The Legend ©1986 DM ShadowWalker. All rights reserved.

"The Legend was inspired by a legend I heard in 1986 about following One's Visions despite the odds."--

The Legend

retold by Depree

This story begins when the war's between many people of different cultures was starting because the earth grew small. There was this small band of people, a tribe you would say, or what was left of a culture. This tribe had been pushed off their ancestral lands where they had lived for centuries.

Whole families had not survived the war and one of these fragmented families consisted of a young woman, her Grandfather and her younger brother. Her Grandmother and parents had been killed during the previous year's fighting....

The tribe had come to camp in the desert valley across a stream that was an invisible boundary of their Homeland. The tribe had decided to rest at the edge of the stream and store food for their journey. With the limited amount of people and the same amount of work to be done, everyone was needed. Each person performed a vital function in the community and the young woman was no exception.

Except she felt a calling. At first it was just an elated feeling in the morning, that would become a yearning like hunger at noon and then it would turn into an aching by nightfall where it would enter her dreams. She didn't understand her feelings at first and often blamed it on her lack of food or rest. She would tell herself to ignore it and it'll go away but it didn't.

She seemed to satisfy the feeling by being near the edge of the stream and watching the sunrise above the mountains of their Homelands before she started the morning chores.

One morning she awoke suddenly and vividly recalled a dream she was in. She had been on top of a high mountain, where she could see the ends of the earth. The sky surrounded her and when the clouds touched her, she rose with the gift of flight where she saw her ancestors joining her. What a great feeling of contentment and exuberance she felt. She knew what she had to do. She had to go back to their Homelands. She had to find this place of her dreams and complete it.

She told her Grandfather how she felt, about the dream and her plans. Her Grandfather told her, she was greatly needed where she was at. He told her how valuable she was to the tribe and how successful she had been in keeping the fire going and taking care of what was left of the family and tribe. He told her how vital she was to the future of her family and the generations she could create with her strength and beautiful Gift-of-Life.

She listened to her Grandfather and understood what he said. She also believed in his words and realized that if she set out on her dream, she would have to go alone and leave her family and friends behind. And the probability of returning was not in her favor - let alone survive.

So she settled into her work, talked and danced with her friends, played with her brother and at night she dreamed. In the morning, she would still get up in time to see the sunrise over their Homelands.

One morning as she rose, she could no longer ignore or deny her feelings. She walked to her usual place of solitude and walked steady into the stream. Before she entered the bush line, she looked back and saw her Grandfather. He picked up the gourd she used to fill with water for the morning tea and as he walked toward the stream, he smiled at her. He knew where she was going.

She set out with no provisions, not even a blanket. She ate nothing along the way, only taking water from the land. By the third day she arrived at the base of a high mountain range. As she started to climb the peaks, she felt the chill of winter but her dream drove her on. She knew the dream was real and she would find it at the top of this mountain.

When she was almost to the top, she doubted her path, there was a huge cliff in her way. She couldn't find a way around or over it, so she sat down to rest. She thought of her Grandfather and Brother, how they were sitting down to eat. She was cold, tired and hungry but worst of all, she thought she might of taken the wrong path. After all, she had never been to this part of the peaks before but her heart had lead her here so she placed her troubles unto the Great Spirit believing that the dream was sent from him and with his power her dream would become real. Just then a hawk flew by over to a small pine tree and seemed to disappear into the shadows. She made her way to the tree, which was not easy to do because of the loose rocks, and hidden behind the pine tree was a small opening. Air was coming out towards her, so she gathered some branches and moss to make a small torch and entered the opening.

She found that it grew wider and soon she could stand. It then opened into a small cave with stalagmite and columns of calcium deposits with a clear stream running down the middle. She found more wood to build a fire and drawings on the walls. There was even a few ferns in one corner.

The fire soon warmed the cave. She became drowsy and soon fell into a trance. She envisioned the Hawk she saw earlier except it was as big as she was and was dancing on the other side of the flames. As she watched, Hawk spoke to her of her dreams and ancestors, saying all awaited her. Then Hawk disappeared into the shadows beckoning her to follow.

She awoke with a start! It was morning. Did she dream the vision? It seemed to be so real....then she saw the light of morning coming in through another entrance, different from the one that had led her here. She walked through it and followed a narrow passage that kept going up. Soon she was on a vista. On top of the peaks, looking all around she realized this was her dream! It was Real!

She could see the ends of the Earth in all Four-Directions. She could see the desert far below and the sky was filled the Four-Winds. She took a deep breath and embraced her vision. Her dream was one with her. Then the clouds touched her and she felt light as a feather. In her enthusiasm she threw herself off the mountain top and her ancestors joined her. As they did, her body changed. It grew wings and when she opened her eyes, she was the Hawk. She rode the wind into the desert floor and saw the people gathering and hunting. Then she flew over the camp and saw her Brother in the stream and her Grandfather at the fire. As she soared up with a scream, she caught her Grandfather's eye. He knew the Hawk was her and he smiled. She was home at last.