Tuksook's Story, 35,000 BC

by Bonnye Matthews

  “It wasn’t sleep,” she muttered.

  “Did you find what you sought?”

  “Yes,” she replied, “and more.”

  Gumui understood that she wasn’t going to discuss anything with Mi there.

  Mi saw Awk and left to talk to him. She smiled to herself. He was not practicing slingshot.

  “Gumui, after the evening meal, please cancel tonight’s council, unless there is something important to discuss.”

  “I will. After we eat, I’ll ask the elders of both groups whether there is anything. Then, we’ll know.”

  “Good. I am very tired.”

  “Tuksook, will you talk to me tonight about what burden you carry now?”

  Tuksook had seen Mi walk over to talk to Awk, so she said, “After Mi sleeps, we will walk outside.”

  The evening meal would be special. The women had used a new combination of plants to put on the sea aurochs meat for seasoning. They had boys dig them a pit of an arm’s depth. Then, the women filled the bottom of the pit with coals from the fire in the hearth about a hand in depth, and added alder wood. Women rubbed the seasonings on the roasts, and they placed the roasts atop the alder wood. They had many people, so there were many roasts. After carefully removing the stems, women, who could touch the plant, laid mother of red rash leaves atop the meat and placed alder wood atop the leaves. They covered the pit with dirt. Others hunted for the few greens remaining.

  Later, Amuin hit rocks together and the People came to the food preparation area. The women had placed the roasts on slabs of wood atop the big log. The aroma was a foreshadowing of the taste. People could hardly wait to eat. Women had cut the roasts into meal-sized pieces, and eagerly People filled their bowls.

  Two of the boatmen leaning against a particularly large tree enjoyed the meat. One went back for more. He reseated himself and ate.

  “It almost makes me reconsider,” Go, the one who had seconds, said.

  “It’s wonderful, but nothing would make me reconsider.”

  In another place, Gumui was watching Tuksook. She thought the meat tasted very good, but she was definitely far away in her mind web. He wondered what she was reasoning. Mi, always curious, watched Tuksook, but she asked no questions. She also took the time to pull strings of meat from the hunk meat she had in her bowl. Mi liked to eat the meat tiny piece by tiny piece. It made the taste available longer.

  Shortly after the People ate a short council began in spite of Tuksook’s fatigue.

  “Is there anyone who wishes to speak?” Tuksook asked, already knowing that only the boatmen had something to discuss.

  Go looked at Tuksook, and she nodded at him.

  “We boatmen have a desire to take the boat further south, where the days are equal and it’s warm. There are numbers of people there, far more than here. There are not nearly enough women here for wives. We don’t know whether you had plans for the big boat, but if not, we would like to use it to travel south.”

  Quiet fell on those at council. They could appreciate the desire of the boatmen.

  “Is there any reason not to approve this request?” Tuksook asked.

  Silence.

  “Are you certain?” she asked.

  Silence.

  “Your request is granted, boatmen. Will all of you leave?”

  “Yes. We have been together for so long and shared so much of life, it would be hard to separate,” Go said.

  “When will you sail?” she asked.

  “We have little but our sleeping skins to put on the boat. We’re ready to sail after the morning meal.”

  “Before you leave check with Item. Be certain you are well provisioned for the sailing,” Tuksook said.

  “Thank you Wise One and all People. What you have is wonderful, but there is no hope of wives here,” Go replied.

  Tuksook said quietly, “Go, I ask one thing of you and the boatmen.”

  He looked at her expectantly.

  “I ask that you not disclose where we are.”

  “I will promise you that I won’t talk about it. Boatmen, if one of you cannot now vow to Wisdom that you will keep silent on this, speak now.”

  Silence.

  “Then say these words one at a time: I vow to Wisdom that I will never discuss the location of the People who migrated to Eagle’s Grasp.”

  One by one those who would leave on the boat stood and repeated the vow, until every one of them had said it, including the two older boys, sons of the boatmen.

  None of the People expected Go to have each person individually vow. It made them realize that they were leaving for personal reasons and would protect the People.

