Cedar Woman (34 page)

¹⁹
The
three
siste
r
s
of
cor
n
,
b
eans
and
squash,
we
r
e grown
to
g
e
t
h
er
b
y
Native A
m
erican
f
a
r
m
er
s
,
who
a
ss
e
r
t
ed
that
th
e
y
only
g
r
ow
and
th
r
ive
t
o
gethe
r
.
This bel
i
ef
was
v
e
r
y
s
ophistic
a
ted
in
i
t
s foundatio
n
,
as each
p
l
ant
r
e
p
l
a
c
es
to
the
soil what
an
o
ther
o
n
e
t
akes.

Yes,
t
h
e work
was
go
o
d
and
tr
u
e,
bu
ilt,
n
o
t
on
ly
with
t
h
e sweat
of his
br
o
w
,
b
u
t f
r
om t
h
e
love
wit
h
in
his
br
e
ast,
a
n
d
t
h
e
c
ry
ing
out of
his spirit
to
he
l
p
h
is
fri
e
nds –
his
a
d
opt
e
d
fa
m
il
y
,
tak
e
n
to
his heart
n
o
t
l
on
g after
t
h
ey
a
r
ri
v
ed
in
S
ou
t
he
r
n Oh
i
o
th
e
se
m
a
ny years
ag
o.

He
wal
k
e
d
a
r
o
un
d
t
h
e
l
o
dg
e
one
m
o
re
t
i
m
e,
tuggi
n
g her
e
, secur
i
ng
l
oose end
s
,
anticip
a
ting
the
e
v
ent whi
c
h
would
t
ake
place
this
n
i
g
h
t.

Dean
h
ad
in
v
ited
h
i
m
self
a
n
d
Nellie
to
t
h
e
cere
m
on
y
.
He
wasn’t sure
i
f
i
t
was
ap
pr
o
p
r
i
ate,
b
u
t
he
d
i
d
n
’t
c
a
re.
He
wan
te
d
t
o
be
h
e
re
f
o
r
M
ary
a
n
d
L
en
a,
a
n
d
m
o
stly
f
o
r
Pet
e
r.
He was
su
re
that his
C
h
ristian- bas
e
d
p
ra
y
ers w
o
u
l
d
ev
oke
n
o
feel
in
gs
o
f
di
srespec
t
,
as
h
e
was
h
e
re
t
o h
on
o
r his fri
en
ds – his
f
a
m
i
l
y
,
a
n
d
n
o
t to di
s
h
on
o
r t
h
e
m
.

It
was
rea
d
y.
Mary
a
n
d
Lena
wo
u
ld
s
o
on
arri
v
e
with
Nellie,
w
h
o
wa
s
p
i
c
k
i
n
g
t
h
e
m
u
p
f
r
o
m
t
h
e
ho
s
p
ital.
Dea
n
wa
s
p
r
o
u
d
o
f
h
is
w
o
r
k
,
a
nd
ha
p
p
y to h
a
ve been
o
f help to p
e
ople
w
hom
he
l
o
v
e
d with
a
ll of his heart.

“
W
aste!
Lila
²¹
waste,”
Mary
exclai
m
ed
as
she
and
L
e
na
a
p
proach
e
d t
h
e sweat lo
d
g
e co
n
str
u
cted f
o
r
h
e
r
with
s
u
ch
d
ev
o
tio
n
.

“
I
c
o
u
l
d
n
o
t
h
ave
do
n
e
bet
te
r,
C
h
i
a,
”
²²
M
ary
whi
s
per
e
d,
ov
erco
m
e with
g
ratitude for
t
h
is
de
a
r,
st
r
o
n
g
m
an
w
h
o
sto
o
d
beside
her
in a
n
tici
p
ati
o
n of
h
er ap
p
r
o
v
al.