We did take Bill and Bridget for a walk along the river, and they were surprised when the two adult Bald Eagles showed up.

Wednesday, we met with Chief Clah at the Clerk of Courts to file our petitions for our name changes. Then we took the tramway to the Sandia Crest. After dinner, we drove back to the top of the Sandia Crest to watch the sunset. A fifteen-minute trip by the tram is an hour's drive by car. When we were looking at the information sign at the top of the Crest, we saw a comment that there were Golden Eagles in the area. Was that Eagle that showed up at the house a Golden Eagle?

We did make the barbecue on Friday. But nothing special happened.

Saturday, we flew back to Ohio with Bill and Bridget. And we had a big surprise. As we were walking down the boarding stairs, Bridget stopped and in Gaelic said, “Carson a tha mo mhàthair is m ’athair an seo!?” or “Why are my mom and dad here?”

We found out that Bridget’s mother and father were here because they had found out that Bill and Bridget had secretly married when they were in Scotland. And that fact hadn’t set well with them. So they’d flown over to confront the couple. We did find out later that everything, after some yelling, crying, and talking, was fine. And we were going over for a cookout.

Saturday afternoon, we were getting ready to go over to Amy and Bill’s parent's house for a cookout. I’d brought along Tom’s Navajo clothes for the baptism tomorrow, and I was trying to decide whether to go to the cookout as the male Kai or the female Kai. Amy looked at me and said, “I think I’d go as the male you.”

“Why?”, I asked.

“It would save having to explain Kai to Bridget’s parents.”

“Good point.”

“But how will your female spirit feel about it?”

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

I put on what I’d brought to wear for the baptism on Sunday. The ribbon shirt, the white linen pants, and wrap moccasins. I put my hair into a male braid and wore a simple braided leather headband. I replaced my girl earrings with a pair of men’s earrings. I went with just the meteorite necklace and a single bracelet. I also wore the ring that Mr. Yazzie had made, and I’d received at the lunch after his funeral.

Amy went with a blue velvet skirt, a fancy blouse, and wrap moccasins. Her hair was in two braids with fancy ends. She also wore a simple braided headband. And she wore a choker, the one that my two grandfathers had made. She also wore the silver round earrings with the small gold feathers. Add to that two bracelets and four rings. And Ajie was back.

When we walked into the kitchen, my dad said, “Talk about being dressed up.”

“Dad.”, I said. “These were the only men’s clothes that we brought. I was going to wear them tomorrow for the baptism.”

“So why wear them now?”

“So, we don’t have to explain the female Kai to Bridget’s parents.”

“I see. But they saw the female Kai at the airport.”

“They may have seen me, but their attention was on Bill and Bridget. And I was just there.”

“You may be right.”

“Both of you look very nice.”, my mother said.

“Thanks, mom.”, Ajie said. “I just hope we can keep them clean for tomorrow.”

“You will.”

We drove over to the Grant’s house and walked right in. Ajie called out, “Mom. Dad. We’re here.”

We heard Bridget say, “We’re in the kitchen.”

We walked to the kitchen, and Ajie’s mom saw us first and said, “Kai and Ajie, why are you so dressed up.?"

“It’s what we brought to wear to the baptism, not expecting that we were going to meet Bridget parents.”, Ajie replied.

“Plus we thought that it might be better than having to explain my female side to Bridget’s parents.”, I said.

“Aye, that might be best.”, Bridget said. “Come with me, an I’ll introduce ye.”

“Introduce us as Amy and Tom Young.”

“Aye, I will.”

Ajie and I followed Bridget out to the patio, where we found Ajie’s dad, her brother, Bill, and the MacDonalds. They looked at us, and Ajie’s dad said, “I didn’t realize that I had to dress up for this cookout.”

“Daddy.”, Ajie said. “We weren't expecting to meet Bridget’s parents either, and these were the only good clothes that we brought with us.”

Then Bridget said, “Mom. Dad. I’d like ye to meet two wonderful people. This is Amy an Tom Young. Amy an Tom, these are my parents, Dr. and Mrs. MacDonald.”

I thought, ‘Dr. MacDonald?’

We exchanged greetings with Dr. and Mrs. MacDonald. Then Mrs. MacDonald asked, “I hear that you live in New Mexico and are Indians?”

“Yes, we do live in New Mexico.”, I replied. “And I’m one-quarter Navajo. My mother is one-half Navajo. Amy has very little Indian blood. But we’ve both fallen in love with the area where we live and have been accepted by the native people. And we’ve taken to the culture.

