A Novel by Kawika A. Stafford

Chapter 37

Dwayne broke down the lean to, as Sonny Ray poured water onto the dying coals of vigilance. The men were dusty from all their activity. Each man worked within the framework of their individual comfort zone. Neither had much desire to speak, as their minds braced for the next set of emotions that would soon roll in.

Sonny Ray shoveled dirt into the fire pit.
Dwayne untied his homemade ladder from the luggage rack of the suburban.
Sonny Ray loaded up the rest of their supplies.

Dwayne knew that the wind could blow fiercely out here, so signs of their presence would soon fade. Other than that it was for the most part as if they had never come.

Dwayne carried the ladder over to where Cyrus was lying. Sonny Ray walked over and stood next to his friend. They glanced at each other.

Dwayne tilted his head in the direction of Cyrus’ feet. Dwayne positioned himself at the head of Cyrus. They counted to three, and then placed him on the wooden ladder.
Dwayne covered Cyrus with a blanket his grandmother had hand crafted specifically for him many years ago. It had been his favorite.

It was tomato red and dark brown. His grandmother had woven an extra large blanket for Cyrus, as he was a man of inordinate dimensions. It was one of her personal favorites as a master weaver.

As Dwayne made a few minor adjustments with the blanket,
Sonny Ray walked to the suburban and opened the back doors. Dwayne had struggled a bit, as Cyrus was a man of length, and girth. Sonny Ray scanned the horizon hoping to see the black eagle. Dwayne looked around the campsite one last time. It would never be the same to return to this place without Cyrus. But in time he knew he would return.

Sonny Ray looked out at Shiprock Mountain.

Like his dad, and his twenty one gun salute, Cyrus too had received the last request of his heart. Sonny Ray felt proud to be a part of both, regardless of the pain incurred. It was about honor, and keeping your word.

The two men loaded up as they began an unhurried return to reality.

They drove without speaking for twenty miles or so. Finally they reached the hard top. “Where to?” Sonny Ray asked. “Shiprock, the town. You remember I told you about Daniel Falls?” Sonny Ray nodded in the affirmative. “He is a mortician. He was one of my fathers best friends back in the old days.
He lives on the edge of town, not to far from here,” Dwayne said.
Sonny Ray nodded, gesturing in the affirmative. “Daniel Falls is an old mixed blood. He has lived off the grid since I was a kid. He is in his late seventies I believe. In town they call him, ‘Daniel Falls down a lot,’” Dwayne said smiling.
“Okay, so how did the old man get that handle?”

Sonny Ray was biting on Dwayne’s story now.

Dwayne looked over his shoulder at Cyrus.

He hoped he wasn’t being disrespectful for telling a story in the midst of all this sadness.

Dwayne turned back to Sonny Ray. “Well the story I was told, was prior to the time when Daniel would make entry into this world, his mother had tripped, and taken a bad fall. He was born healthy, but as Daniel grew up he was forever tripping, and falling all over the place. His parents had him examined by several doctors down in Phoenix; but they could find nothing wrong with Daniel.
Surprising enough it was his mother who assigned him the name, Daniel Falls down a lot, and the name just stuck,” Dwayne said, shrugging his shoulders now, with a smirk on his face.

“Now who’s full of shit?” Sonny Ray asked quietly, raising his eyebrows.

Both men feigned a smile.

Dwayne brought the suburban to a stop in the dusty little parking lot of Daniel Fall’s mortuary. Dwayne stepped down. “I’m going to go get Daniel. I’ll be back in a minute.”
Sonny Ray swung the squeaky door open of the vehicle.

He sat looking at a covey of quail as they quickly made haste across the dirt road disappearing into the protection of the desert scrub, and reddish rock that this part of the desert had to offer.

The commander of the quail continued clucking signals to his covey as he cut his eyes back at Sonny Ray.

Daniel emerged with his beat up gurney as Dwayne held the front door.
Dwayne took the wheel and maneuvered the old gurney down the worn out plywood ramp. Daniel had offered to help but Dwayne assured him he had help. He stood on the porch, waiting for the men to bring Cyrus inside.
After loading Cyrus on the gurney, the two men struggled a bit in the dirt, and rock laden parking lot. Once reaching the ramp they were fine. Daniel held the door as they wheeled Cyrus in.
Daniel nodded politely at Sonny Ray. “Right this way please,” Daniel said as he held the two swinging aluminum doors open for the three men. Dwayne began to untie the orange twine that held the blanket fast.

Cyrus used to say to Dwayne that the string used on bales of hay had a million and one uses. “A million and two now my old friend,” Dwayne said as he slowly took the blanket from Cyrus’ body.

The large Hawaiian was tall, and yet wide in his shoulders, and narrow in waist, with dense quads and immense calves. It pained Dwayne to see him lying there, looking so out place; so incomplete without his spirit.

Daniel and Sonny Ray filed quietly out of the room so that Dwayne could say his goodbyes. Dwayne had stood quietly for some time, unmoving, grasping firmly the wad of orange string as he searched the old man’s face. Dwayne gazed down at the hands of his old friend, remembering the kindness he held in them. After a few moments he came out. Sonny Ray stood waiting.

“This will be your last chance to say goodbye,” Dwayne said, his voice thick with emotion.

Sonny Ray pursed his lips, and exhaled deeply. He slowly slid thru one side of the swinging aluminum doors and walked in to where Cyrus lie.
He leaned his shoulder against the wall as he looked at Cyrus for a long time.

Sonny Ray found it hard to believe that this man that he just met, was not only his father, but without notice he too, up and died.

“I’ll do my best with your eagle Cyrus. Your timing kind of sucks old man; but I won’t hold it against you though, life happens. Mahalo for finding me.” Sonny Ray laid a large black eagle feather on the chest of Cyrus. He looked at the old man once more and then walked out of the room.

