Chapter 2

Howie waited patiently for the plane from Ireland. The television monitor listed their flight as one hour late. Howie sat totally relaxed and focused on the door. Howie thought he was patient before he met Black Eagle, now he knew how to be patient and vigilant. If he had to, he knew that he could sit and wait for as long as it took for his parents to come though the Customs terminal door. He waited, relaxed but focused.

Howie's parents were very surprised when they cleared customs at BWI. A tall muscular man in Levi's, a knit shirt, boots, and a Stetson was waiting for them.

But his mother knew he was Howie. He looks like a grown man. He has grown five inches. I expected that he would be taller, but he looks like his weight has more than doubled. He is really handsome man. He doesn't look fifteen. He does look like he stepped out of a Marlboro ad. My baby has grown up.

She dropped her luggage and ran to him. "We have missed you. You look good, real good. I have a million questions to ask you."

His father said, "I almost did not recognize you. Oklahoma must have agreed with you."

His mother said, "You are different."

"Mom, it has been over two years. I am different."

He hugged his mother. "It is good to see you Mom. I want you to tell me all about Europe."

His father said, "I have to get a shuttle. When did your plane get in?"

Howie said, "I have a pickup truck."

His mother asked, "You aren't old enough to drive."

"I have a legal license. My truck is in the parking lot."

Howie took her two bags and they started for the truck.

"Tell me about the driver's license," his father said as they walked.

"At the end of the first summer, I became a member of the Kiowa Nation. I have a Kiowa driver's license and identification," Howie said.

When they got to the truck, his father said, "I'll drive."

His mother asked, "What happened to you? You are so much bigger."

"Mom, I ate pretty good. I worked hard, almost all day long, at least during the late spring, fall and summer. I gained weight and got stronger."

His father asked, "What's this about the Choctaw Nation?"

Howie said, "Kiowa not Choctaw." He told the story of Black Eagle.

"You were a chief?" his mother asked.

"No, I was a Medicine Man's helper," he said. "Black Eagle taught me about the Kiowa's ways, customs and history. He believed I saw things, so I was a Vision Man. He trained me to be a Medicine Man."

His father said, "I bet that was interesting. A fair skinned blond Kiowa."

Howie said, "In some ways that made it easier to be a Vision Man. It is kind of like the Kiowa's white buffalo belief."

His mother asked, "Where do they live?"

"Their largest land is where Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico meet. It spans the corners of the borders of the three states. Uncle Dolph's ranch is north of the Kiowa land, almost half way between the Comanche and Kiowa lands," Howie said.

He said, "The houses in the small village, where I was, were very poor, tar paper shacks. Most of the villagers were elderly women. I spent the first summer fixing up houses, helping Dolph, and working on the wheat harvest. The second summer, instead of working on houses, I mostly drilled water wells at the houses in my Kiowa village. This summer I drilled deep water wells for the villages that needed them."

His mother asked, "My village?"

"It is part mine," he said,

"What about school?" she asked.

He answered, "Oklahoma recognized Black Eagle as a teacher and Dolph felt I could learn much more from him than in a school. I am glad he did, because I did learn much, much more."

"Black Eagle's spirit left this spring. This summer I drilled wells in the villages that needed them most. Just before wheat harvest, the council appointed me Medicine Man and Chief of my village. So now I have the responsibilities of a Chief and I am on the Council that governs the Kiowa Nation."

They were home in an hour and a half. His father said, "I will have to think about this some more. This is too much to take in after a very long flight. I need to buy a car. May I borrow the truck until then?"

"Sure, I am having to make some adjustment too. Dolph had all gas appliances and a small electric generator that ran off propane. My village doesn't have electricity at all. We heated and cooked off coal stoves in the winter. We didn't have running water in the house until last summer. I drilled artesian wells for the village and Black Eagle. So he had cold running water but no hot. You had to heat water on the stove if you wanted hot water."

His mother said, "That's too rough for me. What about a refrigerator?"

"Dolph had a gas one. Black Eagle didn't have one," he answered.

"I am surprised you didn't get sick," she said.

"Most things were canned or eaten fresh. In the winter, I ate mostly canned goods from Dolph. They were Army surplus sold in the Army commissary. I hunted for fresh food for Black Eagle. You get used to it."

His father said, "You would think they would have electricity."

"The village was a very small, not near anything. Dolph was miles from the next person," he answered.

His mother asked, "Was there anybody your age?"

"No, most of the people in the little village were old."

They pulled in their house's driveway. His father said, "Well, the house looks okay."

Howie said, "You all go in. I'll get your luggage.

Howie was a very different person. He was confident. He knew how to take care of himself and to live self-sufficiently.

He was five inches taller and his weight had more than doubled. He was no longer awkward. His movement was fluid and graceful. And he was confident with women.

