Amy and I kept going to the karate classes twice a week, and the instructor spent time teaching moves to use in self defense. We also did regular walks in the park. And Mom started on our Navajo language lessons.

At the next full Moon, something unusual happened. Amy and I were sitting on the porch reading as the Moon started rising. When it was entirely above the horizon, I looked at it, then at Amy, stood, offered her my hand, and said, “Come on lera me.”

“Where we going?”, Amy asked.

“You’ll see.”

I led her to our room. I then went to my chest of drawers and opened the drawer where I kept miscellaneous things. I took something out of the drawer that was wrapped in a cloth. I retook Amy's hand and led her to the garage. In the garage, I picked up a spade, and then we walked out to the backyard. We walked to one of my mother's flower beds, and I chose a corner of it. And I used the spade to dig a hole.

When I had the hole the way I wanted it, I unwrapped what was in the cloth. It was the last piece of the tree from the cliff at the resort. I took one end of it and offered Amy the other end. She took it. We both looked at the Moon, then knelt at the side of the hole. Together we placed the piece of the tree in the hole and using our hands, covered it with dirt. We knelt there for a couple of minutes in silence.

When we were back in the house, Amy asked, “Why did we just do that?”

“I just felt that it needed to be done.”, I replied.

“But it won’t grow.”

“I know. I just felt that I had to do it.”

“The full Moon?”

“Maybe.”

Well the gang of six, Amy and I, Maria and Mark, and Larry and Kelly, finally got back together. We did things like going out to dinner, a movie, bowling, shopping, and so on. Shopping was usually the four girls, Amy, Maria, Kelly, and Tammy. Yes, I couldn’t resist shopping.

Amy and I had never shown Maria or Kelly the clothes that we’d bought in New Mexico. So we decided to do a fashion show for the girls and, since she was in town, we included my cousin Mary.

So the five of us got together on a Saturday afternoon at my house. Amy and I put together drinks and snacks. And then she and I took turns changing into the various long skirts and blouses that we’d purchased, and doing a fancy model walk through the den. When Amy and I finished, we sat with the others, talked, and ate snacks.

Mary got up and went over to where the picture of Grandpa Nez and the certificates were hanging on the wall. She looked at them, then turned and asked, “Who’s the old gentleman in the picture. It says, ‘Kilchii Nez.’“

“That’s my Great-Great-Grandfather Kilchii Nez.”, I replied. “Most of the silver jewelry that Amy and I are wearing are his work.”

“And on your certificate of membership in the Navajo Nation, there is the name Kai Nez under your name.”

“That’s the name my uncle gave me, and it stuck.”

“Mary, you haven’t met Kai. Have you?”, Amy asked.

“No.”, Mary said. “So, there’s another part to you little sister?”

“I guess.”, I replied.

“Honey.”, Amy said to me. “Why don’t you go and find Kai.”

“That would be nice.”, Maria said. “We haven’t seen her for a while.”

“Okay.”, I replied. “I guess I can do that.”

“Honey.”, Amy said. “You might want to dress as you did for that last bonfire.”

“You think?”

“I do. Call me if you need help with your hair.”

“Sure thing.”, I said as I got up. “I’ll be back in a few.”

After I got to our bedroom, I undressed and then cleaned all the makeup that I was wearing off my face. And went with the less is more look with my makeup that I put back on.

For the last bonfire in New Mexico, I’d worn the white Biil dress and the wrap moccasins. So, those were the first things that I put on. I’d been Tammy for our little fashion show, but I needed to be Kai for this. So, it was the black wig, brushed into a straight look with one of the fancy headbands.

I replaced the earrings, that I was wearing, with a pair of the silver feather earrings. For my jewelry, I went with the Concho belt, the squash blossom necklace, the bone choker with a silver Concho in the middle, a bracelet, and a few rings. Maybe a little overboard, but I wanted to showoff Grandpa Nez’s work.

I walked down the hall and stood at the door to the den. The four girls were looking at what appeared to be a photo album. So, I asked, ”What are you guys looking at?”

They looked up, and Amy, Maria, and Kelly were smiling. Mary just stared. I looked at Mary, and asked, “Mary, is something wrong?”

She just shook her head no, and said, “Ah. … No. … Nothing's wrong. But little sister, I thought that these pictures were something else. You look just like an Indian maiden in them. But seeing you standing there looking like you do is just out of site. Tammy is beautiful, but Kai is gorgeous. You just glow.”

Maybe I was glowing because I was blushing.

Maria said, “She’s right.”