  “Do any others have anything to discuss?” Tuksook asked.

  Item looked at Tuksook, who nodded.

  “How many days of provisions will you need?” Item asked.

  “Do you have enough for as many as a hundred days?” Go asked, instead of answering.

  “We have enough to fully feed every person here, including you, for far more than cold times to cold times—not fresh roasts like tonight, but jerky. Of course we have adequate supplies for you for a hundred days. We will have that amount put in baskets that you can transport to your bins after the morning meal. Please, return the baskets,” Item requested.

  Most People had no idea how well prepared they were, and they were truly amazed.

  “Does anyone have anything else to add?” Tuksook asked.

  Silence.

  Then, council ends for this evening.

  Slowly People stood up and began to walk to the house.

  Ubassu and Eilie walked together. “I wonder how many jackets we made that we won’t need,” Eilie said.

  “Probably not too many. Some of the adult men’s jackets we made can go to our own People whose jackets are wearing thin. We can use pelts from their old jackets for other things,” Ubassu replied.

  Tuksook and Gumui prepared Mi for sleep and they sat quietly on their bench watching the child. They spoke little.

  As time passed it seemed clear that Mi slept. Gumui stood up and offered Tuksook a hand. He took her cloak that was ready for the used skin basket, and he put it around her shoulders. They went outside by the west entryway.

  “What happened?” Gumui asked.

  Tuksook began, voice flat, “Gumui, before we lived here, others lived here. They honored themselves by building a huge stone building south of us where the river enters the sea. It stood above all so that anyone sailing could see it. They were a boastful people. The sea brought a huge wave that was bigger than any we’ve ever seen. It tore some of the building away. It washed all the people there out to sea. Today, none of them reside with Wisdom. The structure they built still stands, but it’s hidden by trees.”

  “I was in the meadow by the rocks and a spirit from the rocks spoke to me. It was an evil spirit not a spirit of the dead. I failed to ignore it, and instead I talked to it.”

  “Tuksook, you’re not supposed to talk to them.” Gumui was horrified.

  “I know.” She hung her head.

  “Please, continue,” he asked.

  “I sat by the carved rocks. Suddenly I was with Wisdom. Wisdom showed me the structure the men made. It was huge, and it’s still there. Wisdom does not want us to go there. Wisdom also showed me how the earth looks from far away like from the moon—I don’t know from where, I just know I saw the earth turn so slowly. I saw it about this size.” Tuksook used her hands to form the best circle she could. It exceeded the size of her head. “The earth is incredibly beautiful. There appeared on the earth four red lines. Wisdom showed me where Eagle’s Grasp is on the earth. One of the red lines arced just below Eagle’s Grasp.” Tuksook inhaled deeply and slowly let the air escape.

  “Wisdom told me that the earth lives and moves land around. The land has to move or the stress could become too great. Wisdom compared it to our clearing vegetation to the dirt, pushing the dirt until it stops, and then pushing it very hard to break through the barrier. We h
ave to face a jolt, probably soon. I have reasoned it will be a very large earthquake.”

  “Finally, Wisdom let me know that I’d learned what I needed to learn. Oddly, I learned it though disobedience. Wisdom had told me never to speak with other spirits or the dead. I found the evil spirit troublesome, and I remembered to call to Wisdom. Wisdom rescued me by removing the evil spirit far from Eagle’s Grasp. It took me a while to realize that in the event that something catastrophic happened, my first act should be to call upon Wisdom for guidance. I had thought about all the things I should do, but I neglected to think to call upon Wisdom first. I was just like my father and the people who built the stone structure to honor themselves and show forth their pride to impress others.”

  “Wisdom told me that by living in Wisdom’s way and the way of the People we have in us something like a crystal—a crystal of integrity. When we go outside Wisdom’s way and the way of the People, the crystal fractures. With effort, a fracture can be repaired. Once the crystal crumbles into pieces that can no longer be repaired, there is no hope, as it was with Rimut.”

