Today I survived my first field trip as a teacher. I was dreading it. But everything went well, and no students acted too wild, got lost, or got hurt –not worse than tripping and falling on the trail, anyway. And no one threw up on the bus. phew!
We are in state testing for the next 3 weeks. boring! But soon enough that will be over as well, and then there are only about 3 weeks of school left. I am going to make sure to do some of the things I really love to do with students- like writing more poetry.
Two weeks ago, I heard a Navajo elder tell a story, and I keep thinking about it. This morning I was thinking about it again.
The story goes like this:
There was a young Diné boy. (Diné is the name that the Navajo call themselves.) The boy’s mother had told him never to go in a certain direction while he was hunting. She said that there were bad spirits and shapeshifters in that area. But the boy had his bow and arrows, and he thought he was strong. He wanted to hunt squirrels or rabbits for his family. So one morning before anyone else was up, he took his bow and arrows and went in that direction. As he walked, he met a giant. The giant touched his arm and looked into his eyes. He spoke kindly to the boy, saying, “Come with me to my house. There are many squirrels you can hunt there.” And because the giant had captured the boy with his eyes and his ears and his touch, the boy was under his power and agreed to go with him.
When they reached the giant’s home, the boy looked around at the barren land and said, “There are no squirrels, nor any other animal here. Why did you say there were?” He looked up at the giant, but the giant’s whole demeanor had changed. Now his face was cruel. The giant said, “Go gather me some firewood.”
The boy, knowing there were no animals around to eat, asked, “Why do you want firewood?”
“I’m going to cook you and eat you,” said the giant. Then, because he was in total control of the situation, the giant lay down and went to sleep.
The boy could not get away, so he began gathering the firewood. As he gathered the wood, he wept in fear and loneliness. But then, he heard a “Hsst!” which is how Diné parents get the attention of their children. The boy looked around, but couldn’t see anyone, so he continued gathering wood. Again, he heard, “Hsst!” He looked around, and this time, he saw a little chei, a little horned toad, sitting on a rock nearby. The chei wears arrowheads all over his body and even a big arrowhead as a hat on top of his head. The little horned toad asked the boy, “Why are you gathering wood and crying?”
“I am in the power of a wicked giant,” said the boy. “He is making me gather this firewood so that he can cook me and devour me. I’ll never see my mother or the rest of my family again,” and the boy began to cry even harder. “I can help you,” said the chei. “Do you see my hat? The giant is afraid of my hat. Take it and put it on and show it to the giant, and he will run away.”
The boy took the arrowhead hat from the horned toad and thanked him. He put on the hat and ran to where the giant was sleeping. He shook the giant’s arm and shouted, “Hey, hey, look at my hat.” The giant woke up and saw the hat, and he was afraid. He backed up away from the boy and began to run. The boy chased after him, shaking his hat. The giant ran until he fell off the edge of a mesa. That was the end of the giant, and the boy was able to return to his family.
After he told the story, the Navajo elder explained that in the old days, giants in the stories represented disease– unknown illnesses that could wipe out a whole family or even a whole clan. But, he said, the stories are still for today. Today the giant represents drugs or alcohol. The youth need to listen to their parents, listen to their elders, just like the boy listened to the little chei. (Chei is also the Diné word for maternal grandfather.) The teachings of your elders are like the hat that the chei gave to the boy so that he could defeat the giant.
This story reminds me of the parable of the prodigal son, and how while feeding the pigs, the young man came to himself and remembered his father’s home. I was also reminded of Enos, who was hunting beasts in the forest, when the words of his father sank deep into his heart, and he prayed for forgiveness, and obtained great promises. And, I was reminded of Alma the Younger, who in his moment of excruciating despair, remembered his father teaching of one Jesus Christ, a son of God. Alma cried out for help, “Oh Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me,” and was delivered from torment.
It is interesting to me that the chei gives the boy a hat–just like we talk about the helmet of salvation. (Doctrine and Covenants 27:18) Billy Graham said that when we put on the helmet of salvation, we put on Christ himself. President Nelson said, “God so loved the world that He sent His son to help us. And His son, Jesus Christ, gave His life for us. All so that we could have access to godly power–power sufficient to deal with the burdens, obstacles, and temptations of our day.”
No matter what giants we must face in this life, whether the giant of illness, of addiction, of pride, or of despair; whether the giants catch us with our eyes, our ears, or our feelings, it is Jesus Christ alone who will save us.
Marvelous Pigs in Satin 