We had used the mud pool to try to help both of us relax, and it worked. We also found out that next Friday would be the last barbecue of the year. That made us sad.

The Sunset was an excellent one, but the storms building to the west showed that we were going to get a thunderstorm or two. As the storms approached, I warned everyone to get off the cliff, and all but one guy did. He wanted one more picture. And that turned tragic. Lightning struck him, and he died.

Sunday morning when I woke up to the smell of breakfast cooking and Ajie looking down at me with that cute smile on her face. I smiled up at her, and said, “Morning lover.”

She bent down, kissed me, sat back, and said, “Good morning sweetheart.”

Then she asked, “What are we going to do today.”

“I don’t know yet.”, I replied. “But I know that you want to relax.”

“Uh huh. I do. You know Uncle Paul said he’d take us to the range.”

“I thought you wanted to relax?”

“That may help me release a little pent-up anger.”

“Oh.”

“Uh huh. We brought everything with us. Didn't we?”

“We did. And we’ll see if Uncle Paul is busy or not.”

When I got out of bed without hesitation I dressed as Kai, and after an excellent breakfast, Ajie, Aunt Ruth, Uncle Paul, and I headed to the range. I didn’t realize that Aunt Ruth was into shooting, but Uncle Paul said she was a reasonably good shot.

When we got to the range, we all picked targets, I chose a bear silhouette, Uncle Paul picked a bulls-eye target, as did Aunt Ruth, and Ajie surprised me by selecting a man’s silhouette target.

We started with the rifles and set our targets out at one-hundred and ten yards. I thought it was a little far, but Uncle Paul said that with the rifles that we have that it was a reasonable distance to start.

We shot at that distance for a while, each of us going through a box of ammunition. And then we checked our targets. Uncle Paul and Aunt Ruth both did better than I did, but they’d been shooting a lot longer then I have. But Ajie did better than anyone. We looked at her target, and there was only one shot outside the silhouette, all of the rest of her shots were either in the head or heart area.

Uncle Paul whistled, and asked, “Where did you learn to shoot so good.”

Ajie smiled, and said, “I guess it’s just beginners luck.”

“Yeah. Right.”, I said. “I know you better. What were you thinking about?”

“I saw Peshlakai on that target.”

Uncle Paul raised an eyebrow, and said, “Ajie, remind me, I never want you mad at me.”

“Uncle Paul, I love you too much to ever get mad at you.”

“Thank the Great Spirit.”

Aunt Ruth smiled, and said, “Ajie, you did well. You outshot the boys.”

We then got pistol targets, regular bullseye targets, and went to the pistol range. Only Ajie and I had pistols with us, and Uncle Paul showed us tricks on how to shoot such a powerful handgun better. And both Ajie and I got better.

After we finished shooting, we headed back to the resort and the house. All of us went to the garage and cleaned our guns. Here again, Uncle Paul showed us some tricks for cleaning the handguns and rifles. Then I asked him, “Uncle Paul, where did you get so good with a handgun?”

“In the army during the war. I carried one as a sidearm.”

“Korea?”

“No. World War II. I stayed out of Korea.”

“What did you do?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Oh.”

“Sorry.”

“That’s okay.”

We had picked up all of our brass, and Uncle Paul told us that the next time we came up, he would show us how to reload our brass. He also said that he’d do what we had now, and have them ready for us next Friday.

Grandma joined us for lunch, and we had a good talk. Then Ajie and I decided to take a hike. We decided to hike the Bosque River Trail, which is a loop trail that goes past the Adobe Round Barn and close to the remote hogan where we’d first met Naainish. We figured that it would take us less than an hour to hike the trail, and that would give us a chance to soak in one of the thermal pools before dinner, and then we’d make our drive back to Albuquerque.

We decided to hike the trail in a counterclockwise direction which would bring us closer to the remote hogan before walking back to the resort along the river. As we approached the little pond and the remote hogan, we saw Naainish’s pickup truck. I looked at Ajie. She looked at me. And I started to say, “How did … Oh never mind. He just knew.”

(Everything from here is in Navajo.)

As we got close to the hogan, we could hear Naainish chanting. We stopped at the door and listened. When he finished, he said, “Kai. Ajie. Come, join me.”

I looked at Ajie and just shook my head. I lifted the blanket that covered the entrance and let Ajie enter first. We saw Naainish sitting across the fire from the entrance, and there was a small sand painting in front of him. He saw us, smiled, and said, “Come. Sit across from me.”

Ajie and I walked over to the fire and sat on the rug that was there. Naainish said, “Kai and Ajie it is good to see you.”

“And, you Naainish.”, I replied.

“I’m glad that you happened by while I was here.”

“Naainish, you knew we would be coming by here.”