  “Tuksook,” Gumui said comfortingly, wrapping her in his arms, “go ahead; cry if you want. I’m here and no one is nearby. You had a significant time with Wisdom. You learned much. How I’d love to have seen the vision of the earth.”

  Tuksook wept, leaning against Gumui’s chest. Losing the tears helped somewhat to ease the tension in her.

  “I fear the vision I’ve been having. I begin to understand that we’re about to have a huge earthquake. I know if there is damage to the structure, the People will—like ants—repair it quickly, unless the earthquake rips it apart. We have just repaired for the cold times and now this. I have a leadership role to play and I just cannot quite see ahead far enough to know what to expect. I know that the earth has to let something break a movement barrier. I understand that much.”

  “Tuksook, what did you learn from Wisdom today?” he asked holding her at arm’s length by the shoulders.

  She looked at him. “Oh, Gumui, what would I do without you? I’m falling right back into the way of pride instead of the way of Wisdom for a Wise One. My crystal of integrity is in danger of cracking. I shall call for Wisdom for guidance, before I make decisions, and I will receive the guidance I need. I will not panic regardless how monstrous the earthquake is. And, Gumui, until the earthquake or anything of significance occurs, I will change the vision of myself skipping stones and practice calling on Wisdom first for guidance to show me what the problems are and how to remedy them. Then, when necessary, I will be equipped to lead with good guidance available.” Tuksook felt a wave of relief wash over her. “Now, I think I might sleep.”

  Gumui walked with her back to the bent tree house.

  When they reached their bench/sleeping place, Gumui and Tuksook saw Mi sitting on her sleeping place, legs crossed, covered by a skin around her shoulders, waiting for them.

  “You were going to wait until I was asleep to sneak out of here, so I wouldn’t hear you. Any time you want to do that, you need only tell me to stay in a certain place, and I will do it and not move,” Mi said positively in a loud whisper.

  Tuksook and Gumui stared at her and then at each other.

  “You were awake when we left?” Tuksook whispered back.

  “Yes. You were acting very strange, Mother, ever since you were by the rocks. I knew you had learned something from Wisdom you wanted to talk to Father about. It was clear you wanted to do that where I couldn’t hear you. I wish you’d just let me know that. I’d make it easier for you, like when I went to talk to Awk today. That gave you time to talk.”

  Gumui went to her, picked her up and squeezed her. Tuksook pulled his arm, and he bent over so that Tuksook could kiss Mi.

  “Let us sleep now, for the morning comes. Mi, we have heard you. No longer will we sneak away. We’ll tell you and have you stay in a certain place,” Gumui promised.

  “Thank you Father,” she said, snuggling back into her sleeping place. “Then, I won’t worry about you.”

  Tuksook laughed barely audibly. This child was filled with Wisdom at such an early age, she thought. “What a one you are,” she whispered, tousling Mi’s hair.

  Gumui and Tuksook crawled into their sleeping place. Tuksook gave a look at Mi, who was peeking at them. She laughed again.

  “What makes you laugh?” Gumui asked very quietly, glad that her mood had changed.

  “Mi is peeking at us,” she replied.

  Finally, there was no more noise from the west part of the bent tree house. Sleep came to the bent tree house.

  The noise of rocks being beaten together waked Gumui and Tuksook. They looked for Mi and saw her sitting cross-legged on her bench. Her sleeping skins were rolled neatly at the wall edge of the bench. She had put on her tunic and combed her hair, a little oddly, but it was combed.

  “I’ve been waiting for you,” Mi said.

  “I finally had a very good night’s sleep,” Tuksook said. “I feel refreshed again.”

  “Wonderful, we’d better run a comb through our hair and dress very quickly,” Gumui said reaching for Mi’s shoulder to squeeze it.

  The three left the west part of the bent tree house and headed for the morning meal. While they ate, Item, Za, and Brill helped the boatmen with the baskets of jerky they’d need for those who sailed. Baskets of jerky for all of them for a hundred days was the plan. Item knew how to calculate it, and she made it for one hundred and twenty days to be safe.

