From where she sat on her horse, she thought she could see elm, bur and the white oak, as well as cottonwood trees, all showing off their fiery autumn colors of orange, brown, yellow and green. How strange it seemed that, despite the winter conditions all around them, many of these trees had kept hold of their color.
Yet, there they were. Under the warmth of the sun, they looked beautiful beyond belief as their bright leaves basked under the sun's rays. It was as though the trees were shouting out to the world at large about how well they had survived the dark, all-encompassing blizzard.
Gazing forward toward the western horizon, Sharon thought she might be looking at perhaps three to five hundred miles in the distance. And there, staring straight west as far as she could see, an unending mountain range rose up, completely white at its many peaks. Closer to her and almost straight down, she could see a series of hills surrounding a lake that appeared to be completely circular.
It seemed odd for it to look as if it were as round as a circle, and she commented upon its shape to Strikes Fast, who replied, "Power… always…in circles…comes."
"In circles?" she asked.
He nodded, then signed, "The Windmaker always brings his greatest power in the shape of a whirlwind. The nests of birds are created in the form of a sphere. When Sun first shines upon the land, its light is always perfectly round. Even the misty glow from the moon forms a circle when its beams alight upon the earth. Indeed, strength moves in a circle."
Sharon frowned, but her thoughts were not gloomy. Instead, she realized her husband had this moment enlightened her about a phenomenon in nature she'd never noticed…or had perhaps taken for granted.
She asked, "All power?"
"It is so," he answered in English. In sign, he added, "Even life itself forms a circle, as do the seasons. Next summer when you see leaves upon the ground, observe them well because they always whirl in a circle when the wind blows them."
Even Rising Bear added to the discussion and signed, "What my almost father says is true. When the Lakota observe the dry dirt from the prairie blowing in the wind, it makes tiny whirlwinds. Always they are round."
"The dust devils," said Sharon. Then, she added in sign, "Yes, indeed, these things you mention are always round and are powerful."
A moment of quiet reflection followed as she gazed outward at the simple beauty of this far western land. Snow-capped mountains in the distance, brown prairie stretching on and on toward those mountains, a quiet circular lake surrounded by forests of hardwood and fir-covered hills.
Inhaling deeply, she drew in a breath of the pine-scented air, and, for a moment, closed her eyes to give thanks. Had she stayed in St. Louis, none of this quiet natural beauty would have become a part of her life. At one time, she had desperately wished to go back there. Now, she didn't ever desire to leave this northern territory.
Her life, her friends, her newfound love—her husband—and now her almost son were all here. At this time and in this moment, she had never felt so happy.
Strikes Fast interrupted her thoughts, however, by reaching out to tap her shoulder. Then he signed, "Beyond the hills close to us stretches the brown prairie. If you look closely, you will see only a few coulees where water can be found. Notice too, there are no high places reaching up from the prairie of these northern plains, and remember, it is the coulee and the rocks surrounding them where we might find the safety we require in a camp."
Looking outward and beyond the hills, Sharon gazed again at the plains, seeing it through different eyes. It was true. The prairie, though looking beautifully brown under the golden rays of the sun, held little relief from the constant brown grassland. It would be difficult, then, to avoid a war party if the Cree had not already gone home.
But, because of Strikes Fast's gently said logic, even she came to the same conclusion as he: this northern route would not provide them with enough cover for a safe journey across it. Their path needed to include numerous coulees and buttes.
Sharon was almost on the point of speaking her thoughts on the matter, when Strikes Fast signed, "We can see from here how the Cree war party—if it has not gone home—will be misled. They will seek to find our camp, knowing we had no option but to go north in the blizzard. But, it will do them no good to find where we camped because they would soon discover we have gone from it. Their most logical thought then would be that we have made our path upon the northern prairie in an attempt to find the Pikuni camp, because, most likely, they do not know the Pikuni have not picked the northern hills for their winter camp this year. Instead, they went south. It is my hope the war party would then be inclined to track us across the northern route, but they will fail in this because we will do the unexpected and will dare to go amongst the ghosts of the forests as we make our path south and west."
Sharon nodded and said, "It is a good plan. But, what do you mean by 'ghosts of the forest'?"
"There are the spirits or, as the Pikuni call them—the shadows—of those who have gone before us, those who make their home in the deep forests. Some are friends; some are not."
"Ghosts? I wonder if this is why I've been experiencing a feeling of dread when we traveled through those tall overgrown forests. It's rather strange, though, because for most of my life, I have not believed in ghosts. But, because I became aware of those spirits who were haunting you, my husband, I have now changed my mind about ghosts; although in a way, I wish I could go back to not believing in them."
"Éeh, yes," he said. Then in sign, he continued, "What you are saying is similar to the convictions of the white men I have known. But, my people often hear or see ghosts in dark woods. In my opinion, it is better to know about them and take precautions than to pretend there are not spirits in this world who can work feats of evil upon one."
She frowned, then signed, "I suppose so."
"Although there are mountain tribes," Strikes Fast continued, "both my people, the Crow, as well as the Pikuni people, know it is unsafe for a man to go alone into these mountain forests. Enemies, as well as ghosts, can hide in the deep shadows, and sometimes they are dangerous to a man. But, we will risk the deep woods anyway, because I wish to avoid a war party…if the Cree still follow us."
"Oh dear. Do you think the Cree war party might still be looking for us?"
He shrugged, then said, "I do not yet know if they are out there or not. But, while we are here in this sacred place, let us say our morning prayers to the Above One and thank Him for this beautiful day."
"Is this place where we stand, then, sacred?"
"It is so," he signed, "because it is here, high up on a mountain, when we can more easily talk to Sun, the Creator."
"Are there many of these sacred places, then?"
He nodded. "It is so. In our land, there are so many of these high ridges and buttes, they are almost impossible to count."