“And I’m also a member of the Navajo Nation, and Amy and I are members of the same clan.”

“That is interestin. Are yer clans like our Scotiish clans?”

“I don’t know. Everyone has four clans. The first is our mother’s clan, the second is our father’s clan, the third is from our mother's father’s clan, and the fourth is our father's father’s clan. I’m a full member of the clan, and Amy is an honorary member. Which is a special honor.”

“No, they’re different than our Scotiish clans. Bridget also tells us that ye also have native names?”

“Yes, Amy is known by the name Ajie Nez, and I’m called Kai Nez. These names were given to us by the tribal elders.”

“What do ye do out there?”, Dr. MacDonald asked.

“We’re both working on graduate degrees at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.”

“Daddy, they are both workin on their doctoral degrees.”

“Ye are young to be doing that. I didn’t earn mine until I wis thirty-seven.”

“We were guided to do it by our Deans and proctors.”

“They must feel that ye can handle it.”

“They must.

“Can I ask whit your field of study is?”, Dr. MacDonald asked.

“Of course.”, I replied. “Ajie is in nursing, and I’m in electrical engineering.”

“Is thare a sub-field that you’re interested in, Tom?”

“Integrated circuits.”, I replied. 

“Somethin that I don’t completely understand.”

“No one does.” Then I asked, “Sir, can I ask what field of study you’re in?”

“Aye, physics.”

“Daddy.”, Bridget said. “Tom probably won’t tell ye this, but he’s also full-time teachin faculty an a researcher at their university. And Amy is a part-time faculty and works in the emergency room at the hospital.”

“Oh.”, Dr. MacDonald said. “I’m impressed with both of ye. Who do ye do this research for, Tom.”

I thought, ‘Do I just tell him the university or do I drop a name.’

But, Bridget beat me to it when she said, “Daddy, he researches for the Los Alamos National Laboratory. An he took us past it.”

I saw a raised eyebrow from Dr. MacDonald, as he asked, “That’s where the Atom bomb wis developed. Wasn’t it?”

“Yes, sir, it was.”, I said. “But, they also work on other things now. And we also do research for other people.”

Dr. MacDonald looked at me and asked, “Then ye don’t work for the laboratory?”

“No, sir.”, I said. “We do the research through the university under contract to the laboratory.”

He just nodded, yes. Then we heard, my mother-in-law, say to my father-in-law, “Fred, enough talk. Would you, and Tom find out how everyone likes their steaks and cook them? And, Amy, you, and Bridget come with me and help with other things. And Bill would you pour the wine and fill the water glasses, Then you can help with the steaks.”

I looked at Dr. MacDonald and said, “Sir, you might like to talk with my father, he’s also a researcher.”

After we’d cooked the steaks and the ladies had put together all the other things, we sat down to eat. My mother-in-law asked me to say a prayer, I whispered to Amy, “Should I do one of Naainish’s prayers and do it in Navajo.”

Amy looked at me, smiled, and said, “Why not.”

I stood up and said one of the prayers that Naainish uses at the barbecue. At least it was short. My mother-in-law looked at me and said, “Tom, what did you just say?”

“It was a Navajo prayer thanking the Great Spirit for the good food that we’re about to have.”, I replied.

“That was different.”

I smiled as I sat.

Dr. MacDonald then stood, picked up his glass of wine, looked at Bill and Bridget, and said, “I wad like to offer a toast to the newly married couple, even though it wis a surprise to everyone. So, to the bride, ma dauchter, Bridget Marie, an to her new husband, William, I’d like to wish them a long an prospers marriage, an many children for us to spoil.”

Everyone lifted a glass and said, “Hear! Hear!”

We then enjoyed a very nice meal. I was sitting directly across from Dr. MacDonald, and we chatted a bit. One thing he said was, “Your father told me some interestin things aboot ye, Tom.”

I glanced at my dad and said, “Oh?”

“Yes, one thing he told me is that ye are a Research Associate. Again an unusual position for someone so young.”

“Yes, sir. It seems that they like my work. Sir, you have a doctorate in physics. What are you doing with it?”

“I’m head of the physics and astronomy department at the University of Edinburgh.”

“Ah, a Dean.”

“Something like that. So, Tom, what kind of research are you doing now?”

“Sorry, sir. But I can’t tell you.”, I replied.

“Oh.”

“It’s secret.”

“Really?”

“Yes, sir.”

After dessert, no, not fried ice cream but Bridget told everyone about it, Bill, Bridget, Amy, and I volunteered to clean up. And as we did, we talked about what happened after Bill and Bridget had left the airport with their parents.

