We were able to take Mark and Maria’s minds off of Max’s death at least for a little while when I told them that Maria was pregnant. It took them a little while for them to accept that I’d felt another spirit in the room. But, they finally did.

On Thursday when Amy and I went to the hospital to drive Mark and Maria back home, I was able to help him with the death of his twin brother. We also made a stop at our favorite drive-in for lunch.

After we’d dropped Mark and Maria off at their apartment and told them to relax for the rest of the day, Amy and I decided to take a hike. Yes, a hike along the lake trail to our favorite bench that overlooks the lake. As we sat on the bench, Amy had wondered if the Eagles would show up.

I had said, “Maybe they will and maybe they won’t.”

We sat, cuddled together, on the bench. I know two girls cuddled together would be frowned upon, but there was no one else around. We sat there for about thirty minutes watching the ducks and geese on the lake, but no Eagles. Hmm.

Finally, Amy said, “I don’t think that the Eagles are going to show up.”

“I don’t either.”

“That’s sad.”

“Is it? If the two in New Mexico are the ones from here and they followed us out west, then it isn’t sad.”

“Do you think that they’re the two?”

“I don’t know. But, anything is possible.”

“You're right.”

As we got up to finish our hike, I noticed something. There was a large bird flying towards the lake from deeper in the park. I pointed him out to Amy, and we watched him fly closer. He circled overhead and then landed at the top of the old telephone pole. We looked at him and he at us, and I said, “He’s young. His tail feathers aren’t white, and neither is his head. But, in looking at his size and his head, he’s an Eagle.”

“I wonder.”, Amy said. “If our friends had young and this is one of them?”

“He might be.”

It wasn’t long until he, or maybe she, took off and headed back deeper into the park.

“We’ll have to try to come back before we go home and see if he shows up again.”, Amy said.

“We could do that.”

Amy and I continued our walk back to my parent’s house. And as we walked into the kitchen, we found my mother working on something, and the house smelled good. Amy asked, “Mom, we’re supposed to be helping you with dinner.”

“You are.”, my mother said. “I’m working on dessert.”

“But, what smells so good?”, I asked.

“I’m cooking Cinnamon crisps.”

“Oh! We’re having cinnamon crisps with a fruit salad for dessert. Aren’t we?”

“Good guess. And there’ll be six of us for dinner.”

“Six. Are Amy’s parents coming over?”

“No. Mark and Maria are.”

“Mark and Maria?”, Amy said.

“Yes, she called to talk to you. And we got to talking, and I invited them. Maria and I agreed it would do then good to get out of the apartment for a little while.”

“Good thinking, mom. How’s Mark doing?”

“Maria said that he was doing a little better. Especially after seeing the two of you.”

“Good. I was really worried about them.”

“Why don’t the two of you get cleaned up, and then we’ll get started on dinner.”

That evening we had a very nice frybread taco dinner with the cinnamon crisps and fruit salad for dessert. It was nice sitting down with mom, dad, Maria, Amy, and Mark and just relaxing and talking.

After everyone, even dad, had helped clean up the dishes, mom and dad left the four of us alone, and we went into the den, sat, and talked. It appeared that Mark was beginning to feel better about Max’s death, if that’s possible, and was starting to worry more about his mother. I’d always liked Mark and Max’s mother, and I guess now it was my turn to worry about her.

One thing that Mark and Maria had told us bothered me to no end and that was the funeral was going to be a closed casket funeral. I guess the injuries to Max were horrible. But, Mark’s mother had insisted on seeing her son one last time. The people at the funeral home had told her that it wouldn’t be a good idea, but she insisted. Mark had said that his mother had passed out when she saw Max’s body and that she’d been a wreck ever since.

Later that evening, after Mark and Maria had left, and we were in bed, Amy said, “Worried about Mark’s mom. Aren’t you?”

“You know I am.”, I replied. “You shouldn’t have to bury your children.”

“I know. That has to be very hard on Max's mom and even his dad.”