Sonny Ray continued walking, right out of the front door of the mortuary, refusing to make eye contact with the two men.

After awhile they stood together out on the porch. The trio of men discussed the details of Cyrus’ requests. “Is there anything else I could accommodate you with? Daniel asked.

“Yeah actually there is, Daniel.”

Sonny Ray had a way of speaking that made people pay attention.

“I left a black eagle feather with Cyrus. I would like you to cremate it with him please.” “Oh by all means young man, I will ensure it is done personally,” Daniel said enthusiastically, not recalling Dwayne knew he was the owner/operator of this one man establishment. They all shook hands.

Dwayne returned inside with Daniel to finalize the arrangements, and sign all the necessary paperwork. Sonny Ray walked down to the end of the long front porch. Daniel had a circular wood bench built around this wide and stout piñon tree. The shade of this tree was tremendous. Sonny Ray plopped down on the bench. He placed his straw hat on the bench beside him. He leaned the back of his head against the textured bark of the large tree, closing his eyes for a moment.

After some time he opened his eyes, looking around. It was getting on toward the evening. The parking lot was empty. Sonny Ray rummaged through the pocket of his faded wrangler jean shirt, and retrieved a crumpled joint of purple kush. He lit it, and exhaled into the dense underbrush of the tree. Sonny Ray looked up into underside of the tree.

He heard the sound of sparrows.

The fragrant flower of kush ascended upward; offering a strong but restful odor of this ancient medicine. Sonny Ray observed a sparrow peering down at him from a large bough of the juniper tree. The sparrows began to gradually increase in number and in volume.

They were excited about something, and spoke incessantly to one another. Then it gradually stopped. The sudden silence had arrested his attention. Sonny Ray observed three adult sparrows, three females sitting comfortably on the bench near to Sonny Ray. The trio of ladies looked at the young man with the long wavy hair. They were bouncing in a dainty rhythmical dance. Sonny Ray looked at the trio with a measure of curious disbelief.
The three sparrows were engaged in a heavy discussion about something. They would occasionally glance in his direction as if to reiterate their point more emphatically. Sonny Ray loved sparrows. He liked their distinct personalities, and the general interactions of their group.

He had often watched them take little dirt baths. They made him laugh. These sparrows though were different. They carried on and behaved as though they were tame, or were lacking an inborn fear of man perhaps.

Sonny Ray continued to observe the lavender kush clouds as they ascended upward, melting away into the dark canopy of the tree.
Without warning, one of the three female sparrows flew down at his feet.

Meanwhile, in the upper deck of the juniper tree every sparrow in attendance roared with excitement. Sonny Ray didn’t move. This was beyond cool.

He had never had a sparrow land this close to him in his life. The raucous crowd of little winged creatures seemed to embolden the distinguished elder who stood at the feet of Sonny Ray.
She hopped ever closer. Sonny Ray looked down. The plump sparrow arched her head upward without any obvious signs of fear. Again without notice, another female flew from the bench and landed upon the shoulder of Sonny Ray. He froze. He had no words for the feeling he had at this moment.

The sparrow dome was out of control. The third female sparrow remained on the bench near Sonny Ray watching.

She chirped and the large group of sparrows suddenly began to fall rapidly from the tree landing on Sonny Ray, wherever a spot could be had. The sound of the collective sparrows was deafening. Sonny Ray held his arms out smiling so hard his face hurt.

The roaring crowd looked like sparrow paratroopers falling from the sky.

The door swung open as Dwayne walked out. He stopped dead in his tracks. Sonny Ray looked at Dwayne. Dwayne looked at Sonny Ray.

The sparrow dome and the three sisters grew quiet, looking at the two men. Dwayne and Daniel who were both stunned and amazed, gazed at the little sparrow people.

It looked like an intertribal standoff with neither group willing to give any ground.

The impasse was avoided as a signal was given. The celebration of the sparrows started back up again. Dwayne was stunned, his face in a frozen smile. The two men laughed as the sparrow people behaved like puppies, bonding with Sonny Ray.
The celebration continued for a time, but would be cut short as the three sisters issued the familial call that it was time to go home now.

Grandmother was calling them to return.

The trio of sisters departed, and in short intervals, like a shadow, the sparrows blended upward, back to their home. Dwayne approached Sonny Ray, and whacked him playfully on the shoulder. Both men felt like a couple of kids.

They had just shared an extraordinary experience.

The two men slowly headed to the suburban ready to leave now. The men turned at the sound of the mortuary doors opening.
Daniel held up his arm to get the attention of the men. They turned in his direction as Daniel came off the porch.

His foot was about to hit the ground when the cuff of his faded corduroy pants snagged a nail on the last step. Daniel Falls down a lot was sent sprawling, nearly into a full on header landing spectacularly onto the dirt parking lot. The two men instinctively stepped forward wanting to offer assistance to the fallen mortician. The old man rose before they could reach him. Whatever he wished to discuss would wait until tomorrow as he turned on his heel brushing himself off. “I will attend to Cyrus now. I will call you when everything is finalized.”
He quickly closed the door. A slight breeze blew causing dust devils to swirl upon the ground of the dirt parking lot. They laughed noisily as they pulled out onto the road. The two men were hungry, and Dwayne knew a spot.

They headed into the town of Shiprock to get the best fry bread ever made.

The two men had not noticed the sizeable black eagle as it sat upon the chimney of the crematorium.

The black eagle dream found itself in a unique quandary, having a father and son whose blood flowed as one.

As in centuries past, the black eagle dream would have instinctively followed it’s new charge,

but as the journey of Cyrus was not yet complete,

the black eagle dream would remain.

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