  Boatmen carried basket after basket of food to the bins on the boat and brought the baskets back. Everyone was careful not to step in their way. The boatmen didn’t run, but they lengthened their strides and moved as fast as possible. They had help from two of the Eagle’s Grasp boats to transport the food to the boat.

  Once the boat was loaded and Go had counted all on the boat, they were ready to leave.

  “Anchors up!” Go shouted. He gave orders how to row to move from the anchorage to the river.

  Yumo and Huaga watched from the meadow. Go was doing wonderfully at maneuvering the boat to the river. He had learned well to lead the boatmen. They both wished the boatmen well. They had been like family for more years than they could remember. They knew it was the right thing for them to do. It was sad to leave part of the People in the drought in the old land and now to lose another part of the People to the south. All along the edge of the meadow the People watched. Huaga and Yumo watched until the boat disappeared around the point of land on their side of the river. When they turned back to the meadow, the reduction in their population was visually obvious. Twelve boatmen left with the two boys who were almost grown. Fourteen People missing from the meadow made a distinct difference.

  Men, women, and children returned right away to the tasks they had planned. Tuksook took Mi to the rock and began her recitations. Gumui went to the house and began to walk through it, considering what would happen inside if a great earthquake occurred. He looked at how they had stacked tools and spears. He considered the storage of meat, plants, and curing plants. He looked at hearths, considering fire. Gumui walked through each part of the house looking at the arrangement of the bench/sleeping places. He could find nothing but the addition of water containers to change.

  Out on the south meadow, hunters had taken a skin and laid it over a stack of turf they’d dug up from the river level. The turf had dried. They took charcoal and marked a large dot on the skin. They lined up the boys for tipped spear throwing practice. Along the way out from the target, they marked stakes in the ground to show distance. For all the remainder of the day boys age ten and up practiced very seriously. For the practice, they used repaired tips, knowing they’d need to repair the tips again after several days of practice.

  Item gathered the women together and looked at what had been made but not distributed, what the need was now, and what remained to be made before the cold times set in. They found they had more than enough adult jackets, but were lacking for the children. Some
still would need boots, hats, and mittens. A few could not fit the jackets that had been made, so they needed alteration or to have a new one cut and sewed.

  “How many of you know of men who need a replacement jacket? Some of these would satisfy that need,” Item asked.

  Za spoke up, “Stencellomak’s jacket is worn badly on the arm. I’ve tried to patch it, but he feels the cold there.”

  Meg said, “Hawk’s jacket has a split in the back. If you can replace it that would be good.”

  “Unmo needs one that fits him better,” Brill observed. “His jacket is not overly worn enough to return it to the basket for new application, but it’s so large that cold air rushes in at the bottom.

  “Tuksook isn’t here to say, but I know that Gumui’s is terribly worn,” Eilie said.

  Then there was silence.

  “We have fourteen adult jackets for men and seven for women completed. The only difference in the men’s and women’s jackets is the width and arm length. Do you think one of the women’s jackets would fit Unmo better?” Item asked.

  Amiz looked up. “If you give me a woman’s jacket, I’ll carry it to my husband and try it on him. Then, I can answer.

  Item carried the new jacket to her. Amiz took it and left the house by the west entryway. She found Unmo by the food preparation area, eating a slice of roasted swan. She was concerned because Unmo had been eating a lot recently, but he continued to lose weight.

  “Wife, what brings you here?” Unmo asked.

  “Put the food down. I want to try this on you,” she replied.

  “That’s a beautiful jacket,” he admitted.

  Amiz helped him put it on. It fit with a little room to spare.

  “Is this for me?” he asked.

  “Yes it is.”

  “It’ll keep the cold air from coming up the bottom of the jacket. I like it.”

  “Let me have it back. I’ll take your old one and hang this on your peg.”

  “Sounds like a good idea to me,” he said with a smile and wink.

  Amiz went back to the bent tree house, walked to the women, and told them the fit was good.