Bill told us that his parents were unhappy, but not surprised as they knew how he felt about Bridget and Bridget felt about him. But getting married behind their backs wasn’t a good thing to do. But that they could live with it. But that they expected a big wedding after both Bill and Bridget were out of college.

Then Bridget told us that it was a very quiet ride from the airport to the Grant house. But then things got bad. There was yelling, crying, and threats. She then said that she got tired of her father and his threats and just stood up to him. She said that she told him that if he didn’t stop the threats of disowning her, that not only was he going to lose his only daughter, but he’d also lose a wonderful son-in-law. And that he’d never see his grandchildren. She did tell us that she’d told them that they were sorry for getting married behind their backs. But it was just something that they had to do.

Then Bridget told us how her mother stood up to her father and told him that she was delighted with her choice of Bill as a husband. But that her mother wanted them to have a formal wedding after they were out of school.

Bridget was in tears when she finished telling us. So I hugged her, and whispered, “That was hard on you. But you’re tough. You did something that was very hard for you to do, you stood up to your father. And you are a better person for it. You probably earned some respect from him.”

Bridget looked at me, smiled a little, and said, “You’re as wise as an old owl.”

“I hope not too old of an owl. And it looks like we’ll be going to Scotland for a wedding in a few years.”

“That could be fun.”, Amy said.

“Aye, that coud be a lot o fun.”, Bridget said.

“Why did your parents fly clear over here?”, I asked.

“My dad was so mad that at first, he was going to carry me back tae Scotland.”, Bridget replied. “But after meetin Bill’s parents and talkin with them, he calmed doun a bit. But he was still angry. So Bill an I stood up tae him.”

“It was more of you standing up to him, honey.”, Bill said.

On the way back to my mom and dad’s house, my mother said, “It sure appeared that things were a lot better at dinner then they were at the airport.”

“Bridget told us that she just stood up to her father.”, Amy said.

“Sometimes that’s what it takes.”

“Yes, it does.”

Sunday morning, we had to be at the church early for the baptism of Mark and Maria’s baby son, Tony. So no sleeping in. When we were home last night since we’d worn the clothes that we’d brought with us for the baptism, we tossed those clothes in the dryer to freshen them up. Luckily, we’d somehow kept the clothes clean. We dressed just like we had last night.

Amy and I took my mother’s car to the church, and my mom and dad would come to the church in my dad’s car. Larry and Kelly were also going to be there, as were Bill and Bridget.

As we walked into the church, we found Mark and Maria in the vestibule, as were their parents, and their grandparents. Of course, little Tony was there, all wrapped in the Churro wool blanket. And little Tony was also a little cranky. Amy and I were introduced to the great-grandparents. Maria’s were a bit standoffish toward us as they were from the old country and very strict Catholics.

Tony continued to be cranky, so I said, “Why don’t you give Tony to me, and we’ll see if his godfather can quiet him down.”

Maria handed Tony to me, he looked at me and quieted right down. Maria smiled and said, “Leave it to K … Tom.”

“He seems to have a way with children.”, Amy said.

The priest, Father Jerome, shortly joined us. Mark said, “Father Jerome, this is Tom and Amy Young. Tom and Amy, this is Father Jerome.”

We exchanged pleasantries, then Father Jerome said, “I understand that neither of you is Catholic.”

“You’re correct, Father.”, I replied.

“It is very unusual that we allow non-Catholics to be the godparents, but I found out that you’ve done this before here in the Diocese, and I spoke with Father Richards. Father Richards was happy with the two of you. Then I talked to the Bishop, and he remembered you doing the Thomas baby. He was surprised that you’d been asked to do another one but had no problem granting a special dispensation.

“You do need to sign a paper agreeing to see that the baby, Anthony, will be raised within the Catholic religion if something should happen to the parents. Do you have a problem doing this?”

“No, sir.”, I said. “We’d be happy to.”

“Good. Now I have to prepare for the mass. Would all of you please sit towards the front of the church. After the mass, I’ll announce the baptism, then my alter boy and I will walk to the back of the church and the Baptistery. When we walk down the aisle, please follow us.

“Now, you’ll have to excuse me, I have to prepare for the mass.”

The priest left us, and I looked down at little Tony, and he was asleep. I went to hand him back to Maria, and he started to stir. Maria mouthed, “If he’s quiet, just hold him.”

I nodded, yes.