“I’d like to try to help her, but I don’t know if I can.”

“Do you need to hold her hands to help her?”

“I don’t know, but I’ve always done that for the people that I have helped.”

“Could you try?”

“You know I will.”

Today, Friday, was the day that they were having a memorial service at the funeral home for Max, and Saturday was his funeral. Usually, it would be an open casket showing, but this was going to be closed casket.

Amy and I had gotten together with Larry and the pregnant Kelly for lunch. And it was good to see them again. They were both worried about Mark and Maria. And I told them that Amy and I had talked with them and that we hoped that it had helped, but that they would need the support of all of their friends. And, Kelly said that they would get it. We also spent some time talking about things that had happened both here and in New Mexico.

The hours at the funeral home tonight were five to eight with a memorial service at seven. And we’d promised Mark and Maria that we’d be there the whole time. So, we had to cut our visit with Larry and Kelly short. And as we were saying so long, Amy added, “Oh. Maria is pregnant.”

Kelly looked at me, and said, “And, just who was the first one to know that?”

I just smiled, raised my hand, and said, “Me.”

“That doesn’t surprise me.”

“Don’t say anything unless Maria does.”, Amy said. “With everything else that’s going on they might not have told anyone yet.”

“We won’t.”, Larry said. “But, why did you tell them now, before the funeral.”

“I was worried about Mark.”, I said. "And, wanted to give him something else to think about."

“That you probably did.”

“No doubt.”

“Okay. We’ll see you tonight at the funeral home.”

Amy had brought the suit that she wears to teach in to wear to the funeral on Saturday and I’d brought the black Biil dress with the red pattern to wear. And just in case mom told me that the Biil dress wouldn’t be good at the funeral, I’d brought the suit that I wore for teaching.

For tonight we were both wearing long velvet skirts, fancy blouses, and wrap moccasins. And we’d also brought some silver jewelry. Not too much, but enough to dress things up a little. Concho belts, a bracelet each, one or two rings each, and the silver feather earrings. We didn’t wear necklaces or chokers, except for the meteorite necklaces. And we both had our hair in a single braid and went without a headband.

When mom saw us, she said, “Girls, you both look so nice.”

“Not too much for this thing tonight. Is it?”, I asked.

“No honey. It’s not. The dark velvet skirts with the blouses that you choose will go very well.”

Maria had called us and asked us to pick them up at four and take them to the service. They were both worried about driving after the memorial service. So, at four o’clock we pulled up in front of Mark and Maria’s apartment, they came out and got in the car. We drove to the funeral home, and as we were getting out of the car, Maria commented, “You two look very nice.”

“Thanks.”, Amy said. “You don’t think that the native look is out of place. Do you?”

“No, the long skirts and blouses, look very nice. Besides, you both live out west.”

Mark looked at Maria, and said, “Uncle Frank.”

“Uncle Frank?”, I asked.

“He’s my mothers oldest brother and lives in New York with my grandmother, and he’s a bigot.”

“If he’s going to have a problem with us looking this way, we could run home and change.”

“No, my mom knows who Kai really is. And Maria has told her that both of you would probably be dressed as Navajo girls.”

“She wasn’t surprised?”, I asked.

“No.”, Maria said.

“How much does she know about me?”

“A lot.”

“Why?”

“Because, like my mom.”, Maria said. “She likes the two of you and wanted to know how you were doing out in New Mexico.”

“And.”

“We’ve told her about Kai.”

“So, she knows all?”

“Close.”

It was about four-thirty when we walked into the funeral home. There was a group of people standing around, and Mark whispered, “These are all family members.”

I asked, “Which one is Uncle Frank?”

Mark looked around, and said, “I don’t see him or grandma. So, they may not be here yet.”

Just then Mark’s mother walked over, looked at me, offered me her hand, and said, “You must be Kai?”

I took her hand, and said, “Yes, Mrs. Roberts, I’m Kai. And I’m so sorry about Max.”

