Canku Ota

(Many Paths)

An Online Newsletter Celebrating Native America

June 28, 2003 - Issue 90

Thunderhawk - The Great Cross-Country Adventure - Part 13

As the mice celebrated Paden suddenly came to the realization that Baby Shannon was missing from the group. Paden suddenly blurted out, "Hey! Where's Baby Shannon?" As he asked this question the celebration immediately grew silent. Tears welled up in the eyes of all who had survived the catastrophic flood at their homeground. Paden grew very nervous as he insisted, "Where is Baby Shannon?" Then Penny began sobbing and said very meekly, "We don't know where Baby Shannon is. As we began to run from the flood I put her on my back and suddenly the water was rushing over us. I lost my balance and was rolled over and over by the rushing water. When I finally was able to regain my footing to run I realized that Baby Shannon was no longer on my back. There was so much noise and confusion we couldn't even hear each other screaming. Suddenly I saw the other mice running ahead of me and I ran after them as fast as I could run. We ran and ran and ran. After sound of the roaring water began to fade behind us I realized that Baby Shannon was not there with us. I called and called for her and other mice joined me but we couldn't find her anywhere. We searched frantically for that precious little mouse but she was gone. It was the worst day of my life."

Now all the mice were crying. Ian fell on his knees as he remembered finding the muddy and torn stuffed mouse he had given Baby Shannon under the muddy debris. He cried her name out over and over. It was so sad.

Thunderhawk and Blaze were roosting in a tree nearby watching the celebration and they understood what was happening. Blaze looked at Thunderhawk and said, "Those poor little mice. Do you think that there's any chance that she's still alive out there?" Thunderhawk looked blankly back at her and just shook his head back and forth with a sad look on his face. Blaze said, "I want to go search for her." Thunderhawk looked at her and his head tilted to the left side as he appeared to be thinking about what his mate had just said. Then he said, "Let's go." The two beautiful redtails launched themselves out of their tree and Thundrerhawk let out a loud call.

Two Eagles looked up and knew what the hawks were doing. Andrew the Apache and Jamie both looked at each other and smiled as they knew too. Then Andrew the Apache followed the hawks lead and said, "Jamie and I are going to search for Baby Shannon. Until we know for sure that she didn't survive there is always hope."

All the little mice looked up and they stopped crying as Andrew the Apache's words brought a faint sense of hope. Ian, Paden, Paddy and Sean Jr. all cried out, "Hey! We want to go too!" The adult mice talked for a few minutes and agreed to let the four young mice join the search. The other mice then began discussing returning to the homeground to try to clean it up and make it livable again. Moose Lee and Two Eagles were going to stay behind and help the other mice with their work at the homeground.

After a short farewell the search party started back down the mountain as the mice headed back to the homeground to try to restore their home. As Jamie walked away from the group she picked up each one of the four little male mice and placed two on each of her shoulders. The little mice were worried but felt a sense of comfort in their human friends ability to find Baby Shannon if she had survived the terrible flood.

As Thunderhawk and Blaze flew off into the beautiful morning sky they discussed how they would search for the little mouse. Thunderhawk felt that if she had survived she may have been washed all the way down to Chilhowee Lake and maybe even all the way to the far side of the beautiful mountain lake. Blaze decided that she would search the near shore and surrounding forest while Thunderhawk searched the far shore area. They bid each other farewell and flew off in the two separate directions.

As the group that had stayed behind made their way down off the mountain they talked and said prayers to the Great Creator to ask for success in finding Baby Shannon. There were some tears among the mice but many began to feel hopeful.

As they approached the homeground they were shocked at the destruction and litter from the flood. After gawking at the mess for a few minutes they got to work. Two Eagles and Moose Lee began moving the heavy timber and rocks that had been scattered around by the flood. The mice began cleaning and uncovering their home from the layers of mud and silt that had filled every nook and cranny of their safe haven. The day was very hot and it made the work more difficult.

There were many snakes around but they were kept away from the hard working mice by Two Eagles and Moose Lee. There was also enormous numbers of bugs and mosquitoes which also served to make the work more difficult. It still didn't slow the work down any.

As Andrew the Apache and their little mice companions approached the little creek that had flooded they saw evidence of many animals that had been killed by the floodwaters. There were many mice that had been killed but they didn't see their beloved Baby Shannon. The day was very hot and the smell of the dead animals was really terrible. The scene was really scary looking to the little mice. It looked like a nightmare and they were feeling more and more upset. Ian said, "How could Baby Shannon be okay? Look at this! It's sickening. I don't want to see anymore. I want to go home. I want to see Penny!" Then he began to cry uncontrollably. The other three little mice began crying too.

