XML version dated February 14, 2024. © Douglas R. Parks, Indiana University.

68

When Bloody Hands Became an Eagle

Lillian Brave

The village was coming in a long procession
––––
and,
poor things
their (du) liv- ing among them
Hands
and
his grand- mother,
their (du) living pitifully,
their (du) living on the outskirts of the village
by the dung heaps,
there
alone
where the poor were,
poor things,
their (du) living there.
And
then it arose
a war.
A war
then
it arose.
He said:
"Grandmother,
I will go with them
too.
I will go with them
where they go
the young men.
Young men
however many there are
they now are going
(on) the warpath.
Myself
I will go with them."
"Not at all
No,
Hands,
you are pitiful.
You are
ugly.
You are n
ot one (ie the type) to be among them
for you to be among them
(on) the warpath.
You are pitiful.
You are ugly."
"No,
grandma,
I want
that I go."
And
again
he
was repeating it
his beseeching her
his grandmother.
"I want
that I go among them
(on) the warpath."
"Not at all,
grandson,
you are the ugliest baby.
You
just have a scarred belly.
Everywhere
you are just ugly.
You are n
ot one to go among them.
"No,–
grandma,
you have just hurt my feelings
that you
did not give me your permission
to go.
Now
but
I want
that I go
to be among them
(on) the warpath.
And
then he said
Hands:
"No,
grandma
you have
hurt my feelings.
I wanted–
to be among the
there
all
young men
where they are going.
I want
to be among them."
And
then she said
his grandmother:
"Certainly
now
I said:
'You ca
nnot go.'
Surely
you are ugly.
I do not want
that they tease
the men,
that they tease you,
that they call you names.
I do not want it."
"No,
grandmother,
I wanted
that I go among them.
Then I always win
when I go among them
(on) the warpath.
Then I always win.
Now
but
now
whatever it is
your
not allowing me
to go
that is how it is.
You hurt my
feelings
really,
grandma.
Really
you've hurt my feelings."
Now
when she turned around
the old woman,
why,
here
he became
an eagle.
Then he said:
"Grandmother,.
I'm going to become
an eagle,
grandmother.
I'm going to become
an eagle,
grandmother.
Then she said
his grandmother:
"Oh ho!
As ugly as you
are
how can you become
an eagle!"
When she turned around to look
when she saw him
her grandchild
and
there
there was the head attached to him
an eagle.
"No,
grandchild,
no!
I love you,
grandchild.
There
you can go with them.
There
you can go with them."
But
he had already become
an eagle.
Then she ran outside–
the old woman
She tied the lodge up.
She staked it down.
She staked the lodge down
with great vigor.
Oh my,
the flapping sounds were above
in the smoke hole.
In the smoke hole
that is where he flew out
the eagle
as he flew.
There
he was just flying higher and higher.
There
really
he was flying against the sky.
"Come down,
grandson!
I love you.
You and I are pitiful.
It is not good,
poor me
here–
that I should live pitifully
alone."
Then he said
the eagle:
"No.
But
you wanted it.
This is what you wanted
alone
'that I live capped in the lodge.'
Now
that is
how it will be.
Now
it will be thus:
you will live capped in the lodge
alone.
Now
but
I'll go
to the Black Hills.
That is the direction
I'll fly
the Black Hills
where the highest Black Hills are.
That is where I am going.
There
as he flew
after some length of time,
then he flew
down
the eagle,
but
his grandmother
she went there.
Then she transformed herself into it
a rabbit,
a rabbit
its lying on it
on a hill.
Then he flew down
the eagle.
There he saw her
his grandmother.
"Grandma,
I always like
to eat it
rabbit
one that is
dead,
but
this one
it is alive.
This one
it is alive
rabbit."
Again
so he soared in the sky.
Again
then he flew high.
There
after he soared into the sky
there
while he as going
after some length of time
there it lay yonder
a stag.
Ah,
it lay yonder.
It lay on a hill yonder.
He flew down
again
the eagle.
He flew down
again
the eagle.
When he saw it:
"Grandmother,
I always like
to take
bites out of it
a deer
one that is dead
but
this one
it is just looking!
It is just looking
this
stag.
It is just looking!"
Again
then he flew up high.
"Ah,
grandchild,
I want
that you come.
I want
that we be together
since
I am poor.
Alone
that I live
it is not good.
But
it was good
when you and I were together.
We were poor,
poor things,
what we ate
by the dung heaps
where we lived."
She said
his grandmother:
"Well,
go on!"
Again
then he flew up high.
There
as he flew
he flew
up against the sky.
She said
his grandmother:
"Aah,
Haaands,
Haaands,
here I am watching you
Here I am watching you.
You are just
wishing
the buzzards
'that you come
that you eat me up.'"
And
then she became frightened of it
the old woman.
She said:
"No,
I will just stay here,
and
buzzards
when they come
I'll just scare them away.
I'll just scare them away
the buzzards.
And
no matter what happens
see,
grandson
but
I will follow
you.
There
I will follow you
wherever you are going!
But
now I'll be flying behind.
I'll go flying behind
no matter
where you go.
There
then he got to the Black Hills.
He got to the Black Hills.
"Ah,
grandmother,
no matter where you go
but
there
I'll always be in the lead.
I'm going
where the high mountain
is,
alone
where the high mountain is."
She said
his grandmother:
"Now
there will be one thing,