Kelly added, “It’s something about her coloring, that white dress, the black hair, and the silver jewelry.”

“Yeah. And not too much makeup.”

Mary then said. “Little sister. You have become a woman. How I don’t know.”

“Sis.”, I said. “Remember that we’ve talked about my two spirits and what they do. My feminine spirit just brings all of this out.”

“And I did this to you?”

“No. You did nothing to me. It was already in me. All you did was show me that it was there and started to help me bring it out. You taught me things, how to be feminine, how to shop, and more.

“I wanted to learn those things. Back then I didn’t know why. But it felt good. And I’m glad I did. Now I know why I have these two spirits. It complicates my life, but the more I learn about it, the more I accept it.

“Amy has made it fantastic. She accepts me for who I am. She helped to finish bringing out my feminine side. She accepts my Navajo side and the Navajo people. If we’d never gotten back together, I feel that neither Tammy or Kai wouldn’t be here. Or if they were, it would be with a minor role in my life. Now they are a big part. And I love them.

“And yes Tom is still here and always will be.”

The three of them just looked at me, and I could see tears in Amy’s eyes. Finally, Mary said, “Little sister. This part of you used to worry me. I wasn’t sure what it was and where it was going. I knew that once you started finding your feminine side, there was no stopping you.

“Your mother and I talked about you not long after Amy left. She told me that she sensed something special about you. Something that she felt was right for you. And over time we discussed your growing feminine side, and we both saw how happy it made you. Not only as Tommy but as Tammy. And your mother also told me that when you were Tammy that she felt the girl’s spirit inside you. She also explained the two spirit people that the native people believed in and that it was possible that you were one of these people.

“It was amazing watching you when you were Tammy. You were a girl. And that girl wanted to learn. Learn about clothes, makeup, and being a girl. And learn you did.

“Right now. I see the girl. I sense the girl. There is no boy here.”

I felt tears running down my cheeks. Amy was still crying. Mary got up, walked over to me, and hugged me. I whispered, “Sis, I love you.”

Mary whispered, “I love you too, little sister.”

I sensed the other three walk up and join in the hug. We hugged for a short time, then we all stepped back and looked at each other. And no one said anything until Kelly said, “Let's go someplace for dinner?”

“Sounds good.”, Amy said.

“Okay by me.”, Maria said.

“I’ll go change.”, I added.

“No. Go as you are.”

“No, Maria. I have enough problems going out here as Kai. Dressed like this no way. Not even in New Mexico would I go out dressed like this, unless it was to something special.”

Amy and I went back to our bedroom to change. As we walked into the room, I grabbed her turned her to face me and gave her a sweet kiss. When we broke the kiss, I asked, “Why all the tears?”

“Tommy.”, she replied. “You are so special. So sweet. And the things that you said just made me feel so good. And my emotions just got the best of me.”

“So those were tears of happiness?”

“Uh huh. Why the tears from you?”

“Same reason. I have some great friends. A fantastic wife. And the emotions just got the best of me too.”

I went back to being Tammy since I figured that it was going to be five girls going out. I did dress in one of the long skirts and fancy blouses. And I remembered my glasses.

Just before we were going to walk out of the bedroom, I said, “I felt something when I hugged Mary. And I don’t know if I should say anything.”

“What did you feel?”, Amy asked.

“She’s pregnant.”

“What!?”

“Yeah.”

“How did you … Oh. Your spirits?”

“Yeah. I think. Should I say something to her?”

“Let's feel her out when we’re alone with her.”

We had a great dinner and a great girl’s night out.

After we finished, Kelly dropped off Maria at her house. Then she dropped Mary, Amy, and me off at my parent’s house. We walked in, and Amy fixed us some tea, and we sat at the kitchen table and talked.

Amy asked Mary, “How’s Jim? We haven’t seen him for a while.”

“He’s great.”, Mary replied. “Busy at work. Can you two keep a secret?"

"Of course."

“We’re trying to have a baby.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“We just started. So it may be a while.”

I started grinning. Mary looked at me, and asked, “What’s so funny?”

I looked at Amy, and she was also smiling. Mary looked at her, and said, “All right you two. What’s going on. … No. Wait. Amy, you’re not pregnant are you?”

Amy looked at me. I looked at Mary, and said, “No sis. Amy’s not pregnant. But you are.”

“What! I'm not. How would you know?”

“Mary, you are pregnant. How do I know? Remember sis I have two spirits. One is female, and one is male. And I see things through their eyes at the same time. And I can also sense things.

