The first time that I changed Tsé, I learned a lesson. When you’re changing a boy, be sure to cover their front once you remove their diaper, or you just might get wet. I did.

Our mothers gave Ajie and me a chance to run out and buy a Christmas tree and all the things needed to decorate it. This will be our first Christmas in the house and the twin's first Christmas ever. And we are going to have a house full, along with the four of us there will be my parents, Ajie’s parents, and Bill and Bridget who’ll be staying in the hogan. Then, of course, we figure that we’ll have visitors.

We had Dr. Joe and Mary, and Chief Tom and Vickie, or should I call her Dr. Vickie or Dean Vickie, over to see the twins. And Mary’s pregnant.

Friday, we were able to get some housework done between helping the twins with their jobs. The twins have jobs, you ask? Sure they do. Their job is to eat, sleep, and poop. And they are exceptionally talented in doing all three.

Of course, we spent some time interacting with the twins. And Ajie and I even talked to them in Navajo and, of course, English. We also started trying to work in only one of us, changing and feeding the twins. We brought in two of the car seats, so when we were ready to take them into the big room or kitchen to feed them. We had a place. And later we’d use the playpen. We received a lot of complaints from the twins until Ajie figured that she could feed them both at the same time while they were sitting in their car seats.

Today something else happened. When Ajie picked up Haseya, I heard her say something for the first time. She said, “How’s mommy’s little girl?”

I looked at her and smiled. Ajie saw me and asked, “What are you smiling about.”

“I just heard you say something for the first time.”, I replied.

“What was that?”

“Mommy.”

“I said that?”

“Yes, and it was cute. You’re feeling closer to the twins, aren’t you?”

“I am. I was excited before the twins came to us, but now I’m beginning to feel that they’re part of the family. I feel really close to them.”

I smiled and said, “That’s okay, mommy. It comes with the territory.”

“To be honest with you.”, Ajie said. “I, like you, wasn't sure that this was going to work. But when Mrs. Biakeddy handed me Haseya, I felt something. It was like everything was right with the world. I saw my little girl.

“Then, when you finally let me hold Tsé, I also felt good. I saw my little boy.”

I just smiled and nodded, yes.

I’ve even heard Ajie say, “How’s mommy’s big boy?”, a few times when she had Tsé.

Of course, Ajie’s mother was still here and was a big help. Friday night, we went back to the two of us working together to change and feed the twins. It let us get some sleep. Because we were working together, we could quickly change and feed the twins and put them and us back to bed.

Saturday morning at five, while Ajie was changing the twins, I went to fix their bottles. As I walked through the big room, I turned on the television, and while it warmed up, I went into the kitchen and got the twins bottles. As I walked back through the big room, the TV had warmed up, and I tuned it to one of the major channels, and they were covering the Apollo 8 launch, and it was at T minus twenty-two minutes and counting.

I went back to the master suite, and whispered to Ajie, “I’m going to take Tsé and feed him in the big room and watch the launch. Want to join me?”

“Of course.”, Ajie replied as she picked up Haseya and follows Tsé and me.

The four of us went out to the big room, and Ajie’s mother had just come out of her bedroom, and she said, “Kai, you did say you were going to watch this. And you have the whole family with you.”

I smiled and said, “I figured that we could kill two birds with one stone. Feed the twins and watch the launch. And you know, that’s the first time I’ve heard someone call us a family.”

“Well you are a family, and I’ll get their bottles for you.”

“Thanks, mom.”, Ajie said.

“They’re in bottle warmers, mom.”, I said.

Ajie and I sat on the couch with the twins, and Ajie’s mother retrieved the bottles. As we feed the twins, we watched the countdown and listened to the comments from the NASA people and the television network people. There were no unplanned holds.

The twins finished their bottles, and we burped them. Then as we watched the coverage of the launch, Ajie and I held the twins and gently rocked them. Ajie’s mother was sitting with us.

Then we listened to the countdown, and when it hit zero, we watched as the Saturn V engines fired, and it lifted off the launch pad with the Apollo 8 spacecraft on top of it. We listened to the coverage until they reported that the Apollo 8 was in Earth orbit.

I sat back and relaxed. Then I looked at Tsé in my arms, and he was sound asleep. Ajie looked at me and whispered, “I don’t think that he was as excited as you were.”

“No, he wasn’t.”, I smiled and whispered back, “And neither was Haseya. She’s sound asleep too.”

Ajie and I took the twins back to our room and put them to bed. Then we joined Ajie’s mother in making breakfast. As we ate, Ajie’s mother said, “Kai, are they going to land on the Moon?”

“No, mom.”, I said. “This mission is to show that we can send a man to the Moon and bring them back.”

“Will the next one land on the Moon?”

“No, there are two more scheduled missions of an Apollo that won’t land on the Moon, and they will have the Lunar Module with them. Those will be Apollo 9 and 10. Then Apollo 11 is supposed to be the Moon landing mission, and that’s supposed to happen in July of next year.”

“And I’ll bet that you will watch all of them.”

“You know, I will.”