grandson.
Come to the ledge
and
I'll see you for the last time
and
again
I'll see your face,
grandson."
Well,
and
then that is what he did
the eagle.
There
he went on top
there
where the high hill was.
A rock
it was.
It was a tall rock.
There
that is where he landed.
"Now,
grandmother,
here I am.
But
I let it be known.
I said:–
'But
I am now going to the Black Hills there.'
That is how it is.
This is where I am going to be.
But
here
this will be my
territory.
But
here
the Black Hills are where I'll roam
but
there
you'll live.
You forbade it
'that you go among
them'–
(on) the warpath.
But
while the wars are going to
but
I'll be sitting here.
I won't pay any attention to it,
but,
poor thing,
I'll sit on top."
There
when she arrived
--
the old woman
then she arrived.
There
she arrived
the old woman.
"Noow,
Haaands,
only
peep over!
Just
look!"
Then this is what he did:
poor thing,
Hands
then he perched on the ledge.
Now he sat on the ledge.
––
But–
his grandmother
when he looked at her
--
but
Hands
when he saw her
his grandmother
--
here
she had
become
a bear.
And
there there was
a bear,
a black bear,
his grandmother.
"Now
come to the ledge!
Surely
let me see your face!"
Hands
then he moved over.
When he looked at her
his grandmother
they looked at each other.
Oh my,
the bear
then she leaped
up into the air
Then she clawed down it
Then she fell down.
Now
there was a thump on the ground
when she fell.
"Now
wait,
Hands!
I want
that I touch your hand.
I want that
that
I touch you anywhere."
"Now
try harder,
grandmother!
Surely
but
that
that is what you want.
It is your fault
yourself.
Yourself
it is your fault.
But
you have hurt my feelings.
Really
you have hurt my feelings.
That is the
reason
when I made myself
an eagle.
But
I'll fly about over there permanently.
But
I'll roam around over here in the Black Hills.
But
there
you (pl) can live there!
You (pl) can be making wars over there!
But
I'll go around in the Black Hills here.
I'll roam all about these Black Hills here.
But
there
you (pl) can live over there."
And
then she said
the old woman:
"Ah
Hands,
again
I am going to say.
Again
I am going to say
'Come to the ledge!
Surely
let me see you for the last time!'"
Now
again
then he went.
Then he sat down on the ledge.
Oh my,
the bear
then she leaped up angrily.
Then she leaped
up angrily
the bear.
This time
she al
most got to the top.
Then she did it:
(with) claws
then she fell down
again.
"Now,
grandson,
and
here
you have gone."
"Yes,
I did it.
But
I am going.
There
southward
that is where I will head.
There
southward
that is the direction I'll go.
Over there
that is where they will have it
too
humans
their being the ones they make
rings.
Rock,
the blue
stone
they are the stones one sets in them,
too.
And
they can remember that,
too,
the eagle
what I did for them,
what I did for them."
Again
then she did that
the old woman:
she leaped up angrily.
Then she scratched him.
And
then she scratched him
a little.
She fell down
again.
Well,
now
this was the last time.
"Now,
Haaands,
I loved you.
You and I were pitiful.
Poor things,
we were pitiful."
And
then she cried
the old woman.
"Now,
my grandson
this will be the end.
I am tired.
My having been jumping
I am now tired.
And
that is all now.
I will let you go.
I will let you go
and
there
you can go on
there
where you say
southward.
There
you can go yonder.
You have made it difficult for me.
I canno
t get there
there
where you are going.
It is land
rock(y).
It is difficult.
That is where you are going.
You have left me
really.
And
that is how it is,
too.
You hurt my feelings.
We have
hurt each other's feelings
both."
The old woman,
also
the eagle,
both
they hurt each
other's feelings.
That is all.
But
the eagle
there
it was headed
southward.
"But
that is where I am now headed,
but
this is where you'll be going about."
"Now,
grandson,
grandson,
you have made it hard for me.
Over there
it is difficult
to go.
It is land
only
rock(y).
Rock(y)
only
it is land.
There
that is where
you are now headed.
Now
whatever you want
yourself
to be,
now
but
now I am going to ask them
there–
for them to
use the
and
precious metals
those kinds,
precious metals
the ones inside
in the ground.
I pity them,
too.
Too
that is how they'll be
They will be rich
Indians
those who are living.
But
here
you have hurt my feelings.
Now we have separated.
There
it is truly the way
we have
separated.
The eagle
he is going all around.
He goes around
in the Black Hills.
But
there
I'll go around pitifully."
And
the old woman
then she went home.
The old woman
then she went home.
There
then she arrived.
And
there her lodge was.
"Eh,
Hands
he used to live here
--
here
this is
where you used to live
Hands.
Now
but
you have made plans
for yourself
yourself.
Yourself
you have now made plans for
yourself
the way you wanted.
Also
that is what I am wanting
that it be
too.
Yourself
then you made plans for yourself
the way you wanted."
But
she was talking to it
a spirit.
The old woman
she was speaking to it
the eagle.
"But
you have made plans
for yourself
yourself.
There
you'll travel around.
There
you are holy
there
now that you are going around
far away.
Now you have left me.
Now you've made me feel miserable.
But
I'll live over here pitifully,
now
whatever I'm going to do,
too."