“Honey, I know who you are. And, Max liked you as a friend when you were growing up. And, Mark and Maria have told me all about you. I would love to sit and talk with you if time allows.”

“I would like that Mrs. Roberts.” I then looked at Amy, and said, “Mrs. Roberts, you remember Amy don’t you.”

She let go of my hand, and as she took Amy’s hand, she said, “Of course I do. I remember your wedding and the going away party. You made such a beautiful bride.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Roberts.”, Amy said. “And, as Kai said, we are so sorry about Max.”

“Thank you. Thank both of you. I know that you being here has helped Mark and Maria. They told me about what happened the other day, and I’m still angry with them for not telling me that Mark was in the hospital. Now, please excuse me, they’re giving the family a little time alone with Max before everyone else arrives.”

“We’ll talk later, Mrs. Roberts.”, I said.

“Yes, we will, Kai.”

As Mrs. Roberts walked away, I whispered, “Mark, how much does your mother know about the other day.”

“Not that much. Just that you came into town, found out that I was in the hospital, brought Maria over, and stayed with us.”

“Nothing about the baby? Or about what I did?”

“No, we’ve decided to keep the news of the baby quiet until maybe later tomorrow after the funeral is over. And, the other stuff is just between us. I don’t think that they’d understand, because I still don’t.”

Just then I got a bad feeling. I looked at the door as a man and woman walked in. I asked Mark, “Is that your Uncle Frank?”

“Yes.”, he replied. “And, my grandmother.”

“I thought so.”

“How did you know?”

“I got a bad feeling when he walked in.”

“Oh. … Come on with us. I want to introduce you to everyone.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“How are you going to introduce us?”, Amy asked.

I thought that I’d introduce you as Amy Young and Kai as her friend Kai Nez from New Mexico. And, I’d let you explain why Tom isn’t here.”

“That should work.”, I replied.

We walked over to the group of people who were standing by the flag-draped coffin, and Mark said, “Hi everyone. I’m glad that you could all be here.

“I’d like to introduce you to our best friend Amy Young, who with her husband Tom live in New Mexico. And, this is her friend, Kai Nez, who was good enough to accompany her when Tom couldn’t come.”

Amy then said, “Tom and I are very sorry about Max. He was a wonderful friend all through school and college. My husband, Tom, was very sorry that he couldn’t come, but the university is in the middle of an important research project for the Los Alamos National Laboratory, and he couldn’t get away.”

Amy and I then started to walk out of the room to give the family some time alone with Max. Mark saw us as we began to step out of the room, and came after us. When he caught up to us, he said, “Please stay. Maria and I want you to.”

“No.”, I said. “This is family time.”

“Maria and I want you to be with us.”

I looked at Amy, and she said, “Okay. I guess.”

We walked back into the room with Mark and Maria but didn’t approach the casket. We stood and listened to the priest say a prayer and then a few words. I could tell that Mrs. Roberts was becoming sadder. I did notice Uncle Frank glare at us once in a while. I tried to avoid direct eye contact.

After the family had finished, they opened a folding wall between where the casket was and a large room where a number of folding chairs were set up. There were also some overstuffed chairs and couches around the sides. Plus some chairs on the side for the family. Also, there were a lot of flowers around the room, and some by the casket.

Amy and I walked over to the casket, and we stood there, I quietly said a short prayer that Naainish had taught me. Then I said, “So long Max old friend. We’re going to miss you.”

Amy said, “Amen to that.”

Amy and I then walked to the back of the room and stood there for a while. We watched as people showed up, talked up to Mr. and Mrs. Roberts, Mark, Maria, and other members of the family. Our parents also showed up. We saw a number of our friends show up, and they would stop and talk to Amy, and we had to explain about Tom not being here.

When we had a minute, Amy asked, “Kai, did you feel anything when you were holding Mrs. Roberts’s hand?”

“A little something.”, I said. “I wasn’t able to hold it that long. And, seeing her now, I’m worried.”