After we’d cleaned up the breakfast dishes and prepared bottles for the twins, I helped Ajie start the laundry. Then I went back to the big room and watched more coverage of Apollo 8.

Then at about two and a half hours after the launch, I heard NASA’s Mike Collins, who is the capsule communicator, or CAPCOM, for this mission say, "All right, Apollo 8. You are go for TLI."

And I watched as they went through the engine burns that were needed to send Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon.

I didn’t know that Ajie had walked up behind me until she said, “What’s TLI mean?”

I turned, looked at her, and said, “It means Translunar Injection. Which means that they are on their way to the Moon.”

“You’d love to be there. Wouldn’t you?”

“Where?”

“Cape Canaveral.”

“I’d rather be up there on the way to the Moon.”

“Think there will ever be a woman astronaut?”

“Yes, there will be.”

With the next feeding of the twins, we went back to only one of us changing and feeding the twins. And Ajie’s mother had the honor of doing the next one. When she was finished, she left them out in the big room, and we played with them a bit. After they’d fallen asleep, Ajie and her mom took them back and put them to bed.

When Ajie and her mom came back into the big room, Ajie’s mom said, “Those two kids are so easy going. They eat and sleep so well. And they take anything that you throw at them like it’s happened before.”

“Is that a good thing, mom?”, Ajie asked.

“Yes, it looks to me like those two are going to be good kids.”

“Why’s that?”

“They don’t overreact. Like with this thing where we’re trying to teach them to wait while their sibling is being changed. Some children would be throwing a fit. But these two may gurgle or fuss a little. But they wait.”

“Could it be a twins thing?”

“Could be.”

After everyone had lunch, we went about putting up the Christmas tree. Once we had the tree in the house and into the base, I had the fun job of crawling under the tree while Ajie, following her mother's instructions, kept it straight, and tightening the thumbscrews to hold the tree to the base. As we decorated the tree, we had the expected interruption when the twins needed changing and feeding. But we got it finished.

Then I treat for pizza for the three of us. We called Nunzio's Pizza and ordered two uncooked pizza. I’d cook them when I got them home. That way, our pizza would be hot. And Ajie’s sangria went very well with the pizza.

We were just cleaning up the dinner dished when we heard the ding from the driveway. A few minutes later we heard the ding-dong and then shortly we heard the doorbell. By the time the doorbell rang, I was on the way to the door. I opened the door and there stood Naainish and Quah Ah. I smiled and said, “Naainish. Quah Ah. Yá’át’ééh. T'áá shoodí wóshde´e´’. - (Naainish. Quah Ah. It is good. Please come in.)

“Yá’át’ééh, Kai Nez.”, Naainish said.

“I heard that you have two new members to your family.”, Quah Ah said. “And I just had to come and see them.” Quah Ah is the medicine woman from the Taos Pueblo.

“Yes, we do.”, I said as I stood back and allowed them to come into the house. I noticed that Quah Ah was carrying a bag. We walked into the big room, and Ajie and her mom were still watching the coverage of Apollo 8.

Ajie saw Naainish and Quah Ah, she jumped up, ran over, and hugged Quah Ah. Then she greeted Naainish with, “Yá’át’ééh, Naainish. I thought you’d have been here sooner.”

“I wanted to give you time to settle the awéé’s – (babies) into their new home.”, Naainish replied.

“They settled in very quickly.”, Ajie replied.

“Where are they?”, Quah Ah asked.

“Sleeping. They’ll be getting hungry soon, so they’ll be up.”

Ajie introduced her mother to Naainish and Quah An, and I got something for all of us to drink. We sat in the big room and talked for a few minutes. Then we heard the little ones over the baby monitor. Ajie and I excused ourselves and went and took care of the dirty diaper duo. We walked back into the big room with the twins, Ajie handed Haseya to Quah Ah, and she said, “Quah Ah, this is Haseya.”

As Quah Ah took her, she said, “She is so cute.”

I went to hand Tsé to Naainish, and he shook his head no, and said, “No, I’m afraid that I’ll break him.”

I looked at Naainish, smiled, and said, “No, Naainish, you won’t break him. I haven’t.”

As he said, “Oh, okay.” Naainish reached his hands out and took Tsé.

“Look at how Quah Ah is holding Haseya and hold him the same way.”

Naainish looked at Qua Ha and placed Tsé in his arms the same way that Quah Ah was holding Haseya. I saw Tsé look up at him, and he smiled. I knew this was a reflex smile to something, but I saw Naainish smile in response to Tsé's smile. And I couldn’t help but smile.

Ajie’s mother then brought the baby bottles in and handed one to Quah Ah. Quah Ah knew what to do, and Haseya also knew what to do.

Then Ajie's mother handed a baby bottle to Naainish, he looked at it, and said, “What do I do with this?”

“Look at Quah Ah.”, I said. “And do what she’s doing. And Tsé will do the rest.”

Naainish looked at what Quah Ah and Haseya were doing, and soon Tsé was working on his bottle.

