"THIS IS HOW YOU WILL BECOME A MAN" (THIS STORY WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE)
THIS STORY WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE
JESUACA WAS SITTING ON A BRANCH OF HIS FAVORITE TREE,FORBIDDINGLY SMOKING THE TOBACCO THAT WAS BEHELD FOR THE ELDERS,AS ALL YOUTHS WHO THINK THEY ARE MEN DO.
AREN'T YOU SCARED?HE HEARD THE VOICE OF HIS BEST FRIEND AND COUSIN,GUATOE JESSICA, LIKE HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HIS COUSIN MEANT.WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?AND WHY ARE YOU SNEAKING UP ON ME LIKE A SQUIRREL?BUT HE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT GUATEAU WAS REFERRING TO.
TONIGHT WAS HIS NIGHT, THE NIGHT HE WOULD BECOME A MAN.HE HAD JUST TURNED 13 YEARS OLD,AND TONIGHT WAS HIS RITE OF PASSAGE.
THE KNIGHT.HE WOULD LEAVE HIS CHILDHOOD BEHINDAND TURN INTO A CHEROKEE WARRIOR.SCARED?
KUATOHE LAUGHED OUT LOUD BECAUSE HE KNEW HIS COUSINWAS BLUFFING AND THEN PASSED HIM SOME TOBACCO.HE HAD ROLLED IN A LEAVE.I MAY BE A YEAR YOUNGER THAN YOU, BRAVEWARRIOR, PAUSING TO LAUGH AGAIN, BUT I STILL KNOWTHAT I AM TERRIFIED OF MY RITE OF PASSAGE.
AND I KNOW THAT YOU ARE, TOO, RIGHT NOW.CHEZAKAH TRIED TO LOOK SERIOUSLY FOR A SECOND, BUT THENHIS FACE TURNED INTO A SMILE WHILE HIS GAZE FIXATEDTO THE DISTANT LANDS IN FRONT OF HIM.
CHEROKEE.
THEIR LAND.
FOR GENERATIONS AND GENERATIONS, BRAVE CHEROKEEWARRIORS HUNTED, PROTECTED THEIR KIN, ANDFOUGHT OFF OTHER TRIBES.TO DO SO, THEY EACH HAD TO PASS THEIR RITEOF PASSAGE, PROVE THEIR HEART, PROVE THAT THEY WERE FEARLESS,THAT THEY WERE ABLE TO LEAD THE TRIBE, DEFEND THETRIBE, AND IF NECESSARY, DIE FOR THE TRIBE.
WHEN A BOY TURNS 13 IN THAT YEAR, HE MUSTSPEND A WHOLE NIGHT IN THE DEEP FOREST ON HISOWN, BLINDFOLDED, SITTING ON A STONE THAT MUST NOT MOVE,NOR TAKE THE BLINDFOLD OFF OR RUN AWAYS,
IT SOUNDED CHILDISH AT FIRST THOUGHT,BUT ONLY AT FIRST THOUGHT.
HE WOULD BE DEEP IN THE FORESTS, A DANGEROUS PLACEFULL OF WOLVES, BEARS, SNAKES, MAYBE HUNTERS OF OTHER TRIBES,OR EVEN THESE WHITE MEN WHO ARE FROM A PLACEFAR AWAY AND COULD NOT SPEAK THE LANGUAGE OF THELANDS ON HIS OWN AND FAR AWAY FROM HIS TRIBE.
HE WOULD HAVE TO PROVE THAT HE HAD IT IN HIM.
AND WHAT HE DIDN'T TELL HIS COUSIN KORTO HEWAS THAT HE WAS TERRIFIED TO THE BONE.
BUT HE DIDN'T HAVE A CHOICE.IT HAD TO BE DONE.
AND HIS FATHER HAD CHOSEN TONIGHT,THE NIGHT OF THE BIG MOON.
AND HE WOULD ALSO BE THE ONEWHO WOULD LEAD HIM BLINDFOLDED INTO THEFOREST AND THEN LEAVE HIM THERE OVERNIGHT.
ONCE THE BOY SURVIVES THE NIGHT, HE IS A MAN.HE CANNOT TELL THE OTHER BOYS OF HIS EXPERIENCE.
EACH BOY MUST COME INTO HIS OWN MANHOOD.
2 HOURS LATER, THE SUN STARTED TO GO DOWN ANDHIS FATHER MET HIM IN FRONT OF THEIR TENT.
USUALLY AFFECTIONATE AND KIND, HE SUDDENLY HADA SERIOUS AND UNFORGIVING FACE AND STOODTHERE NODDING HIS HEAD IN APPROVAL.
AS HE SAW HIS SON APPROACHING.JESSICA SAW HIS MOTHER AND SAW HER TEARS IN HEREYES, BUT STOPPED LOOKING AT HER AFTER A FEW SECONDS,AFRAID THAT HE TOO WOULD SHED A TEAR.
THE WHOLE TRIBE HAD GATHERED.
HE SAW SEKUYA, HIS UNCLE AND FATHER OFKUATOE ATAKULA KULA, THE BIG CHIEF OF THETRIBE, WAS THERE, AND HE ALSO RECOGNIZED HISFRIENDS WAYA AND HASSADI WITH A FIRM GRIP.