“When I hugged you earlier, I felt more than one spirit.”

“We just started trying.”

“Well, you did a good job. Do you want to know what you’re having?”

I saw Amy look at me in shock, and Mary said, “You can’t do that. Can you?”

“I don’t know how, but yes. Do you want to know?”

“Yes.”

“A boy.”

“A boy! Jim will be so happy.”

“Did you want a girl?”

“Yeah. What mother doesn’t.”

“Good. You’re having one of those too.”

“What!”

“You’re having twins.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. How do you know.”

“I felt three spirits when I hugged you. Three strong spirits, one male and two female.”

“Oh my God. Don’t tell Jim. He’ll go crazy.”

“That’s for you to do when you want to. Have you seen a doctor yet?”

“I go next week. But you know, I have felt a little different.”

“Let him confirm it. Then wait and see if it is twins. But I feel that I’m correct.”

“God little sister. You’ve scarred me before. But now … “

“Don’t be scared. Be happy.”

Later as Amy and I were lying in bed, Amy said, “You really did feel her pregnancy. Didn’t you?”

“Yes.”, I replied. “I wondered what it was when I felt it. But it came to me, three spirits when I’d only felt one before. And then something told me that the two new spirits belonged to a boy and girl.”

“Are you going to tell me when I’m pregnant?”

“Of course.”

“Will you tell me if it’s a boy or girl?”

“No.”

“No!?”

“That'll be my secret.”

“You brat.”

I kissed her, and ...

On Sunday morning, Amy and I were lying in bed. And the realization that fall classes started a week from this Wednesday hit me. And I said, “Know what.”

“What?”, Amy replied.

“Classes start a week from this coming Wednesday.”

“You’re kidding me?”

“No.”

“Where did the summer go?”

“Two trips to New Mexico and your clinicals.”

The following Wednesday, Amy and I were back in classes. And that began a regular schedule of classes, studying, and meeting up with friends. Not to mention Karate classes and Mom helping us learn the Navajo language.

On the Saturday before Thanksgiving, Amy and I were having dinner with my parents, and the conversation was the usual stuff. All of a sudden I sensed something, and said, “Dad there’s something wrong. What is it?”

“There’s nothing wrong.”, my Dad replied.

“Dad, something is wrong.”

“I’m fine.”

“No your not. I’m sensing something, and it’s not good. What’s wrong.”

“It’s nothing. I just have a pain behind my right eye and a little blurred vision.”

“Dad.”, Amy asked. “How long has this been going on?”

“It started this morning. It’ll go away.”

“Dad. We’re going to the hospital.”

“No. I’ll be fine.”

“No, Dad! No discussion! You’re going!”

“Amy.”, my mother said. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure. But it needs to be checked out.”

“I’ll go tomorrow.”, dad said.

“No!”, Amy said with some authority. “Daddy! You’re going right now!”

We finally got Dad into the car, and the four of us headed to the university’s hospital. We were there very quickly. And Amy directed me to the entrance to the Emergency Room. Which she really did need to do. When we got there, Amy jumped out of the car and ran inside. She was quickly back with an orderly pushing a wheelchair.

The orderly pushed Dad into the Emergency Room followed by the three of us. Amy went to follow Dad to an exam room, and they stopped her. And they showed us to the waiting room. I heard Amy ask someone, “Is Patty Jeter working tonight?”

The clerk checked and said she was. Then Amy asked if she could talk to her. Shortly Patty was out into the waiting area and saw Amy. She went to greet her, but Amy stopped her with a quick explanation of what was going on. I heard Patty say, “Sure honey. Come with me.”

Amy then said, “Just a minute.”

Amy walked over to us, and said, “I’m going back with Dad. And I’ll be back as soon as I know what’s going on.”

Mom almost in tears, said, “Honey. What’s going on?”

“Mom. I don’t know, but they’ll find out. And Dad is in good hands.”

Amy and Patty then disappeared into the Emergency Room. Mom looked at me, and asked, “Honey. You sensed something. What?”

“Mom.”, I replied. “I’m not sure. But I sensed that there was something wrong with Dad and that he wasn’t saying anything about it.”

“But what?”

“I don’t know. But Amy obviously heard something in what Dad said, and if she thinks it’s important. It’s important.”

“I know honey.”

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

And wait we did. Someone came out every once in a while and told us that they were still running tests.

A little over two hours after we’d gotten there, Amy wearing a gown like a doctor or nurse would, Patty, and a man, in a white coat, who I figured was a doctor came out and took us into a private room.