Ajie walked out of the room and was quickly back with her camera. She took pictures of Naainish and Quah Ah feeding the twins. I grinned and said, “Now we have something to blackmail Naainish with.”

“Kai Nez!”, Naainish said. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh, yes, I would.”

He just shook his head. And I grinned.

As they fed the twins, we talked, and at one point, Naainish said, “Kai, I know that you have some questions for me. Don’t you?”

“I do.”, I replied.

“We’ll talk when we finish feeding these two.”

Earlier I’d laid a fire in the fireplace, and while the twins were being fed, I lit it. And when the twins had finished eating, Quah Ah burped Haseya. But Naainish wasn’t sure what to do, so I threw a diaper over my shoulder, took Tsé from Naainish, put him over my shoulder, and burped him. And what a burp we heard.

Ajie took Haseya from Quah Ah, then as I said, “We’ll be right back.” Ajie and I took the twins back to the master suite and put them to bed. Then we came back out to the big room and sat with everyone.

I sat and looked at Naainish, and he finally said, “Kai Nez, you are wondering how the Yei spirits fit into you having the twins?”

“Yes, Naainish.”, I said. “Why was I called to help the girl, and then why were we then called to adopt the children that she was having?”

“When the girl had her accident, the Yei spirits needed a way to help her, and you were that way. Remember the power of the wolf. They used you to help her.”

“But why her and not someone else?”

“I think there are big things planned for her.”, Naainish said.

“What?”, I asked.

“Only the Great Spirit knows.”

“What about the twins?”, Ajie asked.

“Ajie, that is something that I know nothing about, and we may never know. It could have just been the luck of the draw. Or the spirits are working in their ways.”

I just looked at Naainish for a minute, then I said, “I knew that you might say something like that.”

“Kai Nez.”, Naainish said. “You may think that I know everything, but I learned many Moons ago that I don’t.”

“Just like I know that I don’t know everything.”

“And like me, you never will.”

“Yá’át’ééh. - (It is good.)”

“Yá’át’ééh.”, Naainish repeated.

Then Quah Ah said, “I brought something special for the two little ones.”

“You didn’t need to do that.”, Ajie said.

“It’s not only a gift from me, but from the whole Taos Pueblo.”

Quah Ah then took two dreamcatchers out of the bag she had with her. She handed one to Ajie and one to me. Then she said, “The red willows grow along the Rio de Pueblo on the Taos Pueblo land. From the red willow, sinew, natural feathers, beads, and a single gemstone, the dreamcatchers are woven.

“Do you know why there is only one gemstone?”

“No.”, Ajie said.

“In the web of life, there is only one creator.”, Quah Ah said.

“I’ve also heard something about dreams.”, Ajie’s mother said.

“What’s that mom?”, Ajie asked.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “The future belongs to the beauty of those who believe in their dreams.”

Quah Ah smiled, and said, “Yes, it does. And I hope that all the dreams of your two little ones are always happy dreams.”

“We’ll hang these over their crib and then move them to their rooms when they move.”, Ajie said.

“That would be good.”, Naainish said. “And hang them with their meteorite necklace until they’re old enough to wear the necklaces as you do.”

“We’ll do that.”, I said.

With that, Quah Ah and Naainish said they had to leave. Ajie and I walked them to the door, we hugged Quah Ah and again thanked her for the dreamcatchers. And I never know if I should hug Naainish or not. But what the hell, I hugged him, and so did Ajie.

Then we said, hágoónee'. - (see you later.) to each other and watched as Quah Ah and Naainish walked across the front courtyard and through the gate.

When we were back in the big room, Ajie's mother said, “That was very nice of them to bring the children the dreamcatchers.”

“It was.”, Ajie said. “And completely unexpected.”

I looked at my mother-in-law and asked, “Any questions, mom?”

“No, honey.”, my mother-in-law said. “I’ll never understand it. But your mother and I have talked a lot about your native heritage. And I can see why you and my daughter have grasped it as you have.”

“Thanks, mom.”, Ajie said. “Hearing that makes me happy.”

“Me too, mom.”, I said.

Then I said, “Well, it looks like we need to hang the necklaces and dreamcatchers over their crib.”

“It does.”, Ajie said. “Do we use Mr. Yazzie’s hangers or save those for their rooms?”

“Both of those are light, so I might be able to find something to hold them at the hardware that won’t put a big hole in the wall. Maybe I’ll run down to the hardware store tomorrow and see what I can find.”

As we were giving the twins their late feeding, we watched the news, and it appeared that everything was going as planned with Apollo 8.

Sunday was the day to finish getting ready for the arrival of our families for Christmas. And that, with Ajie, her mother, and me working on it, didn’t take long at all. Of course, we had our usual calls from the twins. We took a break to watch a television broadcast from Apollo 8. It was interesting realizing how far away those transmissions were coming from.

We heard from my parents, and they told us that we didn’t need us to pick them up at the airport tomorrow as they were going to rent a car. We told them that they didn’t need to do that. But they insisted. And they told us that they’d call when they were at the airport.

