Kelly and Larry had arrived to use the gift certificate that we’d given them for their wedding. And they had brought a big surprise with them. Maria and Mark. So we now had our first house guests.

Friday morning I’d heard some noises, I looked at the clock, and it was five in the morning. Then I remembered that Maria and Mark were here. I rolled over and went back to sleep for another hour.

When Amy and I wandered downstairs, we found Maria and Mark curled up together on the couch watching TV. They looked up at us, and Maria said, “Good morning you two.”

“Morning.”, Amy said. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. That bed is great.”

“Did you have breakfast yet?”

“No, we waited for you.”

We headed over to a Mexican restaurant that we knew of for a good Southwestern breakfast. And while we ate we talked about what we were going to do today. We did have to be at the resort at five, so Amy and I could change for the barbecue. So we decided to head up to Santa Fe with a little detour up to Sandia Crest.

After we finished eating, we went back to the apartment. Maria and Mark waited while Amy and I packed what we’d need for the barbecue tonight. Then they followed us to the small room where the safe was, and as we started picking and choosing the jewelry that we were going to take, Maria asked, “Why so much jewelry for just a barbecue?”

“There’s just something about it.”, Amy replied. “We feel that we need to look our best for these.”

“I think you’ll understand once we’re there.”, I said.

“Okay.”, Maria replied. “Do we need to dress-up?”

“No.”, Amy replied. “Go comfortable. But bring a light jacket.”

“Why? It’s hot out here, so we didn’t bring jackets.”

“Our first stop can be windy and cold. We’ll take our jackets, and you can borrow our windbreakers.”

“Cold? Out here.”

“You’ll see.”

We loaded everything into the car, including the four full canteens, and headed out. Once we started up the Sandia Crest Highway, we started going up in elevation, and we talked about the scenery.

The drive up the mountain is a beautiful drive full of switchbacks. And when we got close to the top and started going through is thirteen or fourteen switchbacks in the last six miles, Maria said, “All this twisting and turning is making me car sick.”

“We only have a couple of miles to go. Do you want me to stop?”, I asked.

“No. I’ll be fine. But I’ve never been on such a curvy road.”

“There’s no way that you could drive straight up the mountain, so they did it with switchbacks.”

When we got to the top, we parked the car and got out, Mark saw a sign, and he said, “You’ve got to be kidding me. 10,678 feet above sea level! And it is colder and windier up here.”

“Uh huh.”, I said, “We’re also about 5,000 feet above Albuquerque.

“I was thinking about a short hike, but I don’t want either of you getting sick.”

“Sick?”, Maria asked.

“Altitude sickness.”, Amy said. “I was worried that you were having a problem when you said you felt car sick, nausea is one of the symptoms. But it usually doesn’t hit anyone until they’ve been at altitude for twelve to twenty-four hours.”

“We’ve been in Albuquerque for over twelve hours.”

“Oh! Right.”

Looking at me, Amy said, “Honey, we’d better go back down.

“We’ve been here for three weeks, and we’re not used to it yet.”

Then looking at Maria, Amy asked, “You don’t have a headache. Do you?”

“No.”, Maria said.

“Do you feel dizzy?”

“No.”

“Did you sleep okay last night?”

“Yes. I slept really good.”

“That’s good.”

As we got back in the car, Amy told Maria and Mark to drink water. I tried to start the car. But, it wouldn’t start. I tried it again, and it still wouldn’t start. Amy looked at me, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure.”, I replied.

I tried it a couple more times, and still nothing. Then it hit me, and I said, “Damn!”

“What?”, Amy asked.

“This car was last tuned up back home. And now we’re at nine-thousand feet, and the oxygen is thinner. I’m going to try something. Amy, slide over here and try starting it when I tell you to.”

“Why didn’t this happen the last time we were you here?”, Amy asked.

“I don’t know.”

