Waxing Gibbous

Tradition (A)

The first week I was with Korinna and Hector we prepared the furs and hides. I successfully hunted a bison, wolverine, lynx's... well successfully was an overstatement. The Bison was a little easier, but I was able to kill one just like the Caribou. The skinning part took almost a day on its own.

The Wolverine was harder, tracking it was easy but getting close enough to kill was hard. I did it eventually, with little injuries. The lynx was the same way, but I managed to hunt quite a few of them. After preparing the skins Korinna and I started stitching the hides together.

My ceremonial parka tookthe longest, but I was happy with the final outcome. It was a Caribou pelt witha Wolverine trim. Then we usedthe other hides to create pants, shoes, shirt and even a chest bind.

But I was proud because I made them myself. I hunted the animal that the hide come from, I skinned it with its own antlers and bones, stitched them with parts of the muscles. It was crazy and difficult but an accomplishment. It was weird to think that I had learned so much in such small time.

About my tribe, my family, our legends, traditions (well not all of them). I learned how to fend for myself, what foods were edible, how to find clean water. I learned how to make my own tools, clothes, and shelter.

Then when it was dark and the pelts needed time to dry I learned to carve tools out of the bones, I made utensils to cook and eat with out of bones and antlers. We also made soap that did not make me feel as clean as the ones I have at home do but it was an experience all together.

The beginning of the second week was when things began to change a little. I woke up in my hut, my skin brushing the dirt. I changed into my clothes and walked out to the fire where the two were standing.

"are you ready?" Hector asked.

"Ready for what?"

He smiled "you have completed all the tasks required as tests of strength. Now we begin the test of wills, the spirit quest"

I nodded "Ready as I'll ever be"

Korinna sat us down around the fire "you have collected much of what is required for this, but we must prepare you to meet the spirits."

"the spirits?"

"when every creature in the world is born, a spirit stands beside them."

"why?"

"to light their way through the long dark night and sing the songs to guide them"

"why?"

"each of us has a destiny that sets us all apart, and the journey begins in the heart. Many people still do not see their spirit, but there are forces all around you. To comfort and to guide you. Fathers and Teachers, powerful creatures. And the voice that sings inside you"

I watched the flames, they looked like they were dancing as she kept talking.

"Your spirit is what lies within you. Some of us rely on teaching" she gestured to Hector who showed me a totem of a bear. "Some of us Wisdom" she pulled out a totem that looked like an owl.

"what was my fathers?" I asked.

"the bear. Your father was a protector, of course, but his family was the most important. You were the most important"

I let that sink in then allowed them to guide me through the ritual. It was a multi-stage process. But as they already said I got part of it.

It was twilight by the time we were ready for me to complete the first task. I was wearing my ceremonial parka, my face was painted, I fasted all day and performed multiple dances and songs, all to the spirits so that they grant me success on my quest.