Cedar Woman (33 page)

“
You’re a
g
ood
w
o
m
a
n
,
Nellie,”
h
e cro
on
e
d,
g
i
v
i
ng
h
e
r a swift
h
u
g
, and al
m
o
st absent-
m
indedl
y
, hel
p
i
n
g hi
m
self
to
t
h
e plain
y
et satisf
y
ing meal.

Yes,
t
h
e
w
o
rk
was
go
o
d.
Ear
l
y
in
t
h
e
m
o
r
n
in
g
,
Dean
dug
t
h
e
f
i
re pit
wh
e
r
e
16
rocks,
each
a
bout
the
size
of
a
cantalou
pe
,
lay
heating
for
m
o
st of
t
h
e
da
y
.
He
h
a
d
n
o
t t
h
ou
ght to
a
s
k
h
o
w
m
any he
sh
o
u
ld pr
e
p
a
r
e, a
n
d
d
id
n
’t
know
h
o
w
i
m
po
rta
n
t
t
h
e
nu
m
b
ers
were,
so
h
e
deci
d
ed
to
p
lay it safe.

Dean
re
m
e
m
b
ered
t
h
at
four was
a
sa
c
r
e
d
nu
m
b
er,
r
e
pres
e
n
ting
the f
o
ur
sea
so
n
s,
f
o
u
r
w
i
nd
s
,
a
n
d
f
o
ur
directi
on
s
of
t
h
e
e
a
rth,
and
he
k
n
e
w
t
h
at
M
ary
w
o
ul
d
n
e
e
d
en
o
ug
h
r
o
c
k
s
t
o
p
r
o
du
ce
t
h
e
s
au
n
a
-
li
k
e
e
f
fect
s
h
e

need
e
d
f
o
r
h
e
r
cere
m
on
y
.
K
eepi
n
g
t
h
is
in
m
ind,
he
gat
h
ered
1
6
large

st
on
es,
res
u
lti
n
g
fr
o
m
m
u
lti
pl
y
i
n
g
t
h
e
sacred
nu
m
b
er
b
y
i
t
self,
o
r 4
x
4
. Shou
l
d
she
n
e
ed
that
m
any,
at
least
they
were
available.
A
good
t
h
irty feet from
t
h
e pit was t
h
e sweat l
o
d
g
e.

Facing west, wh
e
re
the
gre
a
t
Thund
e
rb
i
rd lives
and
s
e
nds
rain, a
n
d w
h
ere all
th
in
g
s en
d
,
t
h
e i
g
lo
o
-s
h
a
p
ed
lo
dg
e stood
c
o
m
p
lete.
C
u
tti
n
g will
o
w sa
p
lin
g
s ab
ou
t t
h
e t
h
ick
n
ess of
h
i
s t
hu
m
b
, Dean
las
h
ed
t
h
em t
og
et
h
er
with bali
n
g
tw
i
n
e after e
m
b
e
dd
i
n
g t
h
em
in
t
h
e
g
r
o
u
n
d
.

Cov
e
ri
n
g
t
h
e
f
ra
m
e
with
first tarp
a
n
d
th
e
n
burlap,
the
sw
eat
lodge, large
en
o
ug
h
to
seat
f
o
ur
p
eople
co
m
f
or
t
abl
y
,
a
ppe
a
r
ed
to
be
ti
g
htly i
n
s
u
lated and draft
free.

S
t
epp
i
ng
i
n
t
o
t
h
e
s
t
r
u
ctur
e
,
D
ean
sat
d
ow
n
a
nd
as
su
red
h
im
self
t
h
at

t
h
e
ce
n
tralized
p
it,
w
h
ere
t
h
e
heated
s
t
o
n
es
w
o
uld
be
pl
a
ced,
w
o
u
l
d
be far
en
o
ug
h
f
ro
m
t
h
e
l
egs a
n
d kne
e
s of
t
h
e p
a
r
ti
c
i
p
an
t
s w
h
o
w
ou
l
d be i
n
v
o
l
v
e
d
i
n
t
o
ni
g
h
t’s cere
m
on
y
.
De
a
n
cr
a
wled
o
u
t of t
h
e
sweat lodge again
surveying
his
wo
rk.