Cedar Woman

by Debra Shiveley Welch

  "It's an eighteen footer, and we have tried to furnish it as authentically as possible over the years. Anyway, I think there is some wojape55 left, unless Jaws, I mean my nephew Jacob, got to it first! I usually have to give him his own bowl of wojape so that the rest of us can get some! Cha, that boy can eat!

  “Jacob! Hecusniyela!56 We have company! You save some for the rest of us!” Julie commanded as said nephew abruptly entered the camp

  and started to pick up the bowl of pudding. “Jaws” grinned and said: "Sorry, Ina, I didn't realize we had company!" he apologized, giving

  his aunt the traditional name of Mother. Winking, he turned and left to find some friends.

  "Sorry about that, that was 'Jaws' in the flesh. He's our Head Singer,

  and he thinks he's the 'Powwow Romeo', ennit!" Julie exclaimed with a fond smile and a sigh for her nephew's antics.

  “I think he’s snaggin’, ya. I keep telling him that he doesn't always have to be the powwow Romeo, he CAN share the title with others!” Julie laughed.

  Amenities taken care of, and the wojape saved, Julie, Lena, Nickie,

  Vicki and Reva sat upon the camp chairs scattered in front of the lodge. Julie passed out beverages and a bowl of fry bread. As she passed the bowl to Lena, her eyes met those of the young woman.

  “Ista Wambli-win!”57 Julie whispered to herself.

  She had not noticed Lena’s eyes earlier, as she had been busy instructing Lena and Nickie on the various dancers and her regalia, but

  she noticed them now, and was astounded. Julie was never rude, and her reaction was barely noticeable, but Lena caught the surprise in her

  generous hostess’ own eyes. Lena wondered how to broach the subject,

  when her thoughts were interrupted, as Reva began the important tradition of announcing her clan ties.

  “I'm Reva Two Strikes, from the Rosebud rez, of the Wiacca Ska

  Oyate. Wopila,” Reva offered, “and this is our friend, Vicki, who is to become my daughter tomorrow night.

  55 woah-jza-pay – Berry pudding in which fry bread is dipped

  56 Hey choo schnee yeh lah – Don’t do that

  57 Eeesh-tdah wahmblee ween – Woman with the eyes of an Eagle

  As an elder, Reva traditionally held the privilege of being the first to speak. Julie would not address her directly until Reva gave her permission by speaking to her first.

  In the Native American culture, respect and privileges are extended to the elders for their accumulated knowledge and experiences. In addition to respectfully waiting for tacit permission to speak, Julie was careful not to look Reva in the face. Not only was Reva an elder, but a full blood Lakota. As a quarter blood, out of respect, Julie would not look her in the face until given permission, albeit unspoken, to do so.

  “Hau Kola,” Reva offered.

  “Hau Kola,” Julie returned, nodding to Vicki and the other guests. Turning to Reva, she continued,

  “Unci, I'm Julie Spotted Eagle Horse, originally from Pine Ridge of the Pesla Oyate” Julie responded, giving Reva the honorary name of Grandmother, giving her clan ties, and acknowledging Vicki and her guests all at the same time.

  Julie turned to Lena and smiled.

  “I am happy that you accepted my invitation, and have brought your friends and your grandmother. I am honored to welcome you to my camp.”

  Guests and hostess settled down to light conversation. The wojape was sweet and delicious, the fry bread light and satisfying. Lena was just taking a bite, when she almost choked with laughter. Upon entering Julie’s lodge, her eyes focused on the tipi itself, its construction and furnishings. She had not noticed that Julie had changed out of her regalia. Now, sitting across from her, she became aware that Julie was wearing a tee shirt: “Body by Fry Bread” emblazoned across the front.

  Julie was an impressive figure, statuesque, in fact, standing at 5’7”, with waist length, medium, brown hair, a gray streak spilling from her widow’s peak, and brown/green eyes. Her figure was what one could only call Rubenesque. The lettering of the tee shirt stretched across her ample bosom, causing the letters to elongate.

  Julie noticed the direction of Lena’s surprised gaze, and laughingly explained, “It's kind of a running joke that I'm a fry bread babe: round, brown and delicious, ya!” Lena choked, laughed, and the rest joined in.

  Reva put her hand over her mouth and actually snorted, causing Lena to turn and look at her grandmother in surprise. Lena could not remember when her grandmother had laughed like this! Lena reached over and put her arm around Reva, giving her an affectionate squeeze, laying her head upon her grandmother’s shoulder for a brief moment, wondering at the changes in her normally stoic grandmother. The conversation stayed light, as Lena and Nickie, and sometimes Vicki, asked various questions about the powwow.

  “Julie,” Vicki ventured, “you mentioned Forty-Niners. What are they?” she questioned, eager to know the answer.

  “Heyyyyy, they’re sort of non-traditional songs. Forty-Niners contain a combination of NdN and English words and are usually love songs. They almost always have four push-ups, or verses, and are

  usually used for Rabbit, Two Steps, and Round Dances, which are social

  dances, and they are also popular at the informal jams that often happen after the powwow. We sometimes call them 'snaggin’ songs' because a lot of the time they are all about snaggin’!”

