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Enlightenment... long ago in Napi's village the
people had their homes, their tipi's, and their lodges situated in the foothills
surrounded by mountains out in back. The people didn't feel really comfortable about
their kids going up and playing in the mountains. So they set aside a time when they
made a fun day out of it. The children could all go up and climb as high and as far
as they wanted to go. When they would turn back they were instructed to bring some
vegetation... to pick off something that when they got back the folks could tell
how high they climbed. One rule was that they had to get back by sunset. The big
day came and they turned loose all the kids and they headed up. I guess there was
kind of a chubby young fellow who came on back and he had with him what looked like
cactus. The elders said, "Good job, you made it right up into the top of the
foothills." As the day passed some came back and the elders said, "Good
job, you brought back the poplar tree branches and you made it up to right up to
the springs." As more of the afternoon passed on some more came back with the
pine needles, the pinecones and the elders said, " Oh, great job you made it
up high, way up into the pine trees." So, they all had reported back in but
one. He hadn't made it back yet and they started to get a little anxious and a little
nervous. The sun was starting to go down towards sunset and just as the sun was
to go down, this young fellow came into camp. His face was lit up. It looked like
he just swallowed a light bulb. He said, "Where I went, I went past the pine
up through the shale rock and I climbed to the top. Up there, there were no trees
but I felt the wind in my face and I saw a glance of the other side. I heard the
murmuring of many waters and I felt... I 'felt '." So it was this young
one who climbed the mountain and was touched. He saw something... he heard something...
and he knew something... and he was changed forever. |
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