I did make a run to the hardware store and found some picture hangers that have a thin nail that goes into the wall. Shortly after I was back home, I had the dreamcatchers and meteorite necklaces hanging on the wall behind their crib. I hung them high enough that the twins would have to be tall and standing in their crib to reach them. And I hope by that time that they’ll be in their own rooms.

Well, it’s Monday, and our families will be here this afternoon. I rechecked the firewood supply at all the fireplaces, but I don’t think anyone will need it as the sun was going to be out all day, and the adobe would absorb its warmth.

At about eleven o'clock, I took the pails of dirty diapers out and set them outside the front gate.

The twins were in bed after there late morning feeding, and Ajie’s mother and I sat and watched the second television transmission from Apollo 8, and Ajie made a quick run to the grocery store. She’s planning something special for dessert tonight.

At about one o’clock, we heard the ding from the driveway sensor, then a few minutes later, we heard the ding-dong, and I said, “I’ll bet that that’s the diaper guy.” I walked out to the front porch, and sure enough, there were two diaper pails and the bundle of clean diapers sitting there. I retrieved them and took them to the master suite.

Then at about two-thirty, my dad called us from the airport and told us that they’d be on the way to the house as soon as they picked up their car.

A little after three o’clock, as luck would have it, just as the twins had finished their bottles, we heard the ding from the driveway sensor. Ajie looked at me and said, “Should we take them to the door to greet everyone?”

“Of course.”, I replied.

We got up off of the couch, and with Ajie carrying Haseya and me carrying Tsé, we headed for the front door along with Ajie’s mother. Just as we got there, we heard the ding-dong of the front gate. I handed Tsé to Ajie’s mother and opened both front doors. Walking up the tiled walk were my mother and father, Ajie’s father, and Bill and Bridget.

You couldn’t miss Bridget’s red hair.

As they walked up, Ajie and I said together, “Nizhónígo Késhmish Adííleel. - (Good wishes at Christmas time.) T'áá shoodí wóshde´e´’. - (Please come in.)”

Then my mother said, “Nizhónígo Késhmish Adííleel. - (Good wishes at Christmas time.)”

Then I heard Bridget ask, “Whit did thay say?”

My mother said, “Kai and Ajie said, ‘Good wishes at Christmas time. Please come in.’”

Bridget looked at Ajie, me, and the twins and said, “Bo Nadal para ti tamén.”

“And that was?”, I asked.

“That was Gaelic for Merry Christmas to you too.”

“Hello, you three.”, my dad said.

Ajie looked down at Haseya, who she was holding in her arms, and said, “Three? Dad, don’t you mean five?”

“I do. I do. I didn’t see them. Hello, you five.”

“That’s okay, dad. They’re small.”

Ajie introduced the twins to everyone with, “Everyone this is Tsé and Haseya. Tsé and Haseya, this is your Grandfather Grant, and your Grandfather Young, and your Uncle Bill, and your Aunt Bridget. And of course, you already know your Grandmother Young.”

Everyone walked up and made a fuss over Haseya and Tsé. Then I heard Bridget’s Scottish brogue as she said, “Aye. Look at th’ wee bairn. Tis so guid to meet ye.”

I smiled and said, “There’s that Scottish brogue that I’ve missed.”

“Aye. Kai ‘n’ Ajie, it’s so guid tae see ye again.”

“You too, Bridget.”, Ajie said.

“Do thair names mean anythin'?”

“Yes, Tsé means rock, and Haseya means she rises. And she’s named after her great grandmother. And he’s named after his fourth great grandfather.”

I think that both of the twins liked the attention that they were getting. And the two grandfathers were fun to watch as they greeted the twins.

We all went into the house, and Ajie and her mother went to put the twins down for their naps, with Ajie saying, “They’ll be back up in about three hours.”

Our dads and Bill went out and brought their luggage into the house, and as Bill came in carrying his and Bridget’s bags, he said, “I hear that we’re staying in the hogan.”

“Yes.”, I said. “Sorry about that, but with the Sunshine that we’re supposed to have the next few days, the adobe should warm-up and keep it comfortable in there, plus there’s always the fire pit.”

“That’s okay. We enjoyed the night we spent out there.”

“It’ll be fine unless you need to make a midnight run to the bathroom. The lows are supposed to be around twenty-five for the rest of the week.”

“We’ll be fine.”

Bill, Bridget, and I went to the hogan, and after they were settled in, I handed them the keys to the hogan and back patio door.

Then we went back into the house, and as we walked into the big room, my dad said, “It looks like we won’t have a white Christmas.”

“Probably not.”, I said. “We had snow a few days ago, but it didn’t last long. We could go up on the Crest if you want snow.”

“Oh?”

“They probably have a foot or two by now, and we could take the Tramway up or drive.”

“If we were going to be here any longer than the twenty-seventh, I’d say yes.”

“If you change your mind, let me know.”

Then Ajie said, “Anyone hungry?”

“Starved.”, her dad said.

“Okay. We’ll get dinner started. Come on, Kai. You and mom can help. I’m going to put an appetizer of homemade guacamole and tortilla chips on the dining room table. Please help yourselves.”