The high school principal was perplexed and proposed that he not receive credit for the time he was gone. His father insisted that he be placed into the tenth grade class, with the classmates he left. Everyone was surprised when Howie asked to be placed in Advanced Spanish. His father got a ruling from Harrisburg that required the school to give Howie credit for his Oklahoma education.

He found history tame in comparison to Black Eagle. But he kept his opinions to himself. If asked, he said, "I went to Oklahoma to stay with my uncle. He has a ranch in the panhandle of Oklahoma."

Classes were easy. His mind seemed to work better. He was much further along in conversational Spanish, but his Spanish reading and grammar skills were behind the class. He sat in the front seat closest to the window, when he had a chance to select his seat. Except in one class, he sat near the window.

In PE, he jogged and did isometric exercises. The PE teacher asked him about it and he said that he was thinking about playing football next year.

The PE teacher was a coach, "Why don't you go out this year? You can play on the JV. Where would you like to play?"

"Middle linebacker." Howie said.

"The JV team physicals are today. Can you make it?"

When the team stripped for the physicals, Howie looked like a man in a room with boys. He was far more muscled than any of the others.

His PE teacher coached the varsity defense. He saw Howie walk onto the practice field late. The players had last period PE, which was really practice. Howie didn't.

"Coach, this is Howie Randolph. He thinks he want to be a middle linebacker, a Sam Huff. Could you give him a try?"

Howie went in. The JV coach called a dive play that would go right at Howie.

Howie slipped the block of the center and guard and smacked the fullback for a loss. Howie really hit the guy.

The varsity coach said with as little excitement as possible. "Nice tackle."

"Run 28 pull."

The JV coach called for a halfback sweep with the near guard pulling and the center and off guard blocking down on Howie.

Howie shot the gap before the center could block him and hit the halfback and quarterback at the exchange point.

The varsity coach said, "Thanks, coach. Howie come with me."

Howie's second and last period classes were switched. By the end of the week, Howie started at middle linebacker.

The head coach said, "But he doesn't know our schemes."

The defensive coach said, "You can't coach what he does. I have changed our line assignments to block the offense lineman off Howie."

The first game was against Manheim Central. Manheim was a Division 4 school; they were Division 2, and Manheim outweighed them by at least fifty pounds a man in the line. Manheim always drove the ball down their throats the first series to intimidate them.

The first play from scrimmage the Manheim fullback got the ball on a dive play. Howie hit him behind the line before he took a full step. Howie hit him so hard, Howie knocked the wind out of the big back and Howie recovered his fumble.

On Manheim's second series, Howie knocked their quarterback out of the game.

Neither team had a first down. Manheim superior punting keep Howie's team backed up.

In the second half, Manheim put a lineman in as a blocking back. The back went in motion always stopping in front of Howie. Even doing that, Manheim still couldn't run. The second team quarterback was not good enough to move the team though the air. And Howie hit him every time he threw.

Howie knocked Manheim's starting center out of the game in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, Manheim lined up to punt. Howie told the center and the kicker, he was coming to get them. The center hiked the ball ten feet over the punter's head. Howie covered the punter who fell on the ball inside the fifteen.

On third down, Howie's team successfully kicked a field goal and won the game 3 - 0.

Howie adjusted to school, though he found it confining.

Howie told the defensive coach, "I have a problem. I have a family position that requires I understanding accounting. My dad is a college professor and wants me to take an accounting class. The only class, they have open, is a Tuesday Thursday class that starts at 2:40. I really need the class."

The coach called one of the boosters. The CPA volunteered to help Howie.

"I don't want you to scrimmage in pads anyway. We don't have enough players to take chances you will hurt any more people. I would like for you to look at the opponents' game films and do walkthroughs.

"I think you can do that during sixth period," he said.

Howie asked, "Would it be all right if I went over to the college's fitness center and worked out after school. It is a nice setup."

"Why do they let you in?" the coach asked.

"Dependents of employees can use the fitness center," Howie said.

"Of course you wouldn't work out on game days, which is usually Friday?" the coach said.

Howie dropped off council papers that the Indian Bureau sent him at the CPA's. He had an appointment for sixth period Friday to go over the papers.

Howie got behind Wanda in the lunch line. She was the girl who had asked him out in sixth grade. He asked, "Wanda could we eat together?" She has a pretty face. If she lost weight, she would have to beat the guys away.

"Okay," Wanda said. Act cool. I didn't even think he remembered me. He is so cool. And he is the star of the football team. He could sit anywhere he wants.

Howie said, "It's been a long time."

Wanda was so self-conscious she had a hard time eating.

Howie asked, "Does your mom still work at the college?"

"She works in accounting. Your father is a professor, isn't he?" she asked.

"I am going to start working out at the fitness center. Would you like to be my exercise partner?" Howie asked.