Then Amy and I followed Mark and Maria down the center aisle to the front of the church. We saw Larry and Kelly sitting with Bill and Bridget. Our parents were also there. Then we sat through the mass. The priest announced the baptism, and he and the alter boy started walking to the back of the church. Our small group of people stood. I handed little Tony to Maria, and Tony got restless again. Then we followed the priest down the aisle.

As we walked past Larry, Kelly, Bill, and Bridget, who was dressed in her long plaid skirt and a fancy white blouse, Mark asked them to come with us. And they did.

By the time we were in the Baptistery, little Tony was wide awake and cranky. Maria quickly handed him to Amy. I saw Tony look up at her, and he calmed down just a little. Amy and I then walked up to the baptismal font, and the priest christened little Anthony Maxwell Roberts.

When we finished, the priest shook hands with everyone. Then the priest had Amy and I sign the papers saying that we would raise him in the Catholic church if anything happened to his parents.

Tony then made his presence known. And he still has a good set of lungs. Maria checked his diaper and said, “You’ll have to excuse us for a minute. Someone has a full diaper.”

And then I got a whiff and knew that little Tony did have a full diaper.

We waited for Maria and Tony out in front of the church, then Amy and I went to lunch with Mark and Maria’s families. I still think that Tony’s great grandparents weren’t happy with Amy and me being his godparents. But all in all, everyone was nice.

As we were sitting around the table talking, I handed Mark an envelope that had Tony’s name on the front. Mark took it, looked at it, and asked, “What’s this?”

“Just a little something for Tony.”, I replied.

He gave me a puzzled look, opened the envelope, took out the paper, and read it. As he read it, he just shook his head. Then he handed the paper to Maria. She read it and started to cry. Amy leaned over, and I heard Amy whisper to Maria, “Honey, it’s done out of love. Half of it is in remembrance of Max.”

“Guys.”, Maria said, “This is too much.”

“We’ve done this for everyone who we’re close to. And we want to know when Christine has her baby.”

Then I said, “Mark. Maria. It’s a trust fund that anyone can add to. It’s also invested and will continue to grow. And the two of you are the administrators of it.”

Maria then handed the paper to her mother, and both of Maria’s parents looked at it. Then they looked at us, and Mrs. Martinelli said, “Can you really do this?”

I just looked at her, and as I nodded yes, I also said, “Yes.”

Then Mark’s parents looked at it, and Mrs. Roberts said, “You two remembered my Max in this?”

“Of course we did.”, Amy said. “He was also a good friend, and Tony shares his name.”

One of the great-grandmothers asked, “What did they do?”

“Mom, they set up a college trust fund for Tony as a christening gift.” Mark’s mother said.

“That’s very nice.”

“It’s more than nice mom. It’s wonderful.”

As we were leaving the restaurant, we told Mark and Maria that we’d see them this evening at their place and we’d bring dessert. And a short time later, we were pulling into the garage at my parent's house. We were having dinner with both sets of our parents and probably Bill and Bridget before we flew home tomorrow morning.

Mom and dad were in the kitchen, having coffee. My mother said, “That was a nice baptism this morning.”

“Yes, it’s good to see our friend’s families growing.”, Amy said.

“Honey, doesn’t it hurt you seeing that?”, my mom asked Amy.

“Mom.”, Amy said. “It should, but it doesn’t. Seeing people happy that way makes us feel good too.”

“Yes, it does.”, I said.

"Knowing the two of you, that doesn't surprise me.", my mother said.

My dad then, “Sit with us for a minute.”

“Something wrong, dad?”, I asked.

“Not a thing.”

As Amy and I sat, my dad said, “As you know, we’re selling the house.”

“Yeah.”, I said. “We know.”

“Don’t sound so down.”

“It’s just that we have so many memories here.”

“I know, kids. And so do we.”

“We have a serious offer on the house, and if that goes through, we’re going to purchase a condo.”

“A condo? Won’t you be too close to your neighbors?”

“Not really. We’ve taken an option on an end unit.”

“Okay. It’s up to you.”

Then as dad slid an envelope across the table, he said, “And this is for you.”

I looked at him and said, “What’s this?”

“Open it and see.”

I opened the envelope, took an official looking paper out of it, and looked at it. Then I looked at my dad and said, “We can’t accept this.”

“Yes, you can. But I still want to be able to drive it when we come to visit you.”

“Dad, this is your baby.”

“I know., my dad said. “But, the condo only has a two-car garage. And I want the Vette to be kept safe. And that is with you and Amy.”

“It’s your call.”, I said.

“I know.”