  “You used that word a minute ago. What is ‘snaggin’?” Vicki wondered.

  “Snaggin’ is when a man or a woman begins to flirt with someone –

  ‘hitting’ on them,” Julie explained.

  “Forty-Niners differ from the competition songs in that, comp songs are usually either vocables, or sung in NdN rather than English, and are either old songs, or old style songs. When we are dancing in

  competitions, we try to stop on the last beat of the fourth push-up. That’s

  called “pinning the tail on the song. You can be disqualified for not stopping on the beat in competitions. A good dancer, who knows how to listen to the song, can hear it coming. You also have to be able to hit the Honor Beats,58 especially if you are a Fancy Shawl or Jingle dancer.

  “Then there are the specialty songs like sneak-ups. A sneak up is exactly that, a sneak up song. The Drum will try to trick a dancer into false stops, or not being able to stop on the beat, and they have special songs just for that. Each one has an unpredictable stopping point somewhere in each push-up, and a good dancer will be able to anticipate them.

  Also, the beat for a sneak-up gets faster as the song progresses, and the dancers have to be able to keep time with the beat. Usually only Grass and Men's Fancy dancers get sneak-ups, although sometimes the Men's Traditionals get them too. Sometimes for fun, they will also throw one at the women for switch dances, so you really have to know the style and how to hear a song.”

  "What's a switch dance?" asked Lena.

  "Ah, those are where the ladies will pick out a man from the crowd, and give them their shawl to dance with. If the man refuses, he has to pay her twenty bucks or give her an article of clothing, and if he accepts, he has to dance her style. Then it is the women's turn! They are a lot of fun to watch! A lot of the dancers have been on the circuit long enough to know most of the dance styles, and some of them are pretty good! And then, some are really bad like my Matthew. You would think that as long

  58 Three accented beats that occur in between the choruses

  as we have been together, he would have learned my style by now!" Julie giggled.

  "That bad huh," Nickie commented with a grin as Julie nodded, suppressing her laughter.

  “Can you give us an example of a Forty-Niner?” asked Vicki. “Sure!” Julie smiled. Let me see. This is called, ‘When I’m Far

  Away,’” Julie informed, and clearing her throat began:

  Wey hey ya,

  Wey hey ya hey hi ya

  Wey hey ya, Wey hey ya he hi ya,

  Weyao hey yo hey hey heyo, Wey h
eya heh ha,

  Wey yeh ha, Hiyowaeyey.

  When I'm far away,

  When I'm far away, When I close my eyes, There you are.

  There you are,

  So beautiful to me, He wey hiya he ha Wey hiya Hiyowayey.

  She sang the haunting melody four times, ending abruptly on the last syllable of the last word.

  Reva leaned forward, hands clasped around her waist, her eyes glowing,

  “That’s from Rosebud! My husband used to sing that when he was courting me!” Reva exclaimed.

  Collecting herself, she leaned back into a straightened position, and placing her hand over her mouth, giggled like a young girl.

  Reva seldom referred to her husband. Logan Eagle Brings Him

  Catcher died at Pearl Harbor when Peter was seven. He was a solemn man, who seldom laughed, but he loved to sing, and had a remarkable voice.

  Reva would often hear him singing as she was drifting off to sleep. He was still with her in this life, whispering to her in the voice of the wind, and in the murmur of the stones beneath her feet, offering protection and guidance, as he did in life. Reva knew that he was with her, patiently waiting for her to finish her work here, so that they could ride the wings of the Thunderbird to the edge of the universe

  together, and walk those five steps to the Spirit Path and into the Spirit

  World.

  Using a simple gesture with her chin, Reva pointed to a silver Kachina figure on Julie's Dragger, which was a long piece of red ribbon framed with black and white ribbons, and decorated with

  various pieces of jewelry, attached to a black satin kerchief, where it lay

  draped over the back of a chair.

  "I recognize that figure! That's a Lightning Kachina ennit! Tell me, is that part of your medicine?”

  Julie focused on the bridge of the elderly woman’s nose, careful to avoid looking directly into her eyes.

  “Hahn,59 Yes. Unci,” she ventured, “you are called Ape Numpa,60

  ya? Am I wrong in thinking that, like me, you too have survived the touch of the Wakinyan Zitka61 ya?”

  “Ohan,” Reva affirmed.

  “Oh, cha, it hurts like hell, ennit,” Julie commiserated.”

  “Hahn!” Reva smiled, nodding, remembering the pain of the strikings.

  “Would you please tell me what happened, Unci?” Julie requested.

  “I was very young,” Reva explained. “I was in boarding school. That was the first time I was struck. I was riding my bicycle when a storm came in. It didn’t seem like it would be anything more than a

  quick shower. I was hurrying to get back to school, when I felt myself

  surrounded by the Thunderbirds. I pedaled faster, but it was no use. Wakinyan Zitka entered my left shoulder and exited through my left thumb,” Reva recounted, holding up her left hand, thumb upward. The end digit, which would have contained the thumbnail, was missing.

