The old man’s hair was long and gray. The skin of his face appeared to have a million wrinkles. His eyes looked closed even when he was looking around. The children listened intently, their faces glowing orange in the light of the fire.
“This story was first told to me by an old Shawnee woman when I was younger than you children here.”
The old man cleared his throat and began. “Long ago there was a woman who lived alone in her village. She was young and beautiful. She combed her long, thick hair every day with eagle oil, and her body had grown healthy with venison. She carried her own heavy chopped wood to her home. This helped build her strength. Her skin was soft like corn silk. But she was too beautiful to have just any man. So she lived alone, admiring her own beauty.
“Then one day she met a man. This man had followed her from the river back to her home. This man was like no one she had ever known before. He had piercing, brown eyes. His long hair, longer than hers, blew behind him as he walked beside her like smoke drifting in the wind. He carried the chopped wood for her. He carried the water baskets from the corn fields for her. The feathers tied in his hair seemed to float with each step he took. His powerful voice swallowed her whole as he spoke. ‘Maiden, let me help you with your labor,” he said. ‘Allow me to invite you to my home to meet my family.’
“So she followed him. She was too nervous to look into his eyes. All she could do was smile. He walked beside her to his family wetu. He introduced her to his two sisters, and they politely asked her to stay with them. The woman stayed with his family. They appreciated her and enjoyed her company. She accepted this powerful man as her husband and became a member of their family.
“Her man would go out hunting during the day while the women worked tirelessly in the fields. He brought home plenty of deer and bear. He was the best hunter in the village. And the women showed great skill at growing corn, so there was always plenty of corn bread and corn stew. Life was happy in the village.
“Then one day, the man came back later than usual. His hands were cut and covered in blood, and his hair was tangled in knots. ‘The hunt today was difficult,’ he said. ‘The deer I found was quick. I shot but only wounded it. I prayed and followed it, but the deer ran to the sacred stream and ate the plants to heal its wound. Then it rolled in the sacred mud and the wound disappeared. I knew then that I was not to kill this one.’
“He returned home and lay down on his bedroll with his head on his beautiful woman's lap. She stroked his hair, feeling the weariness of his spirit. He soon fell into a deep sleep. The woman then noticed that his body was changing . . . transforming. His breathing slowed. Unbelievably, while still sleeping, he gradually turned into a gigantic snake. The beautiful woman felt the hair she was stroking shrink to slimy, dark gray scales that covered his head. His long, forked tongue flicked out between his lips like a wriggling fish attempting to escape. His weight was too much for her. She carefully crawled out from under his massive, fanged head and ran outside. She ran straight into the man’s mother. She saw her fearful expression and told her ‘We are Serpent-People. We are good and wish you well. My son truly loves you; but if you feel that you can no longer stay here, then you should run away. But go quickly, for if my son wakes and knows that you have run from him, he will try to find you and make you return. So go now. And do not look back!’
“The beautiful woman ran. Her strong legs moved quickly at first, but then as she thought about her good man, and the kindness he showed her, she slowed down. She was confused. Her mind fought with her heart. She sat down to rest. She was tired and decided to close her eyes and pray. She had a dream. She dreamt that her vanity was what brought her into this problem and that her wisdom would get her home. She awoke in a thunderstorm. Rain was pouring down upon her.
“Thunder Spirit called out to her, and the deep, rolling voice was more than she could bear. She jumped up with her hands over her ears. The great voice echoed across the land.”
The old Indian man stood up at this point and jumped towards the smaller children and yelled, “RUN!” This caused the children to flinch in fear and laughter while he told the story.
"’Run now! The Snake-Man is behind you! He will catch you! And swallow you whole!’ The woman ran with all of her strength. The fear of her soul was pounding in her head. She heard the terrible rustling of the serpent-man slithering after her. She ran until she had crossed the mountains, and soon she came to a lake near her old home; the snake-man still slithering after her, gaining with each step she took. There, standing by the lake, was another strong warrior holding a spear. She grabbed the spear from the warrior and threw it at the serpent. The spear pierced the snake’s body. All at once a roaring black cloud surrounded the woman. She looked back at the giant serpent and saw that he had turned back into the man she had fallen in love with, only now he had been mortally wounded. The spear was plunged deep into his chest.
--from Time Trip #3:
Witness to the First Thanksgiving
TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4
KILLING FOR COUNTRY
TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2
A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD
TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3
WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING
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