A Navajo legend

by

Day-Ga-Chee

"Man with Red Whiskers"

In a far away valley, in a field flooded by sunshine and covered with blue sky, stands an old weathered post. The post is of wood, which has hardened with age as the rain, the wind and the sun beat against it. The post was buried deep into the ground near rocks, which made it almost impossible to remove. No one is certain why it is there or why in that particular location. Many have come and tried to remove the post but because of the rock and caliche at its base it couldn't be moved. Legend has it that the post was content to stay. It did not want to be moved! Some say that the Gods decreed that it should not be removed or destroyed until Their time. Many came and tied their horses to the post. Some leaned on the post as they talked. The post was happy even though a few came along to kick it or whittle off the corners with their sharp knives.

The post enjoyed the company around it. Its friends were the green palo verde and mesquite trees and the stately saguaro cactus that had stood beside it all these long years. Squirrels came to perch and look off into the distance. Birds would stop to rest and sing and enjoy the view of the mountains surrounding the valley.

This old weather-beaten post one day was shocked into life ...even the dried up sap began to flow again. Everything became more beautiful. The sky became bluer. The sun shone warmer and brighter. The trees were greener. All the surroundings seemed to change and if it were possible, the post had urges to grow roots and sprout limbs. For down thru the mountains into the valley fluttered the most beautiful butterfly that had ever been seen. She was floating gently with the winds from one side of the valley to the other. Her beautiful wings stroked the breezes as she fluttered from one flower to the next. The old post was excited as he watched her brush past the green limbs of the trees. As she flew past the leaves of the trees and shrubs, they would lean toward her as if they were all watching her every movement. It seemed as if there were eyes in every leaf and rock. Even the gentle way that she fluttered her wings created a beauty that had never been seen in the valley. Her wing designs were exotic yellows and gray that were-surely painted by the Gods. Her presence changed the life of the rustic post.

How he wished he could turn to watch her movements as she drifted by. If only he had limbs so that she would light on them. With every power he urged the old knots to grow. How powerful these urges were ... but to no avail. He could not move ... he could not turn. He could not bend or twist to follow her flight, but by some gift of the Gods he could watch! He could think! And he began to radiate thoughts and desires out toward the butterfly. She was welcome to fly near, to even light and rest her wings. His desire was so great that he knew that she would someday fly near, even land to flutter her wings above him.

Then she flew near by, her delicate wings gently brushing him ... then past again! Did she see him ... would she come by again? Would she land??? She must come by again! Then to his great delight she came near ... nearer, then rising with a slight breeze as if being lifted by the hand of a Goddess the beautiful butterfly came to rest on the top northeast corner of the post. He could feel her gentle touch and the movement of her wings slowly fluttering as she rested.

He was ecstatic. His sap grew warm. Roots should surely grow. How he was changing. She rested for the longest time. "Maybe she knows or feels my delight," he thought. "I hope she won't fly away too soon."

The birds and animals noted that the butterfly continued to rest on the post. "This was indeed unusual," all agreed.

Evidentially she felt comfortable resting there. The trees and bushes heard the breezes whisper that they thought they could hear the post talking ... and even the beautiful butterfly answering. But it was all so softly and so impossible that no one was certain that it was happening ... or that it happened.

Yet as the warm days past it was noted that the beautiful butterfly spent more and more time resting and ... the breezes said, talking to the post. Each night she would fly off into the valley darkness to reappear the next day near the old post. Everything in the valley thought that the post was looking younger even greener ... was it starting to grow?

The top of the post was reserved exclusively for the butterfly. All the valley animals, rocks and trees knew that the top of the post was hers whenever she was near or wished to be near.

When a strange bird or animal came near the gentle breezes would whisper and warn them away. Everyone agreed that this was a strange love affair.

Then one afternoon when dark clouds could be seen in the south and the lightning was snapping thru the sky, a dark figure came through the valley. The sap in the old post stopped as if frozen. His greenish color turned to gray. His roots seemed to curl as if singed by a hot flame. Where was his beautiful butterfly ... you could almost hear him cry ... but whoever heard of a post cry, or even talk ...or think??

As the dark figure rode nearer everyone saw that it was a handsome young man on a silvery white horse. Over his shoulder was a butterfly net: Across his saddle was a jewel­ed box with designs of a butterfly on it. And even the rocks confirmed what they heard and saw that day. The knot at the top of the post contorted to look like a mouth and said ..."I'll be here when ever you come back ... I'll wait ... no one will ever perch on me until you return...

As the handsome stranger with the jeweled box rode out of the valley the gentle breezes swear that they heard a soft feminine sound from the jeweled box say, "Don't forget me, ever someday I hope to return.

To this day the trees, shrubs, rocks, the Indians, the miners, the trappers and travelers all say that its certainly strange that they have never seen any living creature sitting upon the post to rest or sing or enjoy the view...

And the old gray post stands as if it were petrified, solid in the rocks ... waiting !!