Larry and Kelly showed up, and after paying their respects, they came over to us, and, Kelly asked, “How’s it going?”

“Okay, so far.”, I said. “I’m still worried about Mrs. Roberts. She’s holding things in. Mr. Roberts, I can’t read, but he seems okay. Mark and Maria are doing as good as can be expected.”

“How long are you staying?”

“The whole time. Mark and Maria asked us to.”

“We’ll hang around until after the memorial service.”

“That’ll be good. It’ll be good for Mark and Maria to see some familiar faces.”

At about seven, the funeral director walked in with three men in military uniforms and they talked with Mark’s parents for a few minutes, then the funeral director asked everyone to take a seat. Amy, Kelly, Larry, and I sat in the back. Two of the military guys walked to the flag draped casket, slowly saluted it, and then one went to the foot of the casket and the other to the head of the casket, and both stood at attention.

The third man, an officer with Christian crosses on his lapels, who I figured for a Chaplin, walked up to a podium. And he proceed to give an excellent memorial service for Max. And I think it’s the first time ever that I’ve heard Max called Maxwell.

Just as the Chaplin finished the service, I saw Mrs. Roberts slide out of her chair and collapse onto the floor. Amy, being Amy, was there almost before anyone else reacted. And I was right behind her.

Amy knelt next to her, and I knelt on the other side. Some guy said, “Give her some room. She needs air.”

Amy looked up at the guy, and said, “I’m an emergency room nurse, and she needs more than air. Let me do my job.”

Someone handed Amy some smelling salts. Amy set them on the floor and started checking out Mrs. Roberts. And, she said to me, “Kai, check her pulse.”

I gave her a puzzled look, and she gave me a wink. I knew what she meant. I held Mrs. Roberts’s hand like I was checking her pulse. I wasn’t feeling much between us, but there was a little something.

Amy waved the smelling salts under Mrs. Roberts nose, and she started to come around. She wanted to sit up, but Amy talked her into lying there for a little longer. I saw Amy look around, and she finally asked a guy in a suit, “Are you the funeral director?”

“Yes, Miss. I am.”, he replied.

“Is there somewhere where she could go and lie down for a little while?”

“Yes. Is she all right?”

“Yes, she’ll be okay. She just fainted.”

Amy and I helped Mrs. Roberts sit up. And once she was comfortable, Mr. Roberts and Mark helped her stand up. Then the four of us led by the funeral director helped her to a room where there was a big couch and a few chairs. Amy had Mrs. Roberts lie down on the couch. Then she chased Mark, his dad, and the funeral director out of the room.

Amy and I sat with Marks’s mother for a short while. I was holding her hand the whole time. Eventually, she sat up, and said, “Thank you girls, I feel better now.”

“Are you sure, Mrs. Roberts?”, Amy asked.

“Yes, honey. Being here with you and Kai has helped.”

“Good. You had us worried.”

“I need to go back out there.”

“Are you sure that you’re ready?”

“Yes, will you help me?”

“Of course.”

We helped Mrs. Roberts to her feet and then walked with her back out into the main part of the funeral home. When Mr. Roberts and Mark saw us, they came over and took over helping Mrs. Roberts. Amy told them to take her to where she could sit, and to keep an eye on her, which they did. Amy and I went back to the back of the room and found Larry and Kelly. Kelly said, “It was nice to see nurse Amy in action.”

“I know.”, Amy said. “But, I’m still worried about Mrs. Roberts.”

Amy then asked me, “Were you able to help Mark’s mother?”

I didn’t get a chance to answer her, but whispered, “I just got an awful feeling.”

Amy didn’t get a chance to say anything, as a man walked up, and in a nasty way said, “What are you Indians doing here?”

Both of us turned and looked towards where the voice was coming from, and it was Mark’s Uncle Frank. I replied, “Why shouldn't we be here?”

“You’re Indians. You shouldn’t be off the reservation.”

“And why