Gary picked up his grandchildren, Avinn and Shanai, at the junction in his dusty, red Silverado. The sun was beginning to disappear behind the mountains and the clouds were slowly rolling in from the East. The children packed their camping gear in the bed of the truck and quickly hopped in the truck. Gary's daughter, Vanessa, was happy that her kids would get to spend some time with her father, but she was a little leery in leaving them in his hands.
"Dad, please bring them back in one piece. And remember that they are only kids. Go easy on them," she said.
What she really meant was "they are city kids, not rez kids." This made Gary chuckle because the main reason for the camping trip was to teach Avinn and Shanai a little about the reservation life and their family history, which wasn't exactly clean and safe. Even so, Gary assured Vanessa that he would bring them back unscathed.
Gary opened the driver's door to his grandchildren fighting over the radio station. "Stop touching that!" "I like that song!" "You're going to break it!" The noise got so loud that Gary had to shout to be heard over their screams. Avinn and Shanai, stunned at the decibels their grandfather's voice had reached, instantly became quiet. The children's mouths remained tightly shut until Grandpa Gary started asking them questions about school and their friends. The questions seemed harmless, and they were for awhile, but the two youngsters began to quarrel about friends and whose turn it was to speak and the "true" sequence of events of how Shanai got the cut on her forehead. Gary grew tired of playing referee, mainly because they had only driven a few miles toward Canyon de Chelly and already he had raised his voice four times.
"Okay, okay. Now, it's my turn to tell you a story so you two can rest your tired little mouths," he said. Avinn and Shanai stopped talking and waited for him to begin.
Once
upon a time, there was a boy named Ashkii and he was the only boy
in his family. He was the best hunter and very skilled with his
bow
and arrow. He could shoot a target from miles away. His
family was
very proud of his talents and they usually asked him to hunt for food
for the family to eat. Day after day, Ashkii brought home animals -
mostly rabbits, groundhogs, and deers.
One day, Ashkii decided he wanted to go out and hunt for a bear. Ashkii had never killed a bear because their roar always frightened him and made his hands tremble. But this day he felt especially confident in his skill and told himself that he would finally kill a sush, bear in Navajo. Remember, Ashkii is the only boy in his family so his sisters did not like this idea because they thought it too dangerous for their only brother to go alone. The sisters loved thier brother very much and were very, very protective of Ashkii. Despite their attempts to dissuade him, Ashkii went out with his bow in his hand and arrows on his back.
Hours passed and the sisters were getting more and more worried as the time ticked away. It was getting dark when they heard a knock on the door of their hogan. All of the sister rushed to the door hoping it was their brother.
At the door was a close family friend with dreadful news that Ashkii had been killed by a bear deep in the woods. The family was heartbroken. The sisters could not eat for days and all the liquids in their bodies came out of their eyes in tears. They cried and cried until they were weak. Finally, they could not stand the sadness any longer and they killed themselves.
One day, Ashkii decided he wanted to go out and hunt for a bear. Ashkii had never killed a bear because their roar always frightened him and made his hands tremble. But this day he felt especially confident in his skill and told himself that he would finally kill a sush, bear in Navajo. Remember, Ashkii is the only boy in his family so his sisters did not like this idea because they thought it too dangerous for their only brother to go alone. The sisters loved thier brother very much and were very, very protective of Ashkii. Despite their attempts to dissuade him, Ashkii went out with his bow in his hand and arrows on his back.
Hours passed and the sisters were getting more and more worried as the time ticked away. It was getting dark when they heard a knock on the door of their hogan. All of the sister rushed to the door hoping it was their brother.
At the door was a close family friend with dreadful news that Ashkii had been killed by a bear deep in the woods. The family was heartbroken. The sisters could not eat for days and all the liquids in their bodies came out of their eyes in tears. They cried and cried until they were weak. Finally, they could not stand the sadness any longer and they killed themselves.
Just as Grandpa Gary's story ended, it began to sprinkle and he turned his windshield wipers on. Swish-swish.
"When I was a little boy, my dad used to tell me that those sisters were stars in the sky. He said that when it rains, it is really their tears of sadness for their brother Ashkii. Can you imagine what it would be like if one of your family members is no longer around to talk to or to play with? How would you feel?"
The rest of the drive to Canyon de Chelly was relatively quiet in the single-cab truck as the youngsters pondered the questions Gary asked. The sun finally drifted behind the mountain as they arrived at the canyon.
Author's Note:
The original story comes from the Greek culture. It is about a group of sisters called the Hyades who had one brother, Hyas. I thought it would be best to remain relatively true to the original because I felt the Greek story was very moving and would send the message I was looking for. I did change a few details, such as the name of the brother. Also, in the original story, Hyas is killed by a lion. I changed the animal in my story to a bear because lions are not native to Arizona. The number of sisters in my version is not specified and I also left out which constellation represents the Hyades. The message I gathered after reading the story of the Hyades was that sometimes we take our loved ones for granted and that any day may be our last with them. The story, I feel, emphasizes the love and bond between brother and sister and shows how extreme the grief would be if one were to lose the other. This is the moral I wanted the children in the story to learn from their grandfather's story. The symbolism of the rain at the end was also borrowed from the story. I feel it adds to the Navajo belief that our ancestors are will us in the elements - wind, rain, clouds, etc. Combining both the Greek and Navajo culture, or rather linking similar beliefs, shows that cultures seem to overlap.
Back to Casa
Coverpage
Introduction
Next Story
Source:
Myths About the Sky, Constellations, Stars (2000)
Windows to the Universe
Greek: Hyades
Image Information:
"Stars and Stripes"
Web Source: Flickr.com
Myths About the Sky, Constellations, Stars (2000)
Windows to the Universe
Greek: Hyades
Image Information:
"Stars and Stripes"
Web Source: Flickr.com