Chapter 36

Just about time for supper. We liked to have supper before sunset so we can all enjoy the beautiful sunsets here from the main cave. Of course after the sun goes down its time for the nighttime activities and everyone likes them. Before we started on supper I stood and addressed my tribe. “May I have your attention for just a couple minutes please? I have several announcements that need to be heard. First we will be having some more people join us shortly. In two day’s time Dignar’s camp will be showing up in the meadow just like most of you did just a few days ago. I will be taking Tocla back in the morning and he will prepare his tribe to pack and be ready to come here. I think most of you have met Tocla, but stand up Tocla and say hi.” Tocla reluctantly stood and waved his hand and said, ‘Hi.’

“Also we have another, soon to be, new member or our tribe. Olnafot, please stand and say Hi.” He stood and did as Tocla had before. “Olnafot is from a tribe far north of here. As you can plainly see he is a little different looking that the rest of us, but then so are Barbara and I. But there is where the difference ends; he is a good man and very strong. Their tribe leader, Grunto, has asked if they can come and live here with us, the same as Joulnar and Dignar have. I have accepted their request just as I accepted yours. The new people who are coming have a lot of skills we need to be able to survive and grow as a camp. Please treat them as you would want to be treated by a stranger. If we do that then we become strangers no longer; we become friends and neighbors, not enemies. We welcome our new neighbors into our camp, help the new people find their way around and show them we can be good friends too.

“Also tomorrow we will be getting a hunting party together to get some meat for our growing camp. I would like Joulnar and Tovar, to get a party of four hunters and as many butchers and skinners as we can get. We will be butchering the animals on the plateau and cutting and packing the meat in bags and hauling them all back here for processing. We will have some of the meat for our new smoker and we will have a feast after the work is done. Thank you and let’s eat before it gets cold.”

I sat to much foot stomping and then quiet as everyone dug in eating. Tocla said to me, “Bob that was a very fine talk. I can see we will be very happy here. Olnafot your people will be very happy here too. I have heard today many people speaking about you. They will be very happy your people will come here with us. I even heard a couple women ask if you were mated. Are you mated Olnafot?”

“No Tocla I am unmated. Most of our unmated women are more like sisters to me and I do not wish to mate with them. I may find someone here I may wish to mate with, if Bob approves of my mate pick.”

“Olnafot, I do not pick mates for anyone but myself, with my mate’s approval, of course. I think that if two people like each other enough to think about being a couple, then who am I to say no. My daughter is to wed Joulnar’s former messenger, Outher, who is now one of my messenger men. I saw the way in which each reacted to each other and I could see they were made to be mated. That look is what I see when I saw Tocla here looking at his mate Bolonar, and also now when he mentions his new mate Violette. That look is called love and you can see it when a man looks at a woman he wants to care for and have with him for the rest of his days. That is the look of love. Look around you after the meal is done and you can see it everywhere. Especially when we look at the sun setting, everyone sees the majesty of the sky spirits work and they bask in its warmth and think good thoughts.”

“Bob I see now why everyone is here. You are an inspiration to all those around you. You work hard and yet you show people the way and let them work, you lead by example, you don’t force anyone to do anything they do not want to do, but you show them the advantages of why you want them to do it. They in turn want to please you and be like you. That is truly a gift from the sky spirits. I know everyone will be very happy here. This is truly a blessed place.” Lamanr’s little speech moved everyone at the table.

“Thank you Lamanr, I guess that it is. I live my life by a rule, we call the golden rule it is this; ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ In other words treat everyone like you would want to be treated. If you want to treat someone badly, then they would treat you that way too, but who wants to live like that? I sure don’t, so I treat everyone as nice as I can and hope that they treat me the same way. Now as you know, if someone treats me or innocent children badly, then I have the strength and power to treat them very badly in return. I do have some rules that I live by. The golden rule is one, but that can be expanded to mean I do not tolerate beating or abusing women or children. That rule is hard and fast. I will deliver my justice to all those who break that rule.”

“Bob are you the sky spirit who killed those men, who beat their women and abused that child?”

“Yes Olnafot, I am the one. I am not proud of what I had to do, but it needed doing and I was not going to let it go further. Marlit my second wife, told me of the things that Detara did to her mate Sotar, and the women he beat. I did not find out about the child until after I killed him. However my darling daughter Angel has been healed by the sky spirits and returned to me. Right Angel?”

“Yes daddy, Detara did many bad things to me but daddy fixed him and had me made well again. I thank the Sky Spirits every day, for them bringing my daddy to me.”

“We had heard that a sky spirit came down and killed these men, but we did not know it was you. We are deeply honored to be allowed to live with a true sky spirit. Thank you for accepting us as a part of your camp. I know Grunto will be most pleased by this news.”

“Please no more of this praise for me. I am but a man that the sky spirits sent down here to help all of the people of this land. Yes they gave me some magic, but I use it only for good. I have a vast knowledge of people and things to make life here very enjoyable. We will prosper and grow strong as a camp and we can spread the wisdom I have for all peoples. Now it is almost time for the sunset, let us enjoy what the sky spirits have given us.”