| Raven Eyes looked at him and said, "You have been here before?" "Yes," he answered, "when I first became a shaman. He who taught me the ways of a shaman brought me here. That was many years ago." Bear Tooth then turned back to his bundle. He took out a covered basket. Inside was the sacred red paint. He told Raven Eyes to paint what she had seen on the walls. Then she was to put her hand prints next to her paintings. All afternoon she painted. Bear Tooth sat near the fire and watched her, and softly chanted. When she was finally done, he took out another covered basket full of sand for her to clean her hands with. When her hands were clean, she sat near the fire and looked at Bear Tooth. He smiles at her and said, "Now you want some answers is that not so?" She nodded her head. Bear Tooth said, "I can not tell you what all the strange things are. I can only tell you what I do know. What has been told from one shaman to the next. " Bear Tooth sprinkled some tobacco and white sage into the fire. As the smoke began to rise, he spoke. "Kitche Manitou, the Great Spirit, is the creator. There are four orders in creation. First the physical world . Second, the plant world, third, the animal world, and last, the human world. All four parts are so intertwined. No one portion is self sufficient." He looked at the walls around them and said, "I know not what these strange things yet to come are. I do know that man will turn his back on Mother Earth. He will stop taking care of Mother Earth. When this happens, she will start to die. First to feel her death will be the fish. Then the animals. Then the plants. Then man will die also for he can not live without the others." He looked at Raven Eyes and said, "Kitche Manitou will warn those not yet born through the Raven. These things seen will come to pass. All things seen will come to pass if man does not learn how to stop them. Even the death of Mother Earth. One Raven will have the answer. One Raven will know how to stop Mother Earth from dying. When our Mother is in need of good health, these painting will be seen and perhaps the warning will be heeded. If the answer is found and heeded, then Mother Earth can be saved. With her, plants, animals, and man will be saved. For one can not live with out the other. All are so intertwined." He looked again at the walls around them and said, "You have done your part to save mankind. We can only pray that when man finds these walls, he will heed the warning it brings. We can only pray that mankind will save Mother Earth and thus save himself." Then Bear Tooth said, "Come daughter, our work here is done. We will return to the village and speak of it no more." For the rest of her days, Raven Eyes never spoke of the paintings. But she remembered them every time she prayed. She always prayed that Mother Earth would be saved. She prayed that mankind would listen to the warning from Kitche Manitou. |
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| music: Metukweasyn |