Patty said, “Mrs. Young, Tom, this is Dr. Greenwood. He’s head of neurosurgery. Dr. Greenwood, this is Mrs. Young and her son Tom.”

Dr. Greenwood said, “Mr. Young is fortunate. We feel that he has an unruptured brain aneurysm. And that we can fix it.”

“Will … will he be all right?”, Mom asked.

“We feel he has an excellent chance of a complete recovery. We’ll be taking him to surgery very shortly. So if you would like to come back and see Mr. Young before he goes to surgery, the nurse can show you the way. And I’m going to go and prepare for the surgery.”

Amy said, “Ah, Dr. Greenwood?”

“Yes, Miss.”, Dr. Greenwood said.

“It’s Doctor Young.”

“Doctor?”

“Yes, sir. He is a Medical Doctor and a research scientist.”

Dr. Greenwood looked at Patty, and said, “Please see that his records are corrected.”

“Yes, doctor.”, Patty replied.

Then Mom asked, “How long does the surgery take?”

Dr. Greenwood replied. “Anywhere from three to five hours.”

“Thank you, doctor.”

“And I’ll see you shortly after we’ve finished.”

The doctor left, and Patty took us back to see Dad. As we walked in, he looked at me and said, “Thanks, Tom.”

“For what Dad?”, I asked.

“For seeing that something was wrong.”

“Dad, I didn’t see anything. I sensed something and just asked the right question. And Amy caught it.”

“Amy thanks for insisting that I come here.”

“Daddy.”, Amy said. “You’re in good hands, and they will take good care of you. And I’ll be with you.”

I looked at Amy and asked, “You’re going to be with him?”

“Yeah. Patty told Dr. Greenwood that I was a third-year nursing student and would possibly like to attend the surgery. And he said that I could.”

“Aren’t you too close to him.”

“Maybe.”

“Are you sure that you want to do this?”

“Yes. Besides Dad wanted me to stay with him, and I told him that I'd be there for him if I could.”

We sat with Dad for only a few minutes before a couple of orderlies came to get him. Mom was crying as she kissed him. I took his hand in mine, and said, “Dad. I know everything will be just fine. We’ll see you later.”

Amy looked at me and whispered, “You do?”

I looked at Amy and just said, “Yes.”

Amy smiled, kissed me, then hugged and kissed Mom, and ran to catch up with the orderlies pushing Dad’s bed. When she caught up, I saw her take Dad’s hand and talk to him.

Patty said that she would show us to the surgical waiting room. When we got there, she sat with us, and said, “Dr. Greenwood is the best. Mr. … I mean Dr. Young will be just fine.”

“I know.”, I said.

Patty looked at me, and said, “I heard you say that downstairs. And I saw Amy smile. Does this have anything to do with the spirit thing?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Amy told me that you sensed something during dinner.”

“Yeah. I didn’t see anything different with Dad. But I knew something was wrong. So I questioned him. And what he told us must have meant something to Amy. She insisted that he come here.”

“You two probably saved his life.”

I just smiled.

As Patty stood, she said, “I’ll come and sit with you after I’m off shift.”

“You don’t have to do that.”, Mom said.

Patty smiled, and said, “I want to do that.”

“We’ll see you later, Patty.”, I said.

After Patty had walked away, Mom asked, “Is she the friend of Amy’s that ran into you out in New Mexico?”

“Yes.”, I replied. “Her and her husband, Ralph.”

“Does she know about you?”

“Yes. Both Patty and Ralph have met Tom and Kai.”

“Does she understand?”

“I’m not sure, but she was on duty the day of our car accident and remembers the boy that came in dressed as a girl. And we told her that it was me. I also know that she saw things in New Mexico that will at least make her think. And after today she may have more to think about.”

“Do you trust her?”

“Yes. I feel good about Patty and her husband. At first, I got mixed feelings from him, but after we talked with them, I figured out why.”

“And?”

“He’s a cross-dresser.”

“I see. And that gave you mixed feelings.”

“Yes. But as soon as I found out about Ralph the mixed feeling changed to good feelings.

Mom and I sat there quietly. Mom fell asleep, or at least I think she did. I just closed my eyes and concentrated on Dad. As I sat there, I began to hear chanting. I’ve heard that chant before. What was it? Then it came to me, and it was the Navajo Healing Song. Why was I hearing it? How did I know what it was?

About three hours later, Patty joined us, and as she sat, she said, “I checked on Dr. Young’s surgery on my way here. And everything is going well. It may be another hour or so. Dr. Greenwood is known for doing things slowly and carefully. He gets in trouble with the hospital for taking too long. And if I had kids and they needed brain surgery, I’d want Dr. Greenwood doing it.”

