兒童英語讀物《神奇樹屋》第十八冊 Buffalo Before Breakfast 09 Lakota School
Jack felt Teddy licking his cheek.
He opened his eyes. Gray light came through the smoke hole.
The fire was out. The tepee was empty.
Jack jumped up. He grabbed his bag and hurried outside withTeddy.
In the cool light before dawn, everyone was taking down theirtepees. They were loading them onto wooden platforms strappedto two poles. The poles were pulled by horses. Grandmother andBlack Hawk piled tools and clothes onto their platform.
Annie stuffed buffalo meat into a rawhide bag.
"What's happening?" Jack asked.
"It is time to follow the buffalo," said Grandmother. "We willcamp somewhere else for a few weeks."Jack pulled out his notebook. He still had many questions. Buthe tried to choose just a few.
"Can you camp anywhere?" he asked. "Even when you don'town the land?"Black Hawk laughed.
"People cannot own land," he said. "The land belongs to theGreat Spirit."Jack wrote in his notebook:
Land owned by Great Spirit, not people"What about school?" said Jack. "Don't you have to go toschool?""What is school?" Black Hawk said.
"It's a place where kids go to learn things," Jack explained.
Black Hawk laughed again.
"There is not only one place to learn," he said. "In camp welearn to make clothes, tools, and tepees. On the plains we learnto ride and hunt. We look at the sky and learn courage from theeagle."Jack wrote:
Lakota school is everywhereGrandmother turned to Jack and Annie.
"Will you walk with us toward the sun-set?" she asked.
Jack shook his head.
"We have to go the other way," he said, "toward the sunrise.""Thank you for the eagle's feather," said Annie.
"Let your thoughts rise as high as that feather," saidGrandmother. "It is good medi-cine.""What does that mean?" Jack asked. "Good medicine?""Good medicine connects you to the world of the spirits," shesaid.
Jack nodded. But he still didn't really understand.
"Good-bye, Buffalo Girl and Rides-Like-Wind," saidGrandmother. "We wish you a safe journey."Jack and Annie waved. Then they started walking back theway they'd come.
Teddy ran ahead of them.
At the top of the rise, they looked back.
Grandmother, Black Hawk, and the rest of the tribe werewatching.
Jack and Annie both held up two fingers for "friend." Thenthey took off down the slope.
They ran across the prairie.. .through the tall, whisperinggrass.. .all the way back to the tree house.
Annie put Teddy in the leather bag. She and Jack climbed upthe rope ladder.
They looked out the window one last time. The ocean of grasswas golden in the early sunlight.
By now, the Lakota are walking west, Jack thought.
"Soon everything will change," he said sadly. "The buffalo willvanish. The old way of life for the Lakota will vanish, too.""But the Great Spirit won't ever vanish," said Annie. "It willalways take care of Black Hawk's people."Jack smiled. Annie's words made him feel better.
Arf, arf! Teddy barked, as if to say Let's go!
"Okay, okay," said Jack.
He picked up the Pennsylvania book and pointed at a pictureof Frog Creek.
"I wish we could go home to our people," he said.
The wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
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