We had a nice dinner with both sets of our parents, and we found out that Amy’s dad may be transferred again. Then we spent the evening at Mark and Maria’s apartment with Larry and Kelly, and the two babies.

Early Monday morning, after an excellent breakfast with both sets of our parents and Bill and Bridget, we were on a plane heading back to Albuquerque. On the flight, Amy and I talked about my parents moving into a condo and her dad being transferred. We knew that the company that her dad works for has many locations throughout the country and Canada, and it will be interesting to see where they move him to this time.

On the last leg of our trip, Amy slept, and it gave me time to think. Think about a number of things from the new project, to our name change, to possibly adopting a child — all three very important things.

When we were back in Albuquerque, and before heading home, we stopped at our favorite drive-in for a late lunch. As we ate, I said, “You know our lives are changing.”

“I know.”, Amy said. “And in some ways it’s scary. But it’s something that happens. And we’ll go with the flow.”

“Yes, we will. Plus, we have each other for support.”

“As well as our close families both out here and back home.”

As we ate, we also listened to the campus radio station, and one of the news items they covered was the various anti-war demonstrations that were happening not only on our campus but on other university campuses across the country.

I said, “This isn’t going to end in a good way.”

“I’m afraid that you may be right.”, Amy replied.

After we finished our lunch and were on the way home, we stopped at the grocery store and picked up the fixing for dinner, and a few other things. Back at the house, and after we put the groceries away, Amy disappeared. After a short time, I went looking for her. I finally found Amy in one of the spare bedrooms sitting on the bed. I sat down next to her and asked, “Whatcha doin’?”

“Oh, nothing.”, Amy replied.

“Yes, you are. What?”

“Just thinking about turning one of these rooms into a child’s room.”

“That could be fun.”

“It could. But these rooms are a long way from our bedroom. How do we keep track of them when they’re in their room by themselves?”

“Good point. But they do have baby monitors.”

“True. Will they work here?”

“I think they will. I’ll look into them.”

“Good. I wonder if these beds will be good for a child?”, Amy asked.

“I don’t know why not.”, I replied. “They’re good beds and mattresses.”

“I wonder what else we’ll have to get?”

“A lot of things, and it’ll depend on how old they are.”

“Well, it hasn’t happened yet. And, we better not overthink it.”

“You’re right. Let’s go visit the Eagles before dinner.”

A short time later, we were pulling into the Jemez Canyon Reservoir, where the Eagle's nest is. The barricades were still in place, so I had to move them to access the parking area. We hiked the trail to where we usually watch the Eagles, and none of them were around. So, as we typically do, we stood there waiting.

A short time later, we had a strange thing happen. One of the adult Eagles flew in from behind us, not an unusual thing. But what was surprising was that he was only ten feet over our heads. Then instead of landing on the nest, he landed on the ground about thirty feet from us, turned, and looked at us. I whispered to Amy, “That’s unusual.”

“Yes.”, Amy replied.

I felt that we should sit on the ground, and that’s just what we did. Then the other adult Eagle flew in and landed next to the other one. We sat there and looked at each other for a few minutes, then the Eagles took off and flew up to the nest.

I looked at Amy and said, “That was different.”

“Very different. I wonder if it meant anything?”, Amy said.

“I don’t know. But I feel good like everything is in balance.”

“So do I.”

As we walked back to the parking area, we saw a pickup truck sitting next to our car. It was Iz’s truck. Iz is the parks department for the Santa Ana Pueblo.

As we walked up, Iz got out of his truck and greeted us. Then he said, “I was going to check on the nest site, but I saw your car here. So I knew that you were already there, so I just waited for you to come back.”

“You should have joined us.”, I replied. “The Eagles landed on the ground, and we had a nice visit.”

“On the ground! How close were they?”

“About thirty feet.”

“That close. That had to be wonderful.”

“It was. And we have no idea why they did that.”

We chatted a little longer with Iz, and then we headed home to fix dinner. After dinner, it was relaxing in the courtyard with a friendly fire burning in the fire pit and the stars overhead.

Tuesday, it was back to the university, in the office, and starting on the new project. When Dr. Joe showed up, I asked, “Since you’ve probably read all the documentation on the project, you probably have it all figured out.”

“In your dreams, Dr. Kai.”, Dr. Joe said.

“I know, I just got started on it. It’s going to be interesting.”

“Yes, it is. How was your trip.”

“It was good. We even met Bridget’s parents. They were mad about them getting marred behind their back and flew over here.”

“She’s from Scotland. Isn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“And they came over here?”