“Yes, Kai, I did.”

“Why are we meeting?”

“Two reasons. The first is to tell you that I feel that Peshlakai will no longer bother you.”

“How do you know?”

“Let’s just say, that what Gaagii Haskie told you yesterday has also gotten to Peshlakai and that he’s decided, as the saying goes, that discretion is the better part of valor.”

“Oh. Quoting Shakespeare now, Naainish. And are you sure that it’s discretion and not deception.”

He smiled, and said, “Kai you are very cautious when it comes to Peshlakai. Aren’t you?”

“Wouldn’t you be if you were in our place?”

“Yes, I guess I would be. But after Peshlakai was quietly ‘talked to’ he decided that hands-off was a good idea.”

“He wasn’t hurt. Was he?”

“No. He was spoken to gently. And it was suggested to him that he stay away from you.”

“I see. You said that there were two reasons that we were meeting. What's the second?”

Naainish looking at Ajie, then said, “Ajie can I borrow Kai tomorrow?”

“Borrow her.”, Ajie replied. “Borrow her for what?”

“I have an old sheep rancher on the reservation that is dying, and he is having problems coming to terms with it. And I’m visiting him tomorrow.”

“And you want me to go.”, I said. “What can I do?”

“Kai, do you remember when I told you that you were not a medicine man like I am, but that you will be able to use the power of the wolf to bring harmony and peace to the ill?”

“Yes, but you also said that I might not be able to do that for everyone, but those that are special to me.”

“Yes. That’s true. But if I’m present, I feel that our spirits, together, can help him. Help bring harmony and peace to his passing.

“I am also aware of what happened to you two last night. I also feel that bringing harmony and peace to this man will also help you, and Ajie, come to terms with what happened last night.”

I looked at Ajie, then back at Naainish, and said, “Naainish, Ajie starts working at the hospital tomorrow, and I wanted to be there for her.”

“Honey.”, Ajie said. “If you can help this man, I have no problem with you going.”

“Naainish.”, I asked. “What time would we be back?”

“Before dark.”. Naainish replied. “And I’d be picking you up at about seven in the morning.”

I looked at Ajie, and she said, “Honey. Go with Naainish. It sounds like he thinks you can help. And if you’re back by three, you can pick me up.”

“Are you sure?”, I asked Ajie.

“Yes, honey. I’m sure.”

I looked at Naainish, and said, “Okay, Naainish. I’ll see you at seven.”

“Thank you, Kai.”, Naainish said. “I do think that you can bring harmony and peace to this man.”

“We’ll see.”

Naainish started a soft chant. Ajie and I got up and left the hogan.

(We’re back to English)

We finished our hike in silence. I was in deep thought. How was I going to help this man? Could I even help this man?

When we were back to my aunt and uncle’s house, we put our hiking things away and started helping Aunt Ruth make dinner. We were almost finished preparing dinner, and I had to run to the bathroom. As I walked out of the kitchen, I heard my aunt say to Ajie, “Kai is awful quiet.”

I only heard part of Ajie’s answer, as she said, “We found Naainish at the remote hogan … ”

When I came back into the kitchen, my aunt said, “Kai. Honey. Ajie told me what Naainish talked to you about.

“Naainish thinks highly of you. And he wouldn't ask you to do something like this unless he felt that you could help. And, it’s special that he asked you.”

“I know, Aunt Ruth.”, I replied. “I just don’t know if I can help.”

“Honey. Do what you feel. Your spirits will guide you. They won’t let you down.”

“I know. I’ve got to learn to believe in my spirits and myself.”

“Kai. You will do that. You are a strong person. Stronger than you know.”

“Thank you, hearing this from you helps, Aunt Ruth.”

During dinner, I brought up what Naainish had told us about Uncle Gaagii and Peshlakai. My Uncle Paul said that Uncle Gaagii felt that like in fighting a forest fire that sometimes setting a backfire helps stop the fire. So he lit a backfire under Peshlakai to stop him. And the way the backfire worked, it helped Peshlakai see that any further ‘funny business’ would be detrimental to him.

After we helped clean up the dinner dishes, Ajie and I packed everything into the car, and then we told my aunt and uncle that we’d see them on Friday, and we headed to Albuquerque. It was a quiet drive.

When we were back at the apartment, we put everything away. And then I asked Ajie, “Are you sure that it’s okay if I go with Naainish tomorrow? Will you be all right?”

She smiled at me, and said, “Yes, silly. I’m a big girl, and I can take care of myself.”

“I know you can. But it’s your first day.”

Monday morning I was awake early. When I’d gotten out of the shower, Amy was up and helped braid my hair into two braids with the four different color leather strips. Then we added the fancy wraps to the ends.

