This is for Mrs. Graybeard and all who enjoy a good story. I'f you enjoy it I'd be happy to post more.....SH ^i^
HOW DOGS LOST THE ABILITY TO TALK - An Aniyuhnwiya ( Cherokee Story )
This is what I was told as a boy...Long, long ago dogs could talk. They spoke Aniyuhnwiya, of course, as all animals with fur did, and still do, and our People could understand what they were saying, and have conversations with them. Today, dogs still understand Aniyuhnwiya when they hear it, but they can not speak it any more. Now back in those days, The People lived in smaller groups and not every group had the sacred ajila ( ah-hee-lah fire), and ajila was very valuable. With ajila, you could cook your food, preserve it, and smoke hides to make them tougher and almost water proof, but ajila was rare indeed. Ajila happened only when it happened, when a bolt of lightning struck a tree and set it on fire, or during some other natural phenomenon. So those who had fire, guarded it very carefully. It was very important not to let the fire go out, because it could be months or even years before a group might find fire again. So when hunters left to try to find food, they always left someone in charge of tending the fire. Thus the origin of the popular saying: " Keep the home fires burning. " The fire also had to be guarded whenever the hunters left, and when everyone was asleep, because the groups who did not have fire, would try to steal it from those who did. Oftentimes the dog was picked to guard the fire when everyone else was asleep, and with his sharp ears and sensitive nose, he was pretty good at sensing that strangers were coming long before they got close enough to shoot an arrow, much less throw a spear or hit someone with a war club. Yes, the dog usually did his work very well, but he hated doing guard duty. It was dull and boring, and he was usually tired after a long day of helping in the hunt, and no matter how tired he was the next morning, the people would call him to come on the hunt and assist them again. One night, after he had run around chasing deer all day he was very, very tired. Nothing ever happened at night when he was on gaurd, so he relaxed and allowed himself to doze off. Wouldn't you know it, on that night, another band happened by and saw that the dog on guard duty was fast asleep, and they crept ever so quietly into the camp and stole the fire. They took not just one burning stick, but the whole fire, and when The People woke up in the morning there was no heat and no way to warm water to wash in. The people of the small band were furious, and they decided to banish the dog by acclaim, without even holding a council to debate the matter. So the dog had to go off into the woods and live all by himself. Now living in the woods by yourself is much harder than living in a group, because there is only you to do all the things that need to be done, and if you fail in the hunt, you have no one to beg some food from. The dog tired of this kind of life very quickly. He wanted to be back with The People, but he knew that the only way to redeem himself was to find the band of hunters who had stolen the fire and steal it back. He used his very sensitive nose to follow their tracks, through the woods, over a large meadow, and through another woods, untill finally he came to where they had made their camp. Then he hid in the bushes and watched untill they had all finished their dinner and done their talking and planning and they all had gone fast to sleep. The small band had not posted a gaurd, and the dog easily snuck into the center of their camp. There was only one small log left burning, but it was going pretty well, and he knew that he could get it back to his people's camp without it going out. The problem was.....he had no way to carry it.....except in his mouth. He knew he had to do it, so he steeled himself and picked it up between his teeth and began to run home. The pain was horrible, and he only made it a short distance before he had to stop and put the stick down. Then he saw Grandfather Moon in the sky and he looked up and prayed to him. " Grandfather," the dog said, "Help me bear the pain of carrying this stick home because that is the only way I can restore the fire to my people and redeem myself." "I will make you able to bear the pain," Grandfather Moon told him. "But the flames will still burn your mouth, even if you cannot feel them, and you will probably not be able to talk any more. You have done wrong...you went to sleep on guard duty.....that is a serious thing, and for that, you must accept the punishment." "Anything," the dog replied. "I'll accept anything you decide is correct." "You will remain on guard duty for the rest of your life," Grandfather Moon said. "And all your children and your childrens children, and their children will be on guard duty......and this will be forever more." The dog agreed, and Grandfather Moon made him insensitive to pain in his mouth. Then the dog carried the burning stick home and was received with grateful apreciation by his people. Ever since, dogs cannot talk, but they all seem to sleep by the fire, except that they are only half asleep and if any stranger even comes near their people, they wake up immediately and give the alarm. This is how it was. This is how it is..... So says, Spirit Hawk ^i^