“Yes. Her dad was furious. She’s his only daughter.”

“Did he take her back to Scotland?”

“No. They settled everything with Bill and Bridget promising a big wedding after she graduates.”

“In Scotland. I assume?”, Dr. Joe asked.

“Yeah.”

“And you and Amy are going?”

“Try and stop us.”

“Oh.”, Dr. Joe said. “On your thesis for your doctoral?”

“What about it?”, I asked.

“It’s not a thesis. It’s a dissertation.”

“There’s a difference?”

“Well, yeah. A thesis is a paper that shows your research and proves that you know the subject, where a dissertation is something that provides something new in your field. An entirely new concept and defends it’s worth.” 

“That sounds doable.”

“I hope so.”

“It is.”

I spent the rest of the day reading the documentation on the new project. Hmm. Interesting concept. And very doable.

Wednesday was another day spent on the project. And I was beginning to visualize what we needed to do. And Dr. Joe and I talked about it.

Thursday was a big day. We were meeting with the judge about our name changes. I was a little nervous. Why? Who knows why. I’ve been known as Kai Nez for a year or so now. Maybe I was nervous for Amy, soon to be Ajie Nez. But she wasn’t nervous in the least, or at least she wasn’t showing it.

I dressed, maybe for the last time, as a male Navajo. And then again maybe not. I had on the red shirt, white linen pants, and moccasins. I don’t like the red headscarf, so I had my hair in a man’s braid with a simple braided leather headband.

Amy, or should I say Ajie, was beautiful in a long maroon satin skirt, a fancy blouse, and moccasins. Her hair was in two braids with fancy ends.

Both of us wore some jewelry, but we kept it to a minimum.

I little before nine, Amy and I met Chief Clah in the courthouse, and I asked, “Are we doing this in a courtroom?”

“Usually we would.”, Chief Clah said. “But the judge has decided to do yours in her chambers.”

“Kind of unusual. Isn’t it?”

“It is, but judges sometimes do things differently.”

“Okay.”

Amy and I followed Chief Clah through the courthouse to a row of offices. We stopped at a door that had ‘Judge Christine K. Nelson, Bernalillo County Probate Court’ on it.

Chief Clah opened the door for us, and we walked in. It was an outer office and a secretary was sitting there at her desk, she looked at us, and said, “Hello, Mr. Clah. I’ll tell the Judge that you’re here.”

“Thank you, Faith.”, Chief Clah replied. “And, this is Mr. and Mrs. Young.”

Faith picked up her phone, dialed a number, and said, “Judge Nelson, Mr. Clah, and Mr. and Mrs. Young are here.” … “Yes, your honor. I’ll tell them.”

Then as Faith hung up the phone, she said, “Judge Nelson, said to go on in.”

We followed Chief Clah to a door that said, ‘Private’ on it, he knocked, and we heard a, “Come in.”

Chief Clah opened the door for us then followed us into the office. We saw Judge Nelson, a pretty woman of about forty-five, sitting behind her desk. Another woman was sitting next to the judge's desk and had what I found out was a court stenographer's machine with her. The judge said, “It’s good to see you again, Atsa.”

“And, it’s good seeing you, your Honor. This is Tom and Amy Young.”

The judge looked at us and said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Tom and Amy.”

“Thank you, your honor.”, I said.

“And looking at how you two are dressed, I would have to say that you have accepted the Navajo culture.”

“We have, your honor.”, I replied.

She smiled, then looking at the court stenographer, she said, “This is my court stenographer, Judy Rush. And we might as well get on with this, so Judy everything is now on the record.”

“Yes, your honor.”, Judy said.

The judge started with, “We are gathered in the chambers of Judge Christine K. Nelson, judge of the Bernalillo County Probate Court. We are here to decide on the petition of both Mr. Thomas Bly Young and Mrs. Amylin Elizabeth Young to legally change their names. Present are Judge Nelson, Mr. Atsa Clah, the attorney of record, Mr. Thomas Bly Young, Mrs. Amylin Elizabeth Young, and Judy Rush, court stenographer.”

I was amazed as to how quickly the stenographer could type on her machine.

Things went amazing fast from that point. And in the end, I was now legally Kai Nez, and Amy was Ajie Nez. And I finally was able to relax.

The judge excused her court stenographer, then sat back and looked at Amy and me. She then said, “Now, Miss Nez.”

Amy, oops, Ajie said, “Yes, Ma’am.”

Looking at me, smiling, the judge then said, “No, the other Miss Nez.”

I just looked at the judge. The judge looked at me and said, “Yes, Miss Nez, you. I know who you are.”

