The Thinking Rocks (4 page)

Cano also
had difficulty speaking.  He looked at her young desirable body and
beautiful face. She was tall for a woman; her forehead only reached his lips.
She was slim and moved with a grace that fascinated him; he had a difficult
time taking his eyes from her.  Her dark hair was smooth and pulled back
so that it fell over her right shoulder.  It was tied with a pale strip of
rawhide. The only clothing she wore was a breechcloth, as did the other
women.  Her breasts where delightful to behold; even though they were
still developing. They were so perfect and round.  He had a hard time
looking into her eyes. When he did pull his eyes away and looked into her dark
eyes, he felt dizzy.  She was so wonderful, he wanted to reach out and
take her in his arms, just to hold her and smell her hair. Of the few things
that he wanted, Ceola was the most important. He wanted to take care of her and
protect her from any harm.  He wanted her to be his.  He wanted to
find her at his fire at the end of a day.  He realized that he hadn't said
anything to her.  What a fool she must think I am. He reached out and took
the snake’s hide from her. His hand brushed against her and he felt a small
electric shock.  He jumped back and almost dropped the skin.

She had felt
it too and pulled back at the same time.

They stood looking
at one other in a shocked silence, then Cano spoke. "I'm sorry, I don't
know… its fine,…thank you. It looks good."   He felt like a
fool, he could not even talk when he was near her. After a deep breath he
reached out to touch her arm and said, "Ceola, you are wonderful."
But before he could touch her, she jerked back without thinking, trying to
avoid the shock she thought was coming.

Embarrassed by her action, she mumbled,
“Thank You, I must go."  She turned and fled back to her dwelling,
angry with herself.  What a fool I must seem to him, she thought. He could
never care for me, I cannot speak and I'm too skinny.

As night
fell at the campsite of the Clan of the Spear, the final preparations for the
Ritual of Passage for Ceola and Sorou were being completed. After the ritual,
the hunters of the clan would tell of their prowess in the field.

The moon was
full, but outside the large campfire, the woods were dark.  Tall stakes
had been driven into the ground and evenly spaced around the fire.  They
were decorated with the symbols of the clans hunting ability.  Several
were tied with the feathers taken from turkeys that had been killed in Bana’s
hunt. Another had piece of the snake’s hide wrapped around it. Each held a
trophy, a turtle shell, the skins of animals, bones tied together that rattled
when the wind blew, the antlers of a deer, and the claw of the sloth.  In
the center of the clearing, outside the circle of stakes, a large stone tipped
spear had been driven into the ground butt first.  The shaft was heavy and
made of dark wood, the spearhead was a blood colored flint and had strips of
rawhide hanging down its sides. This was the totem of the clan and could only
be handled by Koonai the Shaman.

The clan,
with the exception of Koonai and Gennos, were seated on the ground in front of
the fire facing the spear.  Moki was seated to one side and had a large
hollow log in front of him. He held a short heavy stick in each hand.

The turkeys
had been roasted earlier and were resting on a bed of leaves near the
fire.  A hollowed out section of log had been filled with water and the
snake's body had been cut up and added along with roots and nuts.  Hot
rocks had been added to the water to heat it and cook the meat. Small chunks of
salt had been added from a salt lick to the south.

Silence
fell on the clan as the first of three strange birdcalls filled the air. Moki
began to strike the log in a slow rhythm, first with one stick and then the
other. Everyone was looking to the fire and listening to the beat of the log.
After what seemed like a long time, a shrill bone whistle sounded to the side
of the fire. It was followed by a rustling noise in the dark. This was followed
by silence. Then, at the rear of the clan, a scratching was heard along with
the hiss of a snake that grew louder and louder until it had changed into the
coughing roar of a gator.  Beyond the fire, a wolf howl could be heard
that silenced the cough of the gator.  To the side of the fire came the
gobble of a turkey; on the opposite side came the cry of a hawk.  Behind
them came the sound of a buffalo’s deep moan. Something big crashed into the
fire and sent up a shower of sparks. The roar of a saber-toothed cat quickly
followed this.  Moki stopped beating the log as a shadowy figure emerged
from the darkness at the rear of the fire. It was low to the ground and
hunchbacked as it shambled into the light, and it was clear that it was a man
beneath animal skin.
As
the figure reached the center of the clearing, it stopped before the spear totem.
A low deep growl came from the figure.  It grew in volume until it was the
scream of the saber tooth. The figure stood and the skin fell away to reveal
Koonai. He was painted from head to foot.  Alternating red and yellow
lines circled his body. His face was dyed white and his eyes were circled in
black.  On his head; he wore the horns of a bison.  The hair was dyed
white.  He reached out and pulled the spear totem from the ground. 
He held it in both hands and then raised it above his head and looked to the
sky. 

