MAIDEN WISHES

another native american story as shared with me

MAIDEN WISHES

early autumn morning
through gold gleam mist
indian maiden comes
mocassin clad feet silent
on dew wet grass
beneath the old gnarled oak
she kneels to gather acorns
in one fine hand woven basket
the other is for pine nuts
and maybe a few wild onions
if she is lucky some water cress,
her father will bring home a deer
or maybe fish speared expertly
from the crystal tinkling stream
and she will grind the acorns into flour
for fry bread while he cleans the fish
or skins and cuts the deer meat into strips for smoke drying
tonight she will have wild roots
and fresh onion and some pine nuts to add to a rich stew
it is a good life...

rich and full
even though mother
joined the spirit world last winter
and her brother was lost in a battle
with the light skinned newcomers who have invaded their territory.
the winter was too hard for the pale skins
now they have retreated
to their floating home in the bay by the great water,
she hopes they will not come back...

except maybe
the one she saw swimming in her favorite pool,
the one with the strange long golden hair
the one who held her in the pearly evening
and took her maidenhead
and left his seed
she does not show yet
but soon she will
and the young men will come
and offer the price
but they do not have the sun trapped gold hair
that felt so wondrous against her thighs
they will not make her world shimmer and explode as he did
but she will have to decide
for that is the way of the people
and her father grows old,
wants to join her mother
and a man will be needed to hunt for
her younger sister, herself,
and for the little one she carries beneath her heart
still, for an instant.
she hesitates in her gathering
just as the sun shafts through the trees
and caresses her skin just as the pale man with the gold fire hair did
then she sighs and returns to the gathering
what will be will be
and she is a good daughter and will do what is best for her family...