I slipped into the special panties, a regular pair of panties, and a bra. Then I slid my forms into the bra. I picked one of the fancy long skirts and put it on. And I went with one of the fancy blouses. Then I put on the wrap moccasins.

As I was dressing, so was Amy. She'd put on her nurses uniform Cap and all. She looked cute.

When we went downstairs, I went to the small room and picked some silver jewelry out of the safe. I took one of the Concho belts, the new choker, two of the bracelets, three rings, and one of the braided leather headbands with the Eagle feather. I also chose the pair of earrings that Kilchii made, the silver rounds with three small gold feathers hanging from them.

When I had everything on, Amy looked me over, and said, “Kai. Honey. You always look so fabulous. And this is no exception.”

“Thank you, lover. Is it too much?”

“No. Not at all. It’s you.”

“Thanks. I’m going to miss being with you today.”

“Honey, I’m going to miss you too. But, I feel this is important, or Naainish wouldn’t have asked you.”

“I know. I wish you were going with us.”

She smiled, and said, “Let’s fix some breakfast.”

“That would be great.”

We sat and ate a light breakfast. And I said, “I had a dream last night.”

“Oh. What did you dream about?”, Amy asked.

“The native girl sitting under the tree with the wolf lying next to her.”

“It’s was good that the wolf was lying next to her. Wasn’t it?”

“Yes, Naainish says that it means that everything is in harmony.”

“Is it?”

“I feel that it is.”

I then put everything that I’d need into a purse with a long strap and at six-thirty Amy and I got into the car, and I drove her to the hospital. I couldn’t let her walk alone at that hour of the morning. Before she got out of the car, we hugged and kissed so long, and Amy said, “You and Naainish be careful.”

“We will. You be careful too.”

"I will."

I was back at the apartment before seven and waiting for Naainish to show up. And right at seven, I heard a pickup truck pull up in front of the apartment, and shortly Naainish was knocking at the door. I opened the door and said, “Yá’át’ééh abiní, Naainish.” (Good morning, Naainish.)

He returned a “Yá’át’ééh abiní, Kai.

Naainish as he usually was for a barbecue, was dressed in wrap moccasins, white linen pants, a bright red shirt, a red head scarf, and various jewelry.

I closed the door and locked it, and we walked to his pickup truck. I opened the door, looked inside, and said, “Naainish, no seat belts?”

“Not in this old thing.”, Naainish replied.

“Naainish, I don’t ride in any car, truck, or whatever that doesn’t have seat belts.”

“Sorry, Kai. This truck doesn’t have them. Why do you need seat belts?”

“When I was twelve, I was in a terrible car accident. I was wearing a seat belt. And if I hadn’t been wearing that seat belt I probably wouldn’t be here.”

Naainish looked at me, and just said, “Oh.”

“I guess we’ll have to take our car.”

“Doesn’t Ajie need it?”

“No, she won’t be back until three. I’ll leave her a note.”

Naainish and I walked back into the apartment. I left Amy a note. And we walked into the garage. We got into the car, I fastened my seatbelt and looked at Naainish. Naainish asked, “Do you want me to wear it?”

“Naainish, I don’t start the car until everyone is belted in.”

Naainish grabbed the belt, fumbled with it a bit, and finally got it fastened. I opened the garage door, started the car, pulled it out of the garage, closed the garage door, and started following Naainish’s directions.

As we drove, Naainish asked me about the accident, and I gave him the full story. He was amazed.

Then Naainish explained to me what I was going to see. He told me, that when we got there, that if the man was close to death, that most of the relatives would be outside the hogan. And only one or two close relatives would be with him. Then shortly before death, all but one or two people would remain with him.

We drove on main roads for a while, then on secondary roads, then on dirt roads. I sure hope Naainish knows where he’s going. After a few more turns, Naainish had me turn down a farm lane.

As we drove down the lane, Naainish said, “Kai, this is an old Navajo family, and they follow old customs. And they know that you’re coming with me. If they offer you something, accept it without hesitation, or you will offend them.”

“What would they offer me? And why?”

“It’s hard to say what they’d offer you. But it’s done out of respect for you, and to thank you for coming.”

As we drove up the lane, I noticed some interesting looking sheep in the pastures. Naainish saw me looking at them and said, “Those are Navajo-Churro sheep. This man and his sons, and others are trying to revive the breed. Government-sponsored flock reductions decimated the sheep, but some people, like this man, were able to save large flocks. And are now rebuilding the breed.”

A half a mile down the lane we came to the sheep ranch. There were a number of buildings and three large hogans. There were a few pickup trucks and a car parked near one of the hogans.

Naainish saw the car, and said, “The doctor is here. We may too late.”