Ajie put together a wonderful dinner. It was chicken with a southwest flair. It consisted of diced chicken breasts, diced yellow onion, minced garlic, a little olive oil, taco seasoning, whole kernel corn, taco seasoning, black beans, chopped tomatoes, and chopped scallions. She served that with mashed potatoes and bread.

For drinks, there was a choice of coffee, sangria, lemon aid, and water.

Dessert? Dessert was something that she found at the bakery that’s in the grocery store. Apple Chimichanga. What these are, are little burritos filled with a homemade caramel apple pie filling, then deep-fried to make them crispy. And they were then treated with a dusting of cinnamon sugar. Ajie bought these at the bakery but did the deep frying here at home so that they would be fresh. And to make that better, if you could, Ajie had caramel whipped cream to dip them in.

As we sat and enjoyed dessert, Ajie's mother said, “Daughter, you cooked this big meal, and you’re going to cook another big meal on Wednesday?”

“Mom, this was a fun meal to cook.”, Ajie said. “Besides, I had help.”

“Mom.”, I said. “Ajie loves doing things like this.”

“Besides, I’m cheating on the deserts. The bakery made not only the apple chimichangas, but the pies for Christmas dinner, and all I have to do is cook them.”

“Did you get a mincemeat pie?”, my dad asked.

“Of course. Both you and Kai love it.”

“So do ah.”, Bridget said.

With a smile, Ajie said, “Doesn’t that remind you of haggis?”

Bridget made a funny face and said, “Och, na. Ah don’t lik' haggis.”

“I know. I was just teasing. And for those of you that don’t like mincemeat, we also have cherry and apple. And I’ll cook those tomorrow so that I don’t have to do it on Christmas day.”

Then we heard it. I had the baby monitor sitting on the table with me, and we heard someone starting to wake up. Finally, we were hearing them both begin to wake up, and then one started crying and then the other.

As I got up, I said, “I’ll do the honors. Then we can bring them out here and feed ‘em.”

“Kin ah help?”, Bridget asked.

“After Kai gets them changed you can feed one of them.”, Ajie said.

“Kin ah?”

“Of course. Everyone else can draw straws to see who feeds the other one. Besides, there’ll be plenty of times for the others to feed them.”

I went back and changed two stinky diapers. Then I walked down the hall from the master suite to the big room, and said, “Bridget, come and help me.”

Bridget walked over, and we walked back into the master suite. When we walked in, the two little ones looked at us, and Bridget said, “Dae thay sleep in th' same crib?”

“Yes.”, I said. “We’ve been told that it’s better for twins. It reduces the stress of separation.”

“And in th’ same room as ye do?”

“Yes, that’s supposed to help them sleep better and safer.”

“Ah will have tae remember that.”

“You’re not, are you?”

“Och no! That's a lang wey aff.”

“I didn’t think you were.”

I picked up Tsé and handed him to Bridget, and she said, “Come tae yer Aunt Bridget wee one.”

I think if Tsé could have managed a smile, he would have.

Then I picked up Haseya, and we walked out to the dining room where everyone was still sitting, except Ajie and our mothers. And they were filling the dishwasher, and Ajie’s mother was getting started on her sausage stuffing for tomorrow.

I handed Haseya to Ajie’s dad, and he asked, “What am I supposed to do?”

“Feed your granddaughter, dad.”, Ajie said as she walked over with the baby bottles and handed one to her dad and one to Bridget. I finished loading the dishwasher and started it.

The twins took their bottles quickly, and then I placed a diaper over both Bridget’s shoulder and Ajie's dad’s shoulder. “What’s that for?”, Ajie’s dad asked.

“To burp her. Like Bridget’s doing to Tsé.”, Ajie said.

“No. No. I’m afraid I’ll hurt her.”

“Give her here, dad. And I’ll show you so you can do it next time.”

Ajie put the diaper over her shoulder, and her dad handed her Haseya. Amy burped her and then gave her to my mother. I watched as Bridget handed Bill Tsé. He wasn’t sure at first but was soon holding him.

“Bill.”, I said. “You look good holding a baby.”

“Don’t go there, Kai.”, Bill said. “I’m not ready for this yet.”

“Your time will come.”

It wasn’t too long until the little ones were getting sleepy. Tsé was soon asleep in Bill’s arms. Ajie took Bill and my mom, with the twins, back to the master suite to put the babies to bed.

Everyone else adjourned to the big room as I cleaned up the baby bottles. I also checked the refrigerator to be sure we had enough bottles to make it till morning. And we did. When I joined everyone in the big room, Ajie, Bill, and my mom were already there.

Just as I sat down, the phone rang. Luckily I was sitting next to it, so I answered it, “Hello. Nez residence.” … “Oh, yá’át’ééh alní'íní – (Good evening), Aunt Ruth. How are you?” … “Yes, they arrived this afternoon.” … “Sure. Hold on.”

I turned to my mother and said, “Mom, Aunt Ruth wants to talk to you.”