As I got out of the car, Amy slid over into the driver's seat, I opened the hood, removed the air cleaner, and as I told Amy to try starting the car I held the choke open. And the car tried to start but didn't. I re-adjusted the choke again. I had Amy try to start it again, and it started. I gave the car a minute to warm up, put the air cleaner back on, Amy scooted over, and I got in.

On the way down the mountain, I said, “I know what I’m going to be doing Monday.”

“What’s that?”, Mark asked.

“I’m going to be taking this car to the dealer and see if they can set it up for the higher altitude out here. Then we shouldn’t have any more problems.”

“I’m sorry that I ruined our time up there.”, Maria said.

“Honey.”, Amy said. “You didn’t ruin it. We should have thought about the altitude sickness thing. We don’t want you getting sick while you’re out here.”

I took it easy going back down. If Maria’s stomach was upset, I didn’t want her throwing up.

When we got to the end of the Sandia Crest Highway, we turned north and headed towards Santa Fe. And just south of Santa Fe we saw an interesting sign, it said, ‘Prison Area. Do not pick up hitchhikers.’

Amy said, “I didn’t know that there was a prison out here.”

“I didn’t either.”, I said.

And sure enough, a short way up the road was a big, fancy, sign that said, ‘Penitentiary of New Mexico.’

A short time later we were in Santa Fe. We spent time wandering around the historic area. One interesting stop we made was at the San Miguel Chapel which is supposed to be the oldest church in the continental United States. We even found the Santa Fe Trail. Then we found a nice restaurant for lunch. And of course, we hit the tourist shops. As we were getting ready to leave Santa Fe and head to the resort, Maria asked, “Amy, how expensive are the blouse and skirt that you’re wearing?”

“They're not that expensive. I saw you looking at them in the shops, and we know a place where they’ll be less then what you saw there, and the local people make them.”

“Do we have time to stop there?”

“Sure.”, I said. “We’ll be driving right past the shop.”

Shortly we were pulling into Mrs. Benallie’s shop. As we got out of the car, I had the camera bag with me. And Amy said, “Mrs. Benallie, who owns the shop, is very nice.”

Then as we walked in, Mrs. Benallie looked in our direction, smiled, and said, “Kai and Ajie I didn’t think that you’d ever be back.”

“Mrs. Benallie, do you think that one little problem would keep us away from here.”, I said. “I’m hurt.”

“I’m sorry Kai, but that wasn’t a little problem.”

“Mrs. Benallie, it was no fault of yours. That guy was looking for something to steal, and I got stupid and gave him an opening,”

“Kai, thank you for coming back.”

“We’d always come back here. And you’re going to have to put up with us for at least two years.”

“I knew in my heart that you’d be back. And I’ll be happy to put up with you for any length of time.”

I heard Maria whisper to Amy, “What happened?”

Amy whispered back, “I’ll tell you later.”

Then Mrs. Benallie asked, “So, what can I do for you today?”

“My friend Maria would like to look at skirts and blouses.”, Amy replied.

“Right this way my dears. And Kai, go over to where the display of headbands are on the counter. And I’ll be right over.”

Mark followed the girls, and I walked over to the counter and looked. There was a nice display of headbands here. Some very nice headbands. I saw one that was almost a duplicate of my favorite one, the braided leather headband with feathers hanging from the loose ends.

A short time later Mrs. Benallie walked up, and said, “Kai, Naainish stopped in to see me not long after you were back. And he proposed something.

“We both know that the braided leather headband with the feathers is your favorite and that you found it at the store where you bought your Biil dress. He asked me to see if they would make two more like it.

“One day I was in Albuquerque, and I went to that store. I supply the woman with some things, so I know her. I talked with the woman and found out that the woman’s mother makes all the headbands that she sells.

“As I talked with the woman, I found that I know her mother. She lives in Taos, so I was up there on another day and stopped to see her. I told her what I was looking for and who they were for, and she was nice enough to make me two special headbands.”

Pointing at the one on the rack, I asked, “Is this one of them?”