“No.”, I replied. “There is time.”

“You know this?”

“Yes, I feel that we have time.”

It had taken us a little over three hours to get there. Naainish and I got out of the car, walked up to the door of the hogan. Naainish knocked on the door, a middle-aged man opened it, and said, “Yá’át’ééh.”

Naainish and I both said, “Yá’át’ééh.”

(From here on everything was in Navajo.)

The man asked us to come in. As we walked in, I noticed that the light in the hogan was provided by the smoke hole, a fire, and a few kerosene lanterns. There were three middle-aged Navajo men there, two middle-aged women, an older woman, who I think might be the older man’s wife, a well-dressed man, who I took to be the doctor, and an older man lying on a bed.

Naainish put his arm around me, and said, “This is Kai Nez. She is a Nádleeh. And she is a special Nádleeh. She brings the power of the wolf with her.”

No one said anything. Naainish and I walked over to the older man lying on the bed. He looked as if he’d worked outside all of his life. I smiled at him, and he was able to return a smile, and there was even a twinkle in his eyes. I sat on the side of the bed, took his hand in mine, and we just looked at each other. Everyone but the older woman, the doctor, Naainish, and me left the hogan.

I could feel the old man’s spirit.

The old man looked at Naainish and said, “Thank you for bringing this pretty angel to see me. When she walked in, I felt at peace with everything.”

The old man and I spoke for a short time. Then with a smile on his face, he closed his eyes, and I felt his spirit leave him. I looked at Naainish, he started chanting, and I joined him.

When we finished the chant, the doctor came over, checked on the old man, and said, “He’s gone.”

Naainish touched my shoulder, I looked at him, and he said, “Come.”

I carefully set the old man’s hand on his chest and stood up. And the four of us walked out of the hogan. Everyone who had left the hogan earlier was waiting outside.

I walked over to the older lady, took her hands in mine, and we spoke for a minute. Then one of the men who was holding a rug gave it to the older lady, and without saying a word, she handed the rug to me. I accepted it with a whispered, “Ahéhee’.” (Thank you)

Everyone thanked us for coming and being with their father when he passed. I had no words for them. One of the women was crying, I took her aside, and we talked for a minute. When we finished, we hugged, and I could tell that she felt better. She had stopped crying.

Naainish and I then just walked over to the car, I placed the rug in the back seat, we got in the car, and left. It just felt like it was the right thing for us to do.

As we drove down the farm lane, Naainish said, “Kai, you did very well. I could tell that you were at ease with what you did. You showed compassion to the old man and his family. And they appreciated you coming to see him before he passed. It made his passing easier for him and the family.”

All I said was, “Thank you for bringing me, Naainish.”

As we turned off the farm lane onto a dirt road, Naainish said, “Kai, the rug you were given is made of Churro wool. It hasn’t been dyed. It’s all natural sheep colors.”

“I think that I’ll hang it in our bedroom.”, I said. “It will remind me of today every time I see it.”

We drove silently for about half-an-hour, then I asked, “Naainish, what will happen now?”

“To the body?”, Naainish asked.

“Yes.”

“The old beliefs, which this family practices, believe that birth, life, and death are all part of an ongoing cycle. You’ve seen all the outward grief that you will see. It is believed that too much emotion can cause the person's spirit to attach itself to something or someone. And that would not be good.

“Probably tomorrow, four men will arrive. Two of the men will dig and prepare the grave. The other two men, dressed only in moccasins and with their bodies covered with ash from a fire to protect themselves from evil spirits, will wash the body and dress it. Then they’ll take the body to the grave, and it will be buried.

“In the old days, since he died at home, his house would be torn down and burned.”

I thought for a few minutes, then asked, “Why were there only four of us with him when he passed?”

“The others left because they were afraid of the evil spirits.”

“What about us?”

“His wife felt that she was stronger than any evil spirits, and wanted to be with her husband. The doctor doesn’t believe in them. My spirits, like yours, are powerful, and we protected each other.”

We stopped at a mom and pop restaurant in a small community for lunch. Of course, the way we were dressed brought us some attention. And it appeared that the restaurant owners knew Naainish. After lunch, we finished our drive to Albuquerque and the apartment. Naainish and I said so long. And he went on his way, and I had enough time to change back into Tom and run over to the hospital and pick up Amy.

Before I headed to the hospital, I went to the garage and retrieved the rug from the the car. I took it into the living room and draped it over the back of the couch. I needed to buy another one of those rug hangers that we’d found at the rug shop near Taos. I wonder if Chief Tom had gotten a hanger for his Chief’s rug?

When I got to the hospital, I walked into the emergency entrance, and the hallway outside the emergency room was a flurry of activity. I stopped and looked. And, …