In a deep
voice, he proclaimed, "I am Koonai, I speak to the spirits of the
sky." The spear was then lowered until it was level with his shoulders and
then turning in a circle, he called out "I am Koonai, and I speak to the
spirits of the land."  The spear was then lowered until it rested on
his thighs, he called out again "I am Koonai and I speak to the spirits of
the waters."  He replaced the spear in the ground but continued to
hold it with his right hand.  "I am Koonai of the Clan of the Spear. 
I speak to you tonight."  Moki started to beat the log again, with a
slow solemn rhythm.

"Before
the world was white, far in the past, there was darkness and the unknown was
everywhere. Only the Great Spirit lived and he was unhappy.  Therefore, he
created the world from the darkness and the unknown. At first, the world was
only water, but this was good because the water gives life.  The Great
Spirit then created land and separated it from the water. Next, he created all
the animals in the world.  The Great Spirit was pleased with the animals
and called them all to a meeting.  I will give each of you two gifts
because I am pleased. The animals each sent one of their kinds to the Great
Spirit with their requests.

“The
Wolf came first, ‘Oh Great Spirit, I would like the gift of being able to run
swiftly with my kind and the ability to smell the many things in our
world.’  The Great Spirit made it so.

“Next
came the Deer, ‘Oh Great Spirit, I would like horns on my head that are like
the trees without leaves, and also the ability to leap swiftly through the
forest.’ The Great Spirit made it so.

“The
Great Bear came next.  ‘I would like great strength and speed to move
quickly when I wish.’  The Great Spirit made it so.  

“The
Mammoth followed, ‘I would be the biggest of animals with a long nose and
teeth.’  The Great Spirit made it so.

“The
Bird came next. ‘I would have the ability to fly in the sky and see things at
great distances.’ The Great Spirit made it so.

“Next
came the snake, ‘I would have the ability to kill with one bite, and be able to
go where others can't follow.’  The Great Spirit made it so.

“The
Buffalo came forward, ‘I would like a coat of warm fur and a great hump on by
back.’   The Great Spirit asked the Buffalo ‘Why the hump on your
back?’ The Buffalo replied, ‘To show all the strength you have given me.’ The
Great Spirit made it so.

“Next,
the Big Cat came forward.  ‘I would like two large teeth to kill with, and
the ability to attack quickly from the shadows.’ The Great Spirit made it so.

The
Gator, using his short legs, moved forward, ‘I would like a large mouth with
many teeth and the time to rest in the sun.’ The Great Spirit made it so.

“The
Fish came forward, ‘I would like the ability to swim under the water and move
very quickly.’  The Great Spirit made it so. Koonai continued, "Next
came an animal with no name.  We do not know what his request was, but it
angered the Great Spirit, and the animal was destroyed.  To this day, no
one knows the animal’s name or what it looked like.  This is the power of
the Great Spirit.  This is Mana, spiritual power.  Many creatures are
powerful, but only the Great Spirit has Mana.

“Last
came a small animal with only two legs, Man. He stood before the Great Spirit
with his head down.  When he was asked what two gifts he wished, he
paused, and then raised his eyes. Then he said, ‘I am a weak creature and don't
believe I need any of the gifts that you have given to the other animals. I
don't know what I need or want.  You have the power and wisdom; please
pick my gifts for me.’

“The
Great Spirit smiled and said ‘It is done. I have given you the gift of one
thing that is actually two things. The first is the ability to think of things
as they might be. The second is the ability to make them happen.’  The Great
Spirit then told man that the gifts must always be used together.

“The
Great Spirit then spoke to all the other animals, ‘In return for the gifts I
have given you, I give each of you the task of teaching Man the ways of my
world.  I will send you messages and you will present these messages to
Man.

“Then He
spoke to Man, ‘To you, I give the hardest task.  You are to learn and
honor my ways.”