“Okay, honey.”, my mother said. “I’ll take it in the kitchen.”

As my mother got up to walk to the kitchen, I said into the phone, “Hold on, Aunt Ruth. Mom’s coming.”

As I heard my mother pick up the phone, I hung up the phone in the big room.

Then my dad asked if we’d been following the Apollo 8 mission. I told him that we were up early to watch the launch. Then we talked about that for a while.

My mother called from the kitchen, “Kai, honey. Pick up the phone. Aunt Ruth wants to talk with you.”

As I said, “Okay, mom.” I picked up the phone and said, “Hi, Aunt Ruth, it’s Kai.” … “I don’t see why not. In fact, why don’t the four of you stay for dinner?” … “No, we’re having pizza at about five.” … “No, we’re getting them from Nunzio's.” … “Okay, we’ll see you then.” … “Hágoónee', Aunt Ruth. - (See you later, Aunt Ruth.)”

As I hung up the phone, I looked at Ajie and said, “They’ll be here after lunch, and there'll be four more for dinner tomorrow night.”

“I take it that it’s Aunt Ruth, Uncle Paul, Aunt Ginny, and Uncle Gaagii?”, Ajie asked.

“Good call.”

“That sounds like another one or two pizzas.”

“I’ll call tomorrow as soon as they open.”

“Why not call tonight.”

I got up, went to the kitchen and called Nunzio's. When I came back, I said, “They offered to deliver them, cooked. I took them up on that, and they’re going to deliver them at five, and they guaranteed that they'd be hot.”

“Good. It’ll save you the trip.”, Ajie said. “And we can always warm them up.”

“Did you order anchovies?”, my dad asked.

“No, Jackie’s not here.”, I said.

“But I am.”

I got back up and walked to the kitchen, and when I was back, I said, “Okay. One side order of anchovies.”

“Thank you, honey.”, my dad said.

“That’s okay. But now you get to pay for all the pizzas.”

“What!?”

I grinned and said, “I’m kidding, dad.”

“You’d better be.”

By nine o’clock, our visitors were starting to yawn, and Ajie’s mother and father were the first to turn in. My parents followed them. Bill and Bridget made it until ten o’clock.

Ajie and I knew that the twins would be up at about eleven for a feeding, so we just waited. And right on time, the twins were up. We took care of them, and then we crawled into bed.

Ajie and I were up with the twins at about two-thirty. As we fed them, we watched the television coverage of Apollo 8 going into lunar orbit. It was about three-thirty Tuesday morning when Apollo 8 emerged from behind the Moon, and we went back to bed.

The twins got us up again about six-thirty, and as Ajie changed them, I went out to fix their bottles, and I found everyone else up. Our mothers volunteered to feed them. So we brought the twins out and gave them to our mothers. Then I went and retrieved their bottles and also gave those to our mothers.

After breakfast, our parents and Bill and Bridget decided to go into Albuquerque. As they were leaving, I reminded them that our aunts and uncles would be here at three, and the pizza would be here at five. After they’d left, Ajie drove me crazy as she baked the pies.

Then as Ajie and I were taking care of the twins, I said, “You know this is the first time that we’ve been alone with the twins.”

“I know.”, Ajie said. “And it’s kind of nice.”

“It is.”

“Mom asked me if we’d mind if she went back home when my dad did.”

“Why?”

“She said that we’re doing good with the twins, and besides, your mom will be here.”

“Think she’s a little homesick?”

“Yeah.”, Ajie said. “I think she misses dad.”

“I loved having her here.”, I said. “She was a big help and gave us a lot of pointers.”

“She did.”

“What did you tell her when she said that she wanted to go back with your dad?”

“I told her that it would be fine.”

After we’d fed the twins, instead of putting them right back to bed, we walked around the house with them, talking to them the whole time. We didn’t take them outside. It was too cold to do that without bundling them up. Then we put them to bed. As we were placing them in bed, Ajie sang them a lullaby. And as she sang, they both fell asleep.

When we were back in the kitchen Ajie pulled one pie out of the oven and put another one in. Then she called the office of the pediatrician and made new patient appointments for the twins. It would be on January 10th and the twins would be just a month old.

We were even going to have lunch alone, as everyone else was eating in town. So we enjoyed a quiet lunch. Then I laid and lit a fire in the fireplace using large logs in hopes that they would burn long and slow.

Ajie swapped pies, and we cuddled together on the couch in front of the fire. About two o’clock, we heard the ding from the driveway sensor, and Ajie said, “It’s too early for your aunts and uncles.”

“The others were going shopping and having lunch, so I don’t think it’s them.”, I said.

A minute later, we heard the chime from the front gate. We both got up and walked towards the front door. Just before we got there, we heard the doorbell. As we opened the door, we saw my aunts and uncles. Aunt Ruth, Aunt Ginny, Uncle Paul, and Uncle Gaagii. All of them carrying bags.

As we’d done when our families had arrived, Ajie and I said together, “Nizhónígo Késhmish Adííleel. - (Good wishes at Christmas time.) T'áá shoodí wóshde´e´’. - (Please come in.)”