HIS FATHER HELD HIM BY THESHOULDERS AND BLINDFOLDED HIS EYES.
WHAT STRUCK HIM THE MOST WAS THESILENCE AND HOW SERIOUSLY EVERYONE TOOK THISOCCASION, MAKING HIS HEART BEAT EVEN MORE.
JESSICA WAS NOW SO SCARED LIKE NEVER BEFORE IN HISLIFE, AND JUST PRAY TO THE GODS IN THE SKYTHAT HE WOULD SURVIVE THE NIGHT AND BECOME A WARRIOR.
YES, A WARRIOR.
WASN'T THAT WHAT HE WANTED TO BECOME?
MAKE HIS FATHER PROUD, HIS MOTHER PROUD, ANDMAKE THE WHOLE TRIBE LOOK UP TO HIM?
THE THOUGHT OF WEARING THE MARK OF THE WARRIOR ONHIS FACE MADE HIM HAPPY FOR A WHILE AND CLOUDEDOUT THE NEGATIVE THOUGHTS HE HAD HAD THE DAYS PRIOR.
AFTER WALKING FOR WHAT FELT LIKE ETERNITY, HISFATHER TOLD HIM TO TURN AROUND AND SIT.
HE DID JUST AS HE WAS TOLD AND THERE BEHINDHIM WAS THE BIG STONE OF THE WARRIORS WHERE HEWOULD SPEND THE NIGHT WITHOUT SAYING A WORD.HIS FATHER DISAPPEARED AND AFTER SEVERAL MINUTESHE KNEW HE WAS ON HIS OWN.
THE BOY WAS TERRIFIED.HE COULD HEAR ALL KINDS OF NOISES.BEASTS WERE ALL AROUND HIM, MAYBEEVEN SOME HUMOR WOULD HURT HIM.
THE WIND BLEW THE GRASS AND THE EARTHAND IT SHOOK HIS STUMP, BUT HE SETSTOICALLY EVEN AS HE HEARD THE WOLVES HOWL.HE STAYED THERE BLINDFOLDED AND DIDN'T MOVE AN INCHWHEN HE HEARD THE GRIZZLY BREATHING DOWN HIS NECK.
HE DIDN'T FLINCH AS HE HEARD VOICES OF OTHERCHEROKEE WHO HE KNEW THEY WERE FROM ANOTHER TRIBE.
HE SAT QUIETLY AND DETERMINED AS THE RAIN CAME.HE LET IT TOUCH HIS HAIR AND BODY WITHOUT MOVING.HE FELT A SNAKE CRAWLING ON HISARM AND WAS FEARING DEATH, BUT STAYEDVIGILANT AND A WARRIOR AT HEART THROUGHOUT.
FINALLY, AFTER A HORRIFIC NIGHT, THE SUNAPPEARED AND HE REMOVED HIS BLINDFOLD.
IT WAS THEN THAT HE SAW HIS FATHER SITTING ONA STONE NEXT TO HIM AT WATCH THE ENTIRE NIGHT.FATHER, JESSICA SAID.
CONGRATULATIONS, SON, NOW YOU ARE A CHEROKEE WARRIOR.
HE SAID WITH A SMILE ON HIS FACEAS HE PASSED HIM SOME TOBACCO ROLLED UPIN A LEAF CHESSICA COULDN'T BELIEVE HIS EYES.
WHAT YOU THOUGHT?I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE SMOKING SECRETLYUPON YOUR TREE, HIS FATHER SAID.
BUT DON'T TELL YOUR MOTHER I GAVE YOU THIS.JESSEKA HAD TO FIGHT.THE TEARS SO EMOTIONAL WAS AT THIS MOMENT.
HIS FATHER HAD BEEN THERE ALL NIGHT, WATCHING OUT FORHIS SAFETY, AND HE, JESSICA, HAD BEEN BRAVE IN FRONTOF HIS FATHER'S EYES AND EVEN GOT OFFERED THE TOBACCOOF THE ELDERS AND GROWN MEN NOW, JESSICA.
WE ARE MORE THAN FATHER AND SON.WE ARE TWO WARRIORS OF THE SAME TRIBE.CHESSICA COULDN'T WAIT ANY LONGER.
RAN UP TO HIS FATHER AND GAVE HIM A GRIZZLY BEAR'S HUG.YOU SEE, WE ARE NEVER TRULY ALONE.EVEN WHEN WE DO NOT KNOW IT.OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS ARE WATCHING OUT FOR US.
SITTING ON A STONE BESIDE US IN THEIRTHOUGHTS AND THEIR DREAMS AND THEIR PRAYERS.THEY ARE WITH US.
YOU ARE NEVER TRULY ALONE.NO MATTER HOW BLEAK THE SITUATION MIGHT SEEMLIKE, YOU ARE ONE OF THE TRIBE.
AND IF YOU PROVE YOUR HEART, YOUWILL BE A CHEROKEE WARRIOR ALSO.
THANKS FOR READING...... AND STAY BLESSED.
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