“No. I have what I want you to look at behind the counter.”

Mrs. Benallie walked behind the counter, took a box out of a cupboard, walked back out to me, and set the box on the counter. She opened the box, took out two headbands, and handed one to me. They were braided leather, and the leather was very soft and at the loose ends of the headband were two feathers, feathers that looked to be about ten inches long.

Then Mrs. Benallie said, “The leather is specially treated deerskin and very soft. When Naainish and I had talked, he’d given me some Eagle feathers.”

“Eagle feathers!?”, I said.

“Yes. And I swapped the feathers that were on the headbands with the Eagle feathers. These aren’t the big ones that you will see in a headdress. The big feathers wouldn’t look good on the headband. But these are still from the Bald Eagle and are as sacred as the bigger feathers.”

“Really?”, I said.

“Yes, Kai. When Naainish and I talked, he said that both you and Ajie have the wisdom of the Eagle and should wear the feathers as it shows a connection to the Great Spirit. And he said that he’d tell you more when he sees you.

“You know what the four colored beads on the leather strip above each feather mean. Don’t you?”

“Of course.”, I replied. “The four sacred mountains. Each color represents one of the four sacred mountains, Mt. Blanca, Mt. Taylor, San Francisco Peak, and Mt. Hesperus.”

“Kai, we are giving these to you and Ajie for what you’ve done for the children in the Nation and who you are.”

“Give them to us? Mrs. Benallie, I can’t … ”

“Kai, please don’t argue with me. It’s something that Naainish and I want to do.”

“Mrs. Benallie, I’ve learned not to argue with anyone out here. I always lose.”

I looked over to where Amy, Maria, and Mark were, and said, “Amy. Honey, come over here for a minute.”

Amy walked over, and asked, “What’s up?”

I looked at Mrs. Benallie, and said, “Mrs. Benallie, tell Amy what you just told me.”

Mrs. Benallie handed the other headband to Amy, and then she told her the story of the headbands. When Mrs. Benallie finished, Amy said, “Mrs. Benallie, this is so sweet. But, we can’t accept these.”

“Honey.”, Mrs. Benallie said. “This is a gift from Naainish and me. It shows your peoples respect for you.”

Amy looked at me, and said, “Honey, I think that we should accept these in the spirit that they're offered.”

I looked at Mrs. Benallie, and said, “Mrs. Benallie, we’ll accept these. But, don’t be surprised if you receive something in return.”

“Kai.”, Mrs. Benallie said. “You have already given me something.”

I gave her a puzzled look.

Then Mrs. Benallie added, “One day you’ll understand.”

I just shook my head, and said, “Mrs. Benallie, I can’t thank you enough for these. And we’ll wear them with pride.”

Amy then hugged Mrs. Benallie and kissed her on the cheek. And I, or maybe it was Kai, did the same thing.

Mrs. Benallie then put the two headbands back in the box, and as she handed the box to me, she said, “Kai, only a member of a Federally recognized tribe can own Eagle feathers. So these belong to you.”

“That’s good to know.”, I said. “Can Ajie wear one?”

“I think so. But you’d better ask Naainish to be sure.”

“I’ll do that.”

Just then Maria and Mark walked up to us, and Maria asked if she could try on a skirt and blouse that she’d picked out. Mrs. Benallie took her back to a dressing room. When Maria came back out, she was wearing a very nice long skirt and a plain white blouse. Amy looked at Maria, and said, “That looks sharp on you.”

“I know.”, Maria said. “I love it. Mrs. Benallie, can I wear it.”

“Of course my dear.”

Maria went to collect her clothes in the changing room, and Mark paid for her purchases. We said so long to Mrs. Benallie and headed towards the resort. As we drove out onto the road, Maria asked, “What’s in the box?”

“Wait until we get to Tom’s aunt and uncle’s house, and we’ll tell you.”, Amy said.