Jamie tried to calm them down but it was useless. Andrew the Apache decided to take them back to the others and then he and Jamie would continue the search without them. They weren't too far downstream from the homeground so they were able to get there quickly. As they approached they were amazed at the progress the others had made in clearing and cleaning the homeground compound. It was amazing. The sight lifted the spirits of the four little mice with Jamie and Andrew the Apache. Penny and Virginia O'Malley saw them approaching and ran out to comfort the little ones.

Jamie and Andrew the Apache spoke briefly to Two Eagles and Moose Lee who had finished clearing the heavy debris from around the homeground. They also decided to join in the search for Baby Shannon. This turned out to add further comfort to the other mice as Two Eagles and Moose Lee were so wise. After a brief farewell they heade off downstream with Andrew the Apache and Jamie crossing to the far side of the stream to search while Two Eagles and Moose Lee stayed on the nearside of the stream.

Although Thunderhawk and Blaze were in different areas as they searched they were saddened by the destruction that they saw. Thunderhawk thought to himself about how powerful Mother Nature is. Even though he was a mighty hawk his power was nothing compared to Mother Nature. As Thunderhawk flew out across Chilhowee Lake he was stunned at all the debris floating in the lake. His keen vision caught a glimpse of a log floating in the middle of the lake with some mice on it. He flew down for a closer look and saws some adult mice jump into the water on his approach. They obviously feared that he was going to eat them and the water offered some safety for them. However, there was one little mouse that seemed to be either dead or sleeping that was still on the log.

Thunderhawk flew down and landed on the log. His massive body towered over the little mouse who remained motionless. As he stared at the little mouse he realized that it was Baby Shannon. As he looked at her his mind began to remember some of the past adventures he had been involved in where he had saved Baby Shannon's life. In particular he remembered the time on Chilhowee Lake when Baby Shannon had been jumping off her favorite rock and swimming back after jump and a large water snake had crept up tried to eat her. Thunderhawk had managed to grab the snake just before it had grabbed Baby Shannon and had saved her life. Now he sadly looked down at her motionless muddy body and felt very sad.

Then Thunderhawk thought he saw her tiny tail twitch. His head tilted back and forth as he watched for any sign of movement. Then after a short time he nudged her with his powerful beak. Incredibly she let out a soft moaning sound. He was pleased and a slow smile slowly crept across his beak as he realized that she was alive. She was obviously extremely weak but at least she was alive.

The huge bird gently picked the little mouse up in his beak and took off to find Blaze. As he climbed into the sky he headed toward the area that he knew Blaze would be searching. It didn't take long to find her and as she saw him approaching she was thrilled to see Baby Shannon in his beak. She immediately flew over to Thunderhawk and asked him if she was still alive. He nodded his head up and down and Blaze was happy to see his positive response.

As they flew back in the direction of the homeground they saw the humans and Moose Lee searching around the stream bank. Blaze let out a loud call and they all looked up. Jamie cried out, "Hey! They found Baby Shannon! Is she still alive?" Thunderhawk flew right onto Jamie's left shoulder and gently laid Baby Shannon's muddy body into Jamie's right hand. The others gathered around to see if she was still alive. To their amazement she was!

The group all thanked Thunderhawk and Blaze for finding her. Thunderhawk nodded and he and Blaze flew up into the sky and circled around as the search party made their way back top the home ground. As they approached Jamie called out, "Hey! We've got Baby Shannon!" The mice in the homeground all stopped what they were doing and ran as fast as they could go toward their human friends. Thunderhawk and Blaze looked at each other and smiled as another huge celebration began. There was crying and laughing and cheers of joy all going on at the same time. It was a beautiful sight and the Great Creator shook his head and smiled as he saw what had been broken be made whole again.

The End - Part 13

© 2003 Geoff Hampton

Geoff Hampton is an internationally known author, speaker, motivator and business consultant. Hampton is the Executive Director for St. Mary's Health and Fitness Center in Powell, TN and is also a regular columnist for the wellness/fitness Website www.fitcommerce.com and Canku Ota. He can be reached by E-mail at GEOFFLHAMPTON@aol.com. His national anti-obesity/diabetes campaign, The Wellness Wakeup Challenge can be reviewed at www.fitcommerce.com/wellness Many of his health/wellness past features can be located at www.fitnessmanagement.com by looking in the Library of Articles section under Management Advice - Online Column and Management FAQ's - Online Column

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