ESSAY CEMETERY

Reflection on life She was an old woman now, and her life had become memories. Attention to the elements (of nature) Thinking of the past and future Weaving Denial/ misunderstanding/spirituality? It wasn't like Jimmie died. He just never came back [...] White people distinguished as "the white man" Nature is relaxing The sun warmth relaxed her and took the fear and anger away. She lay back on the rock and watched the sky. It seemed to her that she could walk into the sky, stepping through clouds endlessly. Danny played with little pebbles and stones, pretending they were birds’ eggs and then little rabbits. Ella sat at her feet and dropped fistfuls of dirt into the breeze, watching the dust and particles of sand intently. Ayah watched a hawk soar high above them, dark wings gliding; hunting or only watching, she did not know. The hawk was patient and he circled all afternoon before he disappeared around the high volcanic peak the Mexicans called Guadalupe. Emotions associ...

This short story is summarized in bullet points for no good reason. Events ·        It's a hot dry summer. Tony's friend Leon comes back from the army. He is drinking. ·        A state cop punches Leon in the face ·        Leon is admitted to the hospital with broken teeth and get stitches ·        Tony dreams about the cop who has white round eyes on a ceremonial black mask instead of a face ·        Leon gets better but wants revenge and Tony tries to dissuade him ·        Tony sees the cop in a gas station store and Leon says he is just as good as the cop ·        The cop follows them and they pull over. He makes them get out of the car. ·        Tony knows he can't look at the cop's eyes. He tries not to but then looks at ...

The story is comprised mostly of the main character's thoughts, which I decided were more easily summarized in bullet points. Ayah (an old Indian) sits outside in the snow immersed in nature reflecting on the past and the future Her son Jimmie was a soldier She thinks of her mother, grandmother and herself preparing wool and weaving blankets She thinks of Jimmie's birth She recalls when she was informed of Jimmie's death Chato- Ayah's husband? She recalls how: She mourned Jimmie She signed papers that allowed her children Ella and Danny to be taken away by doctors without understanding what she signed, but then ran away with the children The next day Chato, Ayah’s husband, explained that the children had inherited a disease from Ayah's grandmother and she had signed an agreement to treat them The children were taken away She had had other children who died but it was bearable because they were with her Back to the present: It starts snowing Ch...

Buddy and his half brother and his mother Albertine American Horse are in the woodshed, hiding from the cops. One of them is Officer Harmony, a tribal policeman who is tough on Native Americans. Buddy knows something horrible is coming, something metal from the sky with barbs and hooks, to kill them. He enjoys watching his mother sleep. His mother regrets her experiences with men but not Buddy. She hates men. Two policemen and a social worker Vicky Koob come. Buddy hugs his mother close and relishes the contact despite the fear. The brown dog barks at them viciously so one of the policemen draws his gun on him and it retreats. Uncle Lawrence, in strange garb, opens the door. Harmony tells him they have papers that allow them to take Buddy. The other officer, Brackett, warns Lawrence that they'll take him too if he doesn't cooperate. They handcuff him and start searching the house and shed. Koob is eager to find Buddy "to salvage him". She catalogues all of the...