All four of them said, “Nizhónígo Késhmish Adííleel. - (Good wishes at Christmas time.)”

Then I said, “You guys are early. Everyone else is in Albuquerque.”

“We’ll leave and come back later.”, my Uncle Paul said.

“Uncle Paul!”, Ajie said. “Don’t you dare.”

“He’d better be kidding, or he’s walking home.”, Aunt Ruth said.

“I drove.”, Uncle Paul said.

“I have keys to the car too.”

“Just come on in.”, I said.

The six of us walked into the house and to the big room. And Aunt Ginny asked, “Where are my niece and nephew?”

“Down for a nap. They should be up in an hour or so.”

“I hope you don’t mind that we’re early.”

“Of course not. You’re always welcome.”

“I’m just amazed every time I see this house.”, Uncle Gaagii said.

“Uncle Paul did do a good job in finding it for us.”, I said.

Just then we heard from the twins, Ajie looked at me and said, “They’re up early.”

“I know.”, I said.

Then I said to my aunts and uncles, “Have a seat in the big room, and we’ll be right back. And then you can meet your niece and nephew, and even feed them.”

When Ajie and I were back with the twins, like we did with our parents, we introduced the twins to them. We could tell that our aunts and uncles fell in love with them at first sight. We then let Aunt Ruth feed Tsé and Aunt Ginny feed Haseya. When the twins finished their bottles and were burped, they were almost asleep. So Ajie and I took them back to our room and tucked them in.

When we came back out and sat with my aunts and uncles, I could feel that there was a change of some kind. Then my Aunt Ginny said, “Kai, your mom knew we were coming early, that’s why they went into Albuquerque.”

“Why?”, I asked. “Why would they leave. What’s wrong?”

“We needed to talk without the others around. And we felt that it was best kept between the six of us and your mother.”

“Why?”

“We found out something that we felt that you and Ajie needed to know.”, Aunt Ginny said. “And, Kai, you need to hear us out.”

“I’ll hear you out, Aunt Ginny.”, I said. “Now, what’s wrong?”

“We found out which judge has been assigned to hear your final adoption decree.”

“So?”

“And he doesn’t like transgender people.”

“So, he’s transphobic?”, Ajie asked.

“Yes, he is. For some reason, he is completely against people like Kai.”

“He’s a Navajo. Isn’t he?”

“Yes, he is.”, Aunt Ginny said. “Full-blooded Navajo.”

“Doesn’t he understand two spirit people?”

“I don’t know. He should as he’s old school Navajo.”

“Are you saying that we might have a problem with the adoption?”, Ajie asked.

I felt a knot in my stomach.

“Maybe.”, Aunt Ginny said. “When I found out who the judge was for your adoption, Chief Clah was at the Navajo Council office, and I told him. He rolled his eyes and shook his head. And he’s been quietly working to change things. And that’s a hard thing to do. To change cases that a judge is assigned to. But there are a lot of people, from the top down, that are working on it.”

As the tears started, I asked, “Are … Are you telling us that … that because of me that we might lose the … the twins?”

“Kai, hear us out.”, Aunt Ruth said. “As Ginny said, it’s being worked on from the top down. And I mean the top.

“This particular judgeship is an appointed one. And the current judge was appointed by the last President of the Nation before Chief Kinlicheeny, and the appointment is for life.”

“So he’s there until he resigns or dies?”, I asked.

“Yes.”, Aunt Ginny said.

“So, what do we do?”

“Kai.”, Uncle Gaagii said. “What you have to do is be patient and let the tribal powers work on this.

“I know that I’ve intervened in some of the things that have involved you, but with this, I think we need to step back and see what can be done by the powers. It seems that you have a way about you that things always work out for the best?”

“But what if this is the one time that it doesn’t work out for the best?” I said. “What if we lose the twins? In the short time that we’ve had the twins, I’ve fallen in love with them. If we lose them, I’m afraid that it will end everything. I don’t think I could stay out here any longer. It would be just too hard.”

“Kai.”, Aunt Ruth said. “You don’t have to tell us that you love them. We could see it in your eyes when you look at them.”

Uncle Paul had been quiet through all of this until he said, “Kai, you put up a good front. You appear very strong. And in some ways you are. But we all know that you aren’t. You are a very kind, caring, fragile person. And can easily be hurt. We’ve also learned in a very short period of time how much the twins mean to you and Ajie.

“But, as your Uncle Gaagii said, you need to let the powers do their thing. And, if they can’t, we’ll go to plan B.”

“What’s plan B?” I asked.

“That we’ll have to determine if it gets to that point.”, Uncle Gaagii said. “And we know that it can take several months before the final adoption decree after you have the children. So we know that we few months until we reach that point. And we should know well in advance of that.”

We sat there in silence for a moment or two, then I said, “Okay, we know we have a problem. And forewarned is forearmed. And we know that some powerful people are working on it. So I’m willing to wait and see what happens.”

“Good call, Kai.”

I looked at Ajie and said, “Honey?”