When we pulled up to my aunt and uncle’s house, Naainish’s pickup truck was parked there. I grabbed the suitcase out of the trunk, slung the camera bag over my shoulder, and as we walked into the house, I called out, “Anyone home?”

“We’re in the living room, Kai.”, we heard my aunt say.

The four of us walked into the living room with Amy carrying the box with the headbands in it. I reintroduced everyone. Naainish being Naainish, just said, “Yá’át’ééh.”

“Yá’át’ééh?”, Mark asked.

“It’s a greeting.”, I explained. “And means, it is good.”

The four of us sat, Amy put the box down on the coffee table, and as I opened it, I said, “Naainish, would you care to tell us about these?”

“Kai.”, Naainish said. “As you know the Eagle represent strength, protection and, above all, sound wisdom. In yours and Ajie’s case, it’s all true. You are strong, you protect yourselves and others, and above all you are wise.

“Mrs. Benallie and others have sensed this about both of you, and when I came to her about the headbands. She readily agreed with my idea of the headbands for you. Then I gave her the Eagle feathers.

“So that’s why the two headbands with Eagle fathers.”

“Mrs. Benallie told us that only a member of a recognized tribe could own Eagle feathers.”, I said. “So can Ajie wear one of these?”

“Others may disagree with me.”, Naainish said. “But in my opinion, yes she can.

“There is something that I want you to remember about the Eagle. If the Eagle is circling above and happens to notice you, it may make a complete circle, and if it does, it’s giving you a blessing.”

When Naainish finished his last statement, Amy and I looked at each other. And I think that Naainish saw the questioning looks on our faces, as he said, “Is there a problem?”

“Let me tell you a story.”, I said. “Back home there is a park, and in that park is a lake. And the first time Amy and I hiked the trail to the lake together. We saw an Eagle. It circled overhead, then caught a fish. Almost every time after that, when we’d hike to the lake, we saw one and sometimes two Eagles. They would always circle overhead and sometimes land in a tree or on a pole and look at us. The last time we hiked that trail, just before we left to come out here, they were there. They both circled overhead, then landed, looked at us for a minute or two, then took off and flew west.”

Naainish just looked at me for a few seconds. Then he looked at Ajie, then back at me, and said, “Remember that the Eagle is a symbol of honesty and trustfulness. Kai and Ajie, you are lucky. Most people will only see an Eagle in the wild a few times in their lifetime, and you have two that find you. Those two Eagles blessed you before you even knew that they were doing it.”

Now it was my turn to look at Naainish.

My uncle broke my train of thought as he said, “Kai. Are you and Ajie changing for the barbecue?”

Looking at the clock, I said, “Oh yeah. It’s getting to be that time.”

Then I looked at Mark and Maria, and before I could say anything, Maria said, “I can’t believe what I’ve just heard.”

“Maria, honey.”, Amy said. “At first I didn’t believe it either. But now I do. I, we, live it. We’ll talk later. Okay?”

“Yeah. Okay.”

“Aunt Ruth, would you keep Maria and Mark company while we change.”

“Of course, honey.”, Aunt Ruth said.

As Amy and I walked into our room, I said, “I wonder if Maria and Mark heard too much today?”

“I think we’ll find out on the way back to Albuquerque.”

“What I want to know is why was Naainish here?”

“Maybe for the barbecue.”, Amy replied.

“Probably. But here at the house. Did he know that Mrs. Benallie had given us the new headbands?”

“We didn’t even know that we were going to stop at Mrs. Benallie’s until Maria asked.”

“Who knows how he knows things.”

When we walked out of our room, we were both dressed to the hilt. Amy, now Ajie, was in a long, fancy, skirt, a velvet blouse, and wrap moccasins. She also had on the silver feather earrings, a Concho belt, one of the squash blossom necklaces, her meteorite necklace, a couple of rings, and two bracelets. Her hair was straight with the new Eagle feather headband holding it in place. The feathers hung down the back of her head.

