Free Echoes of the Past by Susanne Matthews

almost became a

linguist instead of a scientist. She touched my lips and said Tohsa sata :ti . Then she touched my ears and uttered the word, Satahon'satat . Finally, she said Senehia :rak Eniorhen'ne iotohetston nen:tie . Senehia :rak . Does it mean

anything, or is it all gibberish?”
    Joseph grinned and

rubbed the palms of his hands together in satisfaction. He looked like someone

who’d just heard great news.
    Glad he’s excited about it. I suppose one of

us should be.
    “It isn’t gibberish.

It’s Mohawk, pronounced in the old way. It means be quiet and listen. Remember.

Tomorrow afternoon. Remember. Did she say anything else?”
    “What the hell does

that mean? Be quiet and listen, I’d figured out for myself. Tomorrow afternoon?

What’s going to happen tomorrow afternoon? Remember? Remember what? Yeah, she

said one more thing. I asked her name. She answered Tayouroughay . Is that a name or

something else?”
    The elder threw back

his head and laughed. Anger rose in Tony.
    “Look, this isn’t a

joke. Two kids are dead, and I’m losing my mind. The mayor thinks I had

something to do with their deaths. What the hell’s going on?” He realized his

voice was loud in the silence of the room, and felt his cheeks heat. The last

thing he needed was Mike and Maggie running in to defend their father against a

lunatic.
    Joseph sobered. “No,

it isn’t a joke. It’s a sad and serious thing, but it’s also an old man’s most

cherished dream come true. Let me tell you a story.” He raised his hand before

Tony could interrupt. “I believe all your questions will be answered. Now sit.

Be quiet and listen. Remember.”
    Tony shivered as

Joseph’s words echoed those the woman had spoken.
    Joseph spoke, and

the hypnotic quality of his voice forced Tony to listen attentively.
    “Long ago one of the

Mohawk gods, Sky Woman, lived high above the land, came to earth, and gave

birth to a daughter. Sadly, the child didn’t survive. In her grief, Sky Woman

buried the child, and from the child’s body sprung The Three Sisters, Corn,

Beans, and Squash, the great providers of life.
    “The Three Sisters

chose to remain here and dwell in the special waters of Onokenoga —the

Lake of the Gods. The Mohawk people visited the lake often, making sacrifices,

offering thanks for the bountiful harvest, and requesting things like plenty of

fish and game. The Three Sisters answered their prayers and carried others up

to Manitou, the Great Creator.
    “There was a chief

whose daughter was envied by all the other maidens. She was tall and gracious

with raven hair and kind eyes. Every brave wanted her for his bride. One brave, Annosothka , wanted her and went out of his way to please

her father. At first, the suit found favor with the chief’s daughter, but one

day when she was in the woods, she came upon an injured stranger, who called to

her heart, but he was her tribe’s sworn enemy. She nursed him, and they fell in

love. He would not leave the island without her, and eventually, he was

captured by the tribe and tortured.
    “During the night,

she released the prisoner, and they made plans to leave the island together the

following night. They were to meet near the edge of the lake where the

waterfall went down the cliff side. The following evening, her father announced

he’d given her hand to Annosothka . There was no way

she could be the bride of any man, but Gowanda, her lover. She fled the village

to meet him and escape, but her uncle and new husband chased her out onto the

lake where she threw herself into the water and was swept over the waterfall.

Gowanda saw his love in the grips of the water and tried to save her, but The

Three Sisters pulled the enemy down into the depths of the water. Even in

death, their spirits were kept apart, and they have sought one another ever

since. Family lore says the maiden was from my clan. I have begged the spirits

to release her for years.