  “It burned and I heard this eerie sound. I finally realized that it was me, keening. I was still pedaling my bike, and my left hand was fused to the handle. I finally made it to school where I was given help. I slept through the rest of the day.

  “The second time, I was walking across the street to get our mail. It had started to drizzle, and I was afraid that our mail would get wet. I

  was married to Logan then,” Reva offered. “I was just a few feet away

  from our mailbox, when a tree just a few feet from me was struck, and I fell to the ground. When I awoke, I was in my bed, and I couldn’t use my left arm for a long time.”

  Reva sat for a moment, studying Julie. She liked her, and had already reached the conclusion that they possibly shared skinship. She was curious, but wanted to hear Julie’s accounts first.

  59 Hanj – an informal form of Ohan or yes

  60 Ah-pay Noompah – Two Strikes

  61 Wah-keen-yahn-zheet-kah – The Thunderbird

  “It isn’t often that I meet another person who has been touched by the Thunderbirds. What happened to you?” Reva queried, leaning forward with anticipation.

  "Wait, Unci, I have something for you." Julie said as she offered a small bag of tobacco to Reva.

  Reva accepted the bag with a small, but satisfied smile. This one knows how to do things right! she thought to herself, while waiting for Julie's reply, settling herself more comfortably in her camp chair.

  With a deep sigh, Julie began.

  "Well, Unci, do you want the long or short version of how it happened?" Julie queried.

  "Long!" all cried in unison, their excitement at hearing a new story clearly evident in their faces.

  "Okay...well, it happened in late July of 1989, the same year that

  the village of Oglala was hit with that tornado. I had been back home to the rez for a week-long powwow at Brotherhood, and to visit my Tiyospiya about a week before my strike, and right after the tornado."

  Reva interrupted,

  "Yes, I remember that powwow! My daughter-in-law urged me to go and see my relatives. Was sure a good one, ennit! Them

  'Ridger62 boys from around the Porcupine area are pretty easy on the eyes, huh!" she chortled, as Lena looked at her grandmother in amazement.

  I’ve never seen her like this, Lena whispered to herself, amazed.

  "I'm old, not dead" retorted Reva seeing the stunned look in her granddaughters' eyes.

  "Ya, I know ennit!" Julie continued with a coy grin. "Anyway, my ex-husband and I lived in a mobile home at the time, with our 2 kids, and

  out the back door was a HUGE old Oak tree and an empty lot between my trailer and the next one.63 My poor neighbor had a great view of my living room window and back door, which I thought was kind of funny!

  I was workin' on the laundry, a whole week’s worth. I think it breeds once it reaches critical mass, cha! While we were at Brotherhood, I ran into my sister Karin Eagle, and her fiancée and their kids on the second day of the powwow. I had heard that she was living with some Arikira64 guy somewhere in Wyoming, and had not talked to her in a few years, so you can imagine my surprise when she shows up with some Latino guy and a couple of kids in tow!

  62 A slang term for someone from Pine Ridge, or who has ancestors from Pine

  Ridge

  63 Begin dialog of Julie’s lightning strikes provided by Julie Spotted Eagle Horse

  Two Strikes Martineau

  64 Ar-ih-kih-rah – an allied nation of the Sioux

  “So long story short, Karin and Efram moved into my Lodge for the rest of the week. It was a stormy week, and them Heyokas65 and Wicaca Wakankis66 had their hands full just keeping the weather good enough to hold the powwow!

  “I was camped by Tanikawin Blo,67 and about ten yards away from the Dance Arbor. We had just gotten back from chasing a tornado to

  Gordon, Nebraska, and Efram decided to climb the ridge to check out the damage to the arbor and powwow grounds. There was still a lot of

  lightning happening, along with a rainbow that ended in a Choke Cherry

  bush, which all the NdNz thought was hilarious!" she chortled. “Of course, the wasicu get a pot of gold at the end of theirs, and us NdNz get a scraggly ole Choke Cherry bush!” Julie guffawed.

  "Anyway, we got to talkin’ about lightning, and the old-time Heyokas, and what they went through,” Julie continued, referring to the fact that anyone who dreamed of the Thunder Beings while on their Vision Quest had to act in a contrary manner for a proscribed period of time. Their actions were dictated by the vision that they had and what the Holy Man interpreted from the Thunder beings.

  “I had a funny feeling that something was important about our conversation and the Heyokas, but could not put my finger on what it was. I got home the following Monday after the powwow, and was doing my laundry a couple of days later. I was just getting ready to take the laundry out of the dryer so that I could dry another load.

  “I heard a loud crash, and I can remember a bright, white light, like someone had lit the place up with a thousand halogen l
amps. I had my right hand on the door of the dryer, and my left on top of it, when it happened. I could feel the power of the strike, and it was as if time had stopped. I counted the moments in the beating of my heart, and then it was over. I could smell ozone, and something like an electrical wire overheating. I knew that something was very wrong, You ever grab hold of a live one-ten wire?” Julie asked, looking at Lena. “Imagine that multiplied by a million, and that will give you some idea of the pain I felt in that instant!