I looked at Chief Clah, and he was grinning. I then said, “Chief Clah!”

The judge said, “Miss Nez, in the Navajo Nation it’s Chief Clah. Here it’s Mr. Clah. I’m the chief here.”

“Yes, ma’am.”, I said.

“I’ve never met a two spirit person before and I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time, Miss Nez. I’ve heard a lot of good things about you. In particular, that scholarship that you set up.”

“Pardon me, your honor. But it wasn’t just me. Ajie had as much to do with it as I did.”

Looking at Ajie, the judge said, “Well, Mrs. Ajie Nez, congratulations to you too.”

“Thank you, your honor.”, Ajie replied.

“I also know that there is another reason behind you wanting to change your names. It’s a very unusual reason, but after speaking with Mr. Clah, I can see your reasoning behind it. And, it’s wonderful that you want to foster or adopt a child from the Navajo Nation. And I know the reason behind that too.”

“Your honor.”, I said. “Ajie and I are private people, and it’s getting harder and harder to be that way. How did you find out about all of this?”

“I have my spies.”

I looked at Chief Clah.

“Don’t blame him, Kai Nez.”, the judge said. “He knew nothing of this until we talked yesterday. I wanted to see if I could or should say anything. And he said that I should.”

I again looked at Chief Clah. He grinned and said, “Do you remember winning the plaque at the car club meeting with your dad’s Corvette?”

“Of course.”, I said.

“Payback.”

I smiled as I said, “You do know that this isn’t over. And now, since my dad has given me the Corvette, I think that Ajie and I are going to join the car club and come to all the meetings.”

Chief Clah rolled his eyes and said, “He gave you the Vette! Oh, you wouldn’t.”

I grinned and said, “Oh, wouldn’t I. Watch me.”

Ajie looked at Chief Clah and said, “Chief, I’m afraid that you have awoken a sleeping giant.”

The chief just shook his head.

“I take it that this is an inside joke.”, the judge asked.

“Kind of.”, I said.

“They showed up at our car club meeting with a 1953 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster that belonged to Kai’s father.”, Chief Clah said. “I had a habit of winning the best car plaque regularly. But, that night, Kai walked away with it as he should have.

“And it’s been sort of an inside joke since then.”

“I see.”, the judge said. “Atsa Clah was one-upped.”

“I was.”

We said thank you and so long to the judge. And as we walked with Chief Clah, he said, “I should have the official paperwork for you by the end of next week. Then we can start to change everything.”

“That should be fun.”, I said.

“It won’t be that bad. I have a list of things that might need to be changed, but we’ll be able to cross a number of those things off.”

“Let’s hope.”

“You’ll see.”

As we walked out of the courthouse with Chief Clah, he said, “I’ll call you when I have everything.”

“That’ll be great.”, I replied. “And we’ll get started filling out the application for adoption.”

“Sounds good. Let me know if you have any problems with it.”

“We will.” and with a grin, I added, “And, we’ll see you at the next car club meeting.”

Chief Clah just shook his head.

Bet you can’t guess where we went for lunch? Oh, you peeked. Yes, to our favorite drive-in.

I took Ajie back to the house, and we stopped at the mailbox. I had something to do. I got out of the car and removed the name ‘Young’ from it.

We walked into the house, and to the bedroom so I could change to go into the university. As we were changing, Ajie said, “You know, love. Things do feel right.”

“I know.”, I said. “They do.

“I’ll be home at five. La Placita Dining Rooms or the High Noon for dinner to celebrate?”

“Let’s do the High Noon Restaurant and Saloon.”, Ajie replied. “Want company?”

“Sure. Who?”

“Chief Tom and Vickie, and maybe Dr. Joe and Mary if they can find a sitter.”

“They have a baby sitter already?”

“There’s a girl that lives next door that loves little Mark.”

“Hmm. We just might have to steal her later.”

“Could be.”

A little later, as I was walking into the office, Dr. Joe looked up and asked, “Well, is it official?”

“Sure is.”

“Congratulations, Miss Kai Nez.”

“Thank you, Dr. Oshie. Would you and Mary like to go to dinner with us tonight?”

“We are already going out.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. With you.”

“Ajie must have called Mary already?”

“Yes, and then Mary called me.”

“Good. It’ll be fun.”

I worked on the project for a few hours, then headed home and was there just before five. I stopped at the end of the driveway to get the mail and newspaper. But there wasn’t either. Ajie must have gotten them.