Rite of Passage

Koonai paused and looked at each person
in the clan in turn.  Moki resumed the rhythm on the log; the boom of each
beat could be felt in the marrow of the watchers’ bones.  The fire
silhouetted the shaman and the smoke drifted above and about him in gentle
wisps.  He was like a mystical vision.

"I have spoken tonight to you
about the past.  This is because it is where we come from on our journey
through life. We each travel a different path.  None before us or after us
will travel the same path. This is the way of the Great Spirit."  He
looked over in Moki's direction and nodded his head. Moki changed the tempo
that he was beating; he began to strike the log with both sticks at the same
time in a slower rhythm.

"I will now speak of what is to
come.  Two of our young females will become women tonight. They will pass
from childhood and become adult members of the clan.  They are of the age
when they can choose their mate.  Sorou, come forward."  Koonai
had selected Sorou first because she was the chief's daughter.

Sorou, who was seated by her father,
rose and came forward.  Her steps followed the slow beat of the log. 
She advanced until she stood facing Koonai. She was of average height and had
long black hair that hung down her back.  Her hair was entwined with
colorful leaves and had tiny bunches of acorns over each ear.  The only
garment she wore was a breechcloth of a tanned deer hide.  Her breasts
were well on their way to becoming adequate for their intended use.  They
had been receiving more than passing attention by the young men of the clan in
the last few months.  Her body was assuming the curves of a woman. 
She knelt on one knee in front of Koonai, as was the custom.

Koonai nodded at Sorou.  Raising
his eyes to the clan, he spoke in his deep voice.  "Ceola, come
forward."

Ceola had also been sitting with her
father.  Her heart was pounding wildly as she rose slowly to her feet. She
found it difficult to breathe, and the beat of the log seemed to vibrate to the
core of her being. As she moved forward, it seemed that this was a dream and
she was floating toward Koonai. She then knelt before him. She was slightly
taller than Sorou, but was slimmer and her legs were not as heavy. She stood
straight, tall, and moved with a soft fluid grace. Even an action such as
turning her head had an appeal to it. Her hair was decorated the same as Sorou
but she carried it pulled together and over her right shoulder. She wore a
breechcloth that was a lighter shade and it contrasted well with the color of
her skin.  Her breasts were smaller than Sorou’s, but they were just
starting to bloom, as was the rest of her body.  There was no doubt that
she would be more beautiful in the years to come.

Koonai lifted the spear totem and
holding it in two hands over his head called out in a ringing voice. 
"Oh Great Spirit, it is I, Koonai, of the Clan of the Spear.  Tonight
I have two young females who would be women of the clan.  We ask your
blessing."  He lowered the spear until the point was touching the
ground.  "As this spear touches the ground so does the power of the
Great Spirit touch each of us."  He drew a line on the ground in
front of the girls.  "This mark on the ground is the bank of the
river where the young live."   He then drew a line parallel to
the first and about a foot apart.  "This line is the other bank of
the river.  On this shore live the adult members of the clan.  In our
journey through life, each of us must cross this river.  Sorou and Ceola,
Stand!  Are you ready to cross the river using your own
strength?"  They answered together, “Yes."  They then
stepped across the river, stepping with their right foot and following with the
left. They avoided stepping on the lines, as was the custom.

Koonai produced a small container of
red liquid that symbolized blood.  He dipped his right thumb in the liquid
and approached each maiden in turn.  On each, he drew a vertical line down
the forehead to the tip of the nose.  He then put a point on the top of
the line, symbolizing a spearhead.  He then commanded, "Turn and face
the clan."  Sorou and Ceola turned as one toward the clan. 
"You see before you two maidens with acorns in their hair, this shows the
power to grow and the power to feed.  As the acorn grows to be the mighty
oak so will these women grow with the help of the Great Spirit.  The red
on their faces is the blood of life which each carries.  The spear on the
forehead is to let all know that they are members of the Clan of the
Spear.  With this spear, we feed and protect ourselves.  Let none
raise the spear against one of our own.  With the spear, we stand
united."   Koonai looked over to Moki and nodded.  The
beating on the log stopped.  The silence was so loud it could almost be
heard. Koonai raised the spear in his right hand and pointed it to the
sky.  "With the blessing of the Great Spirit," he paused and
then said, "I present Sorou and Ceola. They are women of the Clan of the
Spear."