Cedar Woman (47 page)

Lena
sat
i
n
th
e
c
o
rn
e
r
of
h
e
r
fa
t
h
er’s
s
m
all
room in
the
medical center.
T
h
e
door
w
a
s
clo
s
ed,
an
d
Mary h
a
d
r
e
quest
e
d
that
t
h
ey
be
u
n
d
istur
b
e
d
unti
l
t
h
e
d
oo
r
wa
s
o
p
e
n
e
d
.
T
h
e
n
u
rs
e
t
o
w
h
o
m
s
h
e’
d
s
p
o
k
en
l
o
o
k
ed
a
b
it
c
on
cer
n
ed,
b
u
t
s
h
e
tr
u
sted
M
ary’s
ju
dg
m
ent,
e
v
en
t
h
ou
g
h she
’
d
only
k
n
o
w
n
her
f
o
r
a
wee
k
,
a
nd
d
e
cided
t
o
g
i
ve
her
s
o
m
e
t
i
m
e
. She
k
n
ew
th
at
M
ary
was
p
e
r
f
or
m
i
ng
so
m
e
t
h
i
ng
ca
l
l
ed
a
heal
i
n
g cere
m
ony,
and
held
deep
re
s
p
ect,
as
well
a
s
a
c
e
rtain
aw
e,
and
a
lot of cur
i
osity,
for Native
A
m
erican
pra
c
tices.
She
wish
e
d she
cou
l
d
be includ
e
d
s
o
that
she
cou
l
d
s
ee
what
a
hea
l
ing
cere
m
ony
was
all
about. She
h
op
e
d
t
h
at
M
ary w
o
uld
g
ive
her
an
Ind
i
an
na
m
e,
so
sh
e
acquiesced, a
n
d lo
ok
e
d
l
o
n
g
in
g
l
y t
o
ward
t
h
e
d
oor t
h
e e
n
t
i
re t
i
m
e.

Beside
M
ary
was
Tell
Wo
l
f
Catche
r
,
Pe
t
er’s
co
usi
n
,
w
h
o
d
r
o
v
e from Iowa
to
h
elp
with
t
h
e
h
eali
n
g
cerem
on
y which
Mary
was
a
b
o
u
t
t
o beg
i
n.

M
ary
f
i
rst
s
m
u
d
g
e
d
t
h
e
roo
m
,
br
i
ng
i
ng
a
l
l
sp
i
r
it
s
i
n
t
o
har
m
on
y
. They
h
a
d
not
b
een
a
b
le
to
p
er
f
o
rm a
sweat
lodge
c
e
re
m
ony,
so
Tell
Wolf requested
the
use
of
the
s
w
eat lodge
of
his
b
r
o
t
her,
Joe
Red
Bea
r
,
b
ef
o
re leaving Iowa.

M
ary plac
e
d
t
h
e
m
edicine
b
u
n
d
le
L
e
na
m
ade
in t
h
e b
e
d beside h
e
r hu
s
b
an
d
.
W
avi
n
g
h
e
r p
r
a
y
er
feath
e
r above hi
m
,
sh
e
prayed
t
o Tan
k
asil
u
s
²⁹
to
m
ake
her
h
u
s
b
and
w
hole,
an
d
to
m
ake
her
w
h
ole
aga
i
n. She
prayed
t
h
at
Peter’s
taku
skan
s
k
a
n
³⁰
b
e
ret
u
r
n
ed
to
its
s
h
ell.
Tell Wo
l
f held
t
h
e ca
n
u
m
pa
³¹
above
Pet
e
r
a
n
d pray
e
d
as we
l
l,
as
Mary cont
in
u
e
d
t
o
w
ave her
p
ra
y
er feather a
bo
v
e her
h
u
s
b
a
nd
’s b
o
d
y
, w
a
v
ing
, wa
v
i
n
g
, e
n
treati
n
g
h
i
s taku
skan
s
k
an
to return to
its s
h
ell.

Le
n
a o
b
ser
v
ed
h
er
m
o
t
h
er
s
o
l
e
m
n
ly.
A
g
ain s
h
e was
e
n
thralled
with her
m
o
t
h
e
r
’s
floati
n
g
hai
r
,
whi
c
h
b
e
g
a
n
to
t
u
r
n
gray
t
h
e
day of
t
h
e accident.
It floated upon the air li
k
e a wisp of s
m
oke, not unlike the tran
s
p
ar
e
n
t
ri
b
b
o
n
s
t
h
at
r
o
se
f
r
om
t
h
e
bowl
wh
e
n
h
e
r
m
o
ther
s
m
u
d
ge
d
. A
s
h
imm
er
i
ng
li
ght
s
u
r
r
ou
nd
e
d he
r
,
but
her
f
a
t
h
er
’
s
fo
rm
re
m
a
i
n
ed
d
ar
k
.