I pulled into the garage and was met at the door to the kitchen by Ajie. And excitedly, she asked, “Have you seen the Albuquerque paper today?”

“No. Why?”, I said.

“It’s on the breakfast counter. Read the front page.”

I walked into the kitchen, over to the breakfast counter, and picked up the newspaper. As I looked at the front page, I started to smile and said, “This is amazing!”

“Yes, it is. I wonder if we know any?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.”

What I was reading was an article that they had declassified the Navajo Code Talkers of World War II. The article talked about how members of the Navajo tribe had used their native language to help defeat the Japanese in the Pacific.

I picked up the phone, called my Aunt Ruth, and when she answered I said, “Yá’át’ééh alní'íní, Shimá yázhi Sahkyo - (Good evening, Aunt Ruth.)”

“Yá’át’ééh alní'íní, Kai.”

“We were just reading about the Navajo Code Talkers.”

“Interesting. Isn’t it?”

“Very. And that's a good name for them. We were also wondering if we knew any of them?”

“Tell me about your name change first.”

“Aunt Ruth!”

“So, tell.”

“It went fine. It’s now legally Kai Nez and Ajie Nez.”

“That’s as it should be.”

“We know. Now you tell.”

“You know two for sure and maybe more.”

“Who?”

“Your Uncle Paul and Uncle Gaagii.”

“Really!? Both of them.”

“Yes, honey. Ask your Uncle Paul tomorrow.”

“Oh, I will.”

“We’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Of course. Hágoónee', Shimá yázhi Sahkyo. - (See you later, Aunt Ruth.)”

“Hágoónee', Kai.”

As I hung up the phone, I turned to Ajie and said, “Both Uncle Paul and Uncle Gaagii were code talkers.”

“That’s amazing.”, Ajie replied.

Later as we were walking into the High Noon Restaurant and Saloon to meet Chief Tom, Vickie, Dr. Joe, and Mary for dinner, we were dressed up. Long skirts, fancy blouses, wrap moccasins, silver jewelry, and fancy headbands. When we got there, Chief Tom and Vickie were already there, so we had to wait for Dr. Joe and Mary.

As we waited, our topic of conversation was the code talkers. No surprise there. Chief Tom was surprised when I told him that my two uncles were part of the unit.

Dr. Joe and Mary shortly joined us. Then as the hostess was taking us to our table, we passed two couples walking out. One of the men looked at me and loudly said, “Heathens!”

I stopped, turned, and said, “Sir, are you talking to me?”

The man turned, looked at me, and said, “Yes, you shouldn’t be allowed to be around good people.”

“Sir, I am not a heathen.”

“You are a Godless heathen.”

“No, sir, I am not. I couldn’t care less if you believe what I believe. It is none of my business if my spiritual path is okay with you or not. I don’t care if my words or actions are blasphemy, sacrilege, or an abomination in your religion. I don’t belong to your path, nor do I need your opinion of your god.

“I’m too busy doing my own thing, making my own magic, helping folks who need it, to try and please everyone else.

“My way isn’t a concern to you.

“And, sir, I hope that you and your friends have a nice evening, because I know I’m going too have a wonderful evening with my friends.”

I turned to look for Ajie and our friends, and I found that they had been standing right there with me. I also noticed several patrons were looking at us, and some of them were even smiling.

The hostess looked at us and said, “Right this way, ladies and gentlemen.”

As she placed the menus on the table, she looked at me and said, “I liked the way you handled that.”

“Thanks.”, I said. “I haven’t had to defend myself in that way for a long time.”

As the six of us sat, Vickie said, “Kai, I forgot that you have such a way with words.”

“It was nothing.”, I said. “That was just something I read once, and it came to mind.”

“It came to mind alright.”, Dr. Joe said. “And at the right time.”

“Tonight, nothing is going to upset me.”

“Why’s that?”, Chief Tom asked.

“The name change thing is done. I found out about the code talkers, and that my two uncles were part of it. And I’m with Ajie and four wonderful friends.”

Right after we ordered, Vickie picked up her purse, took something out of it, and handed it to Ajie.

Ajie asked, “What’s this?”

“Open it and find out.”, Vickie said.

Ajie opened it, looked into the package, and smiled. She took something out of the packaged and showed it to me. It was a nameplate for her nurse’s uniform, and it said, ‘Ajie Nez, RN.’ And Vickie said, “We couldn’t let you go to work with the wrong nameplate. Now could we.”

“Thanks, Vickie. I hadn’t even thought about that.”

“Too many other important things on your mind.”

“Yes, there are.”