“Yes?”, Ajie said.

“What do you think?”

“I agree with you. But I think that we need to meditate.”

“I do too. But can you wait until everyone is home.”, I asked.

“So that our moms can watch the twins?”

“Yes.”

“We can watch them.”, Uncle Paul said.

“You’ll love changing stinky diapers.”, I said with a grin.

“I’ll pass.”

Just then, we heard the chime from the driveway. And Uncle Gaagii asked, “What was that?”

“We have sensors in the driveway and on the front gate that lets us know when someone is coming.”

“Interesting idea, you are at the end of a dead-end road, and you have a long driveway.”

“That’s why we did it.”

Then we heard the ding-dong from the gate, and before long, our six travelers walked into the house. And they were carrying packages.

My mother looked at me and asked, “Kai and Ajie is everything okay?”

I looked at my mother, and Ajie beat me to the answer when she said, “Time will tell. But Kai and I need to go and see how the spirits feel.”

“Kids, everyone knows. So you have the support of your whole family.”

“Thanks, everyone.”, I said. “We appreciate it very much.”

“Yes, we do.”, Ajie added. “Mom and mom, would you listen for the twins while Kai and I meditate?”

“Of course.”, Ajie’s mother said. “Don’t worry about them.”

Then I looked at Bill and Bridget and said, “We’re going to steal your bedroom for a little while.”

“That’s fine, Kai.”, Bill said. “At least we made the bed this morning.”

I got up, and Ajie followed me to the entrance hall. We took down the Wolf Prayer wall hanging and took that to the hogan with us. Once we were in the hogan with Ajie holding the flashlight, I lit four of the kerosene lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Then I carefully laid a small t-pee style fire and lit it. Ajie and I laid the Wold Prayer wall hanging beside the fire, and then we sat on it side by side.

As we sat the first thing that I heard was the Wolf Prayer.

Spirit of the wolf,
You who wanders in wildlands,
You who stalks in silent shadows,
You who runs and leaps
between the moss covered trees,
Lend me your primal strength
and the wisdom of your glowing eyes,
Teach me to relentlessly track my desire
and to stand in defense of those I love,
Show me the hidden paths and the moonlit fields,
Fierce spirit,
Walk with me in my joy,
Guard me as I move through this world.

Then a chant came to me. As I started the chant, Ajie joined in. When we finished the chant Ajie and I looked at each other, and I said, “I had a vision of the maiden and wolf.”

“So did I.”, Ajie said. “The wolf was standing next to her.”

“Mine too. So my wolf spirit is protecting me. And I’m protecting you.”

“At least he wasn’t standing away from her, showing his teeth.”

“Yes, that would mean trouble.”, I said. “Was the Eagle in your vision?”

“No, he wasn’t.”, Ajie replied. “Was he in yours?”

“No.”

“Interesting.”

I got up and helped Ajie up. She picked up the wall hanging as I extinguished the kerosene lanterns. Then we went back into the house. We found the women sitting at the dinner table talking. The men were sitting in the big room watching some coverage of the Apollo 8 mission. They told me that there was some talk about a picture that the astronauts took of the Earth rising over the edge of the Moon.

A little before five, Ajie started taking drink orders for dinner, and I was surprised to hear Bridget ask for sangria. A few others also asked for sangria, and that included me. My dad, Uncle Paul, and Uncle Gaagii wanted coffee, so Ajie put my dad to work making it.

Right about five, we heard from the sensors, and I figured that the pizzas were here. And I was right. Bill and Bridget went to the door with me and helped carry the pizzas to the kitchen. I paid the delivery guy and gave him a nice tip.

As I walked into the kitchen with the last of the pizzas, we heard from the little ones. I looked at Ajie and said, “No rest for the wicked.”

My mother, as she got up, said, “You two eat while it’s hot, and I’ll take care of them.”

Before Ajie and I could say anything, Bridget also got up and said, “I’ll help.”

As my mom and Bridget disappeared into the master suite, my mother-in-law said, “I’ll fix their bottles.”

We’d set all the pizza boxes on the breakfast counter, and everyone that wasn’t working on the twins helped themselves.

When my mother and Bridget came back carrying the twins, my two aunts grabbed them and told my mother and Bridget to get themselves something to eat. My mother-in-law handed my aunts the bottles, and the twins ate with us. There were fourteen of us sitting around the table. It was fun having this many people. And I think the twins loved all of the attention that they were getting.

Then I remembered something and started singing happy birthday to you. Everyone gave me a strange look, until I said, “Happy Birthday, dear Tsé and Haseya. Happy birthday to you.”

Then the others joined in on a second chorus. When we finished the song, I said, “Sorry, but I just remembered that the twins were two weeks old.”

“So, Kai Nez.”, my Aunt Ruth said. “What did your spirits have to say?”

“Well, Sahkyo Biakeddy – (Aunt Ruth Biakeddy).”, I replied. “Both Ajie and I had the same vision. It was the Indian maiden sitting under the pine tree and the wolf was standing next to her.”

“Do you know what it means.”