in the woods, and how to climb swiftly through the trees. He told me that he was very proud to call me his daughter, and then he embraced me," it was not a sad dream but I found my throat start to tighten. I looked down at the fire, watching it swirl into the air and disappear. I looked up once I heard my mother sigh.
"I know you miss him, I do too. I would do anything for him to be here right now. But I fear it that will never happen," a tear rolls down her dark cheeks as she braids my hair.
"But you do not know that for certain, the warriors will be back soon. And father will be walking ahead of them with his head held high. He may have a couple of injuries but he will come home . . . safe and sound," my eyes start to water at the thought of him not returning, but I quickly blink them away. He was the War Chief, the most respected, most powerful, smartest man in the entire village. No one could match his skills; no man would dare go against him. It is as if he were a bear fighting only against rabbits, unstoppable.
"You sound a lot like him; you share his views of the world. But be careful, where ever your father goes, trouble is soon to follow. He may seem immortal, but at the end of the day, he is just a man. A man who would risk his life to make sure this village is safe, just for you," she ties off the end of my hair, and proceeds to admire her work.
Silence fell into the air after she spoke; I did not know what else I could say. We sat there looking at the dying fire. Once again I began to shiver once the flames turned into glowing ambers.
"I am going to get more fire wood, I will be back soon," she told me. Her eyes met mine and the expression on her face told me that I should stay her until she returns.
She walked away, leaving me by myself in the dark. I was not fazed by this because I was used to being alone. Most nights I would sneak out of my bed and make my way to the woods. There I would track animals, and swing my way through the trees. Out there I felt free, one with mother earth, but here I felt suffocated.
I lay down on the ground, hoping to warm up a little, but to no prevail. I turned to lie on my back, and was greeted by the stars. Tonight was a full moon, and it could not be more beautiful. I stared up into the sky, remembering the origin of grandmother moon. Her light shone on me and to the ground beneath me.
Lying there made me feel at peace. Peace with the earth, peace with the animals, peace with myself. I was so calm that I eventually let the dark take me, and I fell asleep.