“Thank you, Patty.”, Mom said. “That makes me feel better.”

Patty then just looked at me. I asked, “What?”

“So you sensed something?”

“I guess.”

“How?”

“I don’t know. I just did.”

“The two spirit thing?”

“Could be.”

“Don’t want to talk about it. Do you?”

“If I knew more, then I could talk about it. I just don’t know that much about it. I’ve got a lot to learn.”

“Have you ever done anything like this before?”

“No. I do know I can sense when people have a problem with people like me.”

“People like you?”

“Two spirit people.”

“So if someone has a problem with maybe a cross-dresser, or someone who’s homosexual. You’d know that too?”

“I’m not sure. I know when I first met Ralph that I received mixed signals from him, and when I found out about him it made sense.”

“So Ralph gave you mixed signals.”

“Yeah. I can’t explain it. It’s just something I feel.”

“Interesting.”

“But could you do me a big favor?”

“Sure. What?”

“Can we keep all of this between us?”

“Sure. Amy did tell me that you were a private person.”

I chuckled a little, and said, “I try to be. But it doesn’t always work well.”

We sat there, and the three of us just talked. About an hour and a half, after Patty had joined us, we saw Dr. Greenwood and Amy walk into the surgical waiting area. They walked over to us, and Dr. Greenwood said, “Mrs. Young. Everything went well. Why don’t we go into a private room and I’ll tell you more.”

Mom and I got up and started to follow the doctor. I looked back at Patty, who was still sitting there, and said, “Come on.”

Patty stood and followed us to one of the private rooms. Once we were there, the doctor told us that he had gotten to the aneurysm just before it would have ruptured and he was able to put a metal clip on it. And that Dad would be in Intensive Care for a day or two, and then moved to a private room. And that Dad would then be in the hospital for an additional five to seven days, and then need to rest at home for two weeks. And after that, he should be back to normal.

Knowing my Dad, we wouldn’t be able to keep him down for two weeks. It would drive him crazy.

The doctor said that Dad would be in recovery for a couple of hours, then we could visit him in Intensive Care for ten minutes on the hour.

We thanked the doctor, and Amy said she’d be back as soon as she changed. The doctor took Patty aside and talked with her for a minute, then left.

Mom, Patty, and I went back to the main waiting room and waited on Amy. And Amy was back with us fairly quickly. She sat down, and said, “That was intense.”

“Intense?”, I asked.

“Brain surgery. I spent a week in surgery during clinicals, but it was nothing like this. We had special gowns and head gear to wear. And even though I wasn’t going to do anything, I had to scrub, and put on gloves.

“And they've just gotten a special microscope for brain surgery, and they used that. I even got to look into it.”

“Does Dad really have any brains?”, I asked with a grin.

“Brat!”, Amy snapped back. “This was serious, and you’re trying to make a funny.”

“Sorry. I was just trying to break the serious mood.”

“Honey.”, Mom said. “I know it’s been a trying few hours. Now, I’m hungry where can we get something?”

“The staff cafeteria is open.”, Patty said.

We went to the cafeteria, grabbed a snack, then we sat and talked. One thing Patty said was that Amy was one up on her, she’d never seen brain surgery. Amy said that she could have done without having seen it, but that it was interesting.

Then Patty said, “Amy. Dr. Greenwood was impressed by you.”

“Impressed?”, Amy asked.

“He said that you asked some very interesting questions. Things a surgical resident would ask.”

“Oh.”

“And you were lucky that he was here. He’d been called in on a consultation and had just finished that when you brought Tom’s dad in. He’s just the best."

After we’d finished in the cafeteria, Patty went home. Of course, there were hugs all around, and Mom told her that she really appreciated her sitting with us. Then Mom, Amy, and I went back to the surgical waiting room. We sat and waited. Amy quickly dozed off with her head on my lap, and I wasn’t far behind in falling asleep.

The next thing I remember was Mom, standing over us, shaking my shoulder, and saying, “Come on kids. They’ve moved Dad to Intensive Care, and we can see him.”

Both Amy and I woke up and followed Mom to the Intensive Care Unit. It was just after three in the morning when they let us in to see Dad. The nurse guided us to his bed. He looked at us and smiled. Mom walked over to him, bent down, and kissed him. Then Amy did the same. I walked over, took his hand in mine, smiled at him, and said, “Dad. I’m so glad that you’re okay.”