I was wearing the white Biil dress, which is going to need to be cleaned after tonight, wrap moccasins, a squash blossom necklace, the ever-present meteorite necklace, the other Concho belt, the Concho choker, a ring, the bracelet, and a pair of the silver feather earrings. Like Ajie, my hair was straight with the new headband holding it in place.

When we walked out into the main part of the house, Naainish had left, and my uncle was sitting and talking with Maria and Mark. Maria saw us and stared, then said, “I know Tom is hiding someplace in the house, but where did you hide Amy?”

We both smiled. And Maria added, “You two look fabulous.”

“Thanks.”, Ajie replied.

“Yes, they do.”, my aunt added as she walked into the room.

“So do you, Aunt Ruth.”, I said.

“Thanks, Kai.”

Aunt Ruth was dressed in a fancy long skirt and a fancy blouse, wrap moccasins, a beaded choker, a Concho belt, and some other silver jewelry. And she did look good. Uncle Paul was in his usual moccasins, white linen pants, a bright red shirt, a red head scarf, and various jewelry.

Ajie looked at Maria for a couple of seconds, and said, “Come with me.”

Maria followed Ajie back towards our room. And Mark asked, “What’s Amy, I mean Ajie, up to?”

“Time will tell.”, I replied.

A few minutes later Ajie and Maria walked back to where we were waiting. Maria now had on one of our beaded headbands, and a pair of beaded earrings.

Mark commented, “With the five of you I feel under-dressed.”

Ajie smiled, and said, “Mark, you’ll see when we get to the barbecue that you are just fine. And it’s us who are overdressed.”

As the six of us walked out of the house, Maria asked, “Are we meeting Kelly and Larry at the barbecue?”

“Yes.”, Ajie replied. “They weren’t sure what time they’d get there.”

As we got closer, you could smell the food cooking. And Mark said, “That smells amazing.”

“It even tastes that way.”, I said. “But get in line before Uncle Paul, or there won’t be any food left.”

Uncle Paul, looked at me, scowled, and said, “Kai!”

I just grinned at him.

We walked into the barbecue area and looked around. The dancers and musicians were already there. And the musicians were playing. There was also a number of guests there. Then Maria pointed and said, “There’s Kelly and Larry.”

We looked towards where Maria was pointing, and it looked like Kelly and Larry were looking around trying to find something. Probably us. And we were behind them. Maria smiled, and said, “Let’s see if we can sneak up on them and surprise them?”

“Let’s go.”, I said.

Trying to stay behind them, Ajie, Maria, Mark, and I slowly walked up behind Kelly and Larry. We got right behind them, Maria turned to us, held her finger to her lips, so that we’d be quiet.

As we got right behind Kelly and Larry, Maria said, “Yá’át’ééh, Kelly and Larry.”

Both Kelly and Larry turned around, and Larry said, “Yata what? … Oh hi, guys!”

“Yá’át’ééh, is a Navajo greeting.”, Ajie said. “But in the evening we would say, Yá’át’ééh alní'íní. Which means, ‘it is good, evening.’”

Then there were hugs all around. And I asked, “Have you had a good time?”

Kelly said, “You lied to us about this place.”

“Lied to you!?”

“Uh huh. You said that this place was fantastic. It’s well beyond that.”

“We thought that you’d like it.”

“Like it? We love it.”

“Seen a Sunset yet?”

“No. Not yet.”

“We’ll take care of that tonight.”

Then looking at Maria, Kelly said, “Girlfriend, it looks like you’ve become a native?”

“I saw Amy in a similar outfit, and it looked comfortable, so they took us shopping.”, Maria replied.

“The jewelry too?”

“No, Ajie loaned it to me.”

I saw Dibe, and said, “Excuse me. I need to talk to someone.”

I walked over to where Dibe and the other dancers were sitting, and said, “Yá’át’ééh.”

