Dogs are one of man’s closest
animal companions. Human beings see a
lot of themselves in the dog. We admire
their traits of loyalty, bravery, and humor.
Wild wolves and dogs live in very structured packs, based on family
which is another trait people can identify with. Dogs did not always live with people, but it
turns out that people needed dogs and so they found away to each other in a
little village.
There was cause for great
celebration in the village the day the brothers were born. The chief’s daughter-in-law had given birth
to twins. The chief threw a huge party
for his first born grandsons. They were
strong boys with mops of black hair, pools of dark liquid for eyes and branches for limbs. They were so much the same their mother could
hardly tell them apart. Where ever one
went the other was sure to be right there by his brother’s side.
As they grew they turned into
sturdy young men, strong as cedar trees.
The brothers were the favorite of their grandfather, for he was a wise
chief and knew that these boys were special.
He taught them in the ways of their people; knowing that one of them
would some day be the leader. They
patiently learned the stories about Raven and other tales of their people. There favorite stories were about brothers.
Their father taught them to hunt
and fish. They loved to go out fishing
together most of all. They would paddle
out onto the ocean and work together and catch the biggest halibut anyone had
ever seen. The brothers spent all their
time together hunting, fishing and helping their family. Soon it was time for them to get married.
Their father and grandfather chose
them the most beautiful brides in the village.
The brides were sisters with eyes gray like morning mist, noses like
perfect sea snail shells, and a smile that radiated the sun’s warmth. The twins were very happy. They went hunting to bring back gifts for
their new brides. There spirits were
with tem when they found two white sea otters.
The pelts were as beautiful as there soon to be wives. The whole village feasted for days and all
too soon the brothers went back to their normal lives. They moved into a big long house together
with their brides.
A few months after the wedding the
brothers decided to go on a hunting trip up to the mountains. They packed up their tools and supplies, and
then set out up the path into the woods.
The younger twin’s wife old him she was going to have a baby soon. The twins were very excited as they set off
into the woods laughing and joking. On
this trip they thought it would be good to bring back a special gift for the
younger brother’s wife.
They came around the corner and
there was the perfect gift. A big black
wolf was standing in the middle of the path.
Fearlessly the wolf looked at them and the younger twin said he would
kill it alone for his wife. The older
twin did not like this idea, but wanted to honor his brother’s request. The younger brother took off after, the wolf
and it began to lope away. The older
twin continued on to the hunting camp.
When his brother did not return by night fall he began
to worry. In the morning his brother had
not come back. He went down the path to
where the twins had parted ways and began to look. To his great sadness not far off the path he
found his dead brother and the dead wolf.
He wept enough tears to fill the ocean.
He picked up his brother’s body and skinned the wolf.
He came back to the village with
great sadness in his heart. The whole
village mourned the loss of a good hunter and the chief’s grandson. The older twin was inconsolable; he would
speak to no one but his grandfather. He
was very troubled by the dreams he kept having about the black wolf. The brother went through many months of this
as he watched his brother’s wife get rounder and more pregnant.
He decided he must do something
about this sadness and went to the medicine man for help. The medicine man sent him on a quest back
into the woods. He made sure the two
wives were taken care of and promised to be back soon. To prepare for this the brother fasted and
spent time in the sweat lodge. He
cleansed himself to prepare for the journey.
Finally he set off with few supplies into the woods.
The brother walked until he felt
tired. Then he walked farther pushing
the weakness aside. Finally he was so
weak and tired that he fell. He pushed
himself back up and walked a little bit more.
Then he fell again and could not get up.
He lay there thinking of his brother and how much he missed him. The older brother fell asleep there in the
middle of the path.
After some time he was woken up by
gentle licking on his face. He opened
his eyes and saw a tiny black fuzzy ball.
He sat up and looked it over discovering it was a wolf pup. The brother tried to push it away, but the
pup would have none of that and kept trying to play with him. The brother opened his bag and ate some dried
salmon, he was starving. The pup begged
shamelessly for a bite and the brother tossed him some.
The older brother sat there
wondering what to do with this wolf pup.
He smiled as he watched its antics.
He kept throwing little bits of salmon to it. He reached down to scoop up the pup, holding it
up he looked into its eyes. What he saw
almost caused him to drop the creature.
It was his brother in those eyes.
The older twin tucked the pup in his bag and set off for home with a
smile in his heart.
When he arrived home he went right
to his grandfather and showed him the pup.
His grandfather was overjoyed.
The brother brought the pup to his home and the younger twin’s wife
recognized him immediately. In a matter
of weeks the pup grew into an adult. The
wolf’s wife had a set of twins one was a wolf pup and the other was a little
boy. The family was very happy
The brothers lived long lives
together. They still went everywhere
side by side. The twins found that
hunting was much better when one of them had four legs and mighty teeth. It was also easier to retrieve water fowl and
the ends of fishing nets. The dog
brother didn't mind getting wet even when it was cold. The dog brother had wonderful hearing so he
could tell the whole village when strangers were coming. This continued for many generations and that
is how dogs came to live with people.