Dibe looked at me, smiled, and said, “Kai! Yá’át’ééh alní'íní. (good evening)”

Then she jumped up, and we hugged. Then Dibe asked, “Are your friends here?”

“Yes.”, I replied. “We had a big surprise, and two of our other friends came out with them. Think you pull all four of them out to dance.”

“Sure. Where are they?”

“Look over my shoulder. See the two girls and two guys talking with Ajie?”

“Yes. Is that them?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want to do it before or after dinner?”

“Let’s do it before. We want to show them a Sunset from the cliff.”

“I’ll talk to the other dancers, you get them over to where we’re dancing, and we’ll do the rest.”

“This will be fun.”

“Yes, it will.”

As I started to walk away, Dibe said, “Kai, I love your headband. Where did you get them?”

“Mrs. Benallie and Naainish gave one to Ajie and one to me.”, I replied.

“Gave them to you?”

“Something about the Eagle and us.”

“The Eagle?”

“The feathers are Eagle feathers.”

“Oh. Wow. That is so special.”

“Naainish said that the Eagle represents strength, protection and, wisdom and that Ajie and I are strong, protective, and wise. So we deserved the feathers, so they had the headbands made for us.”

“Kai, they are right about you two. You are special.”

And I got a big hug.

I walked back over to the crew, and said, “The dancers will be starting soon. Why don’t we go and watch? They’re excellent.”

As we walked to where the dancers perform, we saw them start their first dance. Dibe and one of the other girls did the fancy shawl dance. Dibe had worn the same outfit that she’d worn for the competition last year. It was all white and beautiful. The two girls moved as one. The twirls, kicks, and quick steps. It was beautiful. When they finished, all the guests that were watching gave them a big round of applause.

Kelly said, “That was fantastic. It was like they were one.”

“I know.”, I said. “We saw a competition last year, and there were thirty or forty women and girls dancing that dance.”

“That must have been something to see.”

“It was. As was the whole competition.”

I’d watched Dibe, and four of the dancers walk up to the microphone, she picked it up, and said, “Hello everyone. We’re glad you enjoyed our dance. We always like to teach our dances if we can. So, we are going to choose a few people out of the crowd and teach you some easy steps. If we don’t choose you, don’t be shy, you can still come on out and dance with us.”

Dibe put the microphone down and she the others walked towards us. The four other dancers walked up to, Kelly, Maria, Larry, and Mark, took their hands and with some hesitation and encouragement from Ajie and me were led out into the dance area.

Then, Dibe took my hand and Ajie’s hand and said, “Come on you two. Or, did you think I was going to let you get away without dancing with me?”

Ajie and I were led out to the dance area, and the music started. And Dibe said, “Like the last time we did this, just watch me, and do what I do.”

We watched her and copied her as best as we could. I noticed Ajie did it without much trouble. I tripped over my two left feet every once in awhile. But we were having fun. Every once in a while, I looked at the rest of the crew, and it looked like they were also having fun. I also saw a few guests join us.

When the music stopped, we stopped dancing. Ajie and I gave Dibe a big hug, and I said, “You just had to pull us out here. Didn’t you?”

“Do you think I’d miss an opportunity to dance with my favorite people.”, Dibe replied.

That got her two more hugs.

As we got back together with the crew, Maria said, “You two set us up. Didn’t you?”

I grinned, and said, “Who us?”

“Yes, you.”

“Did you have fun?”

“Yes. But you should have warned us first.”

“Why? Then it wouldn’t have been as much fun.”

“You’ll pay.”

The dancers did one more dance, then my uncle found me, and said, “Come on Kai. Time to do your job.”

“Uncle Paul!”, I said.

“Come on.”

I excused myself and walked with my uncle to where the musicians were. As we walked away from the crew, I heard Larry ask, “Where’s Kai going?”

And Ajie reply, “You’ll see.”

As we walked, I asked, “Any special quests tonight?”

“Well, of course, Naainish is here. Chief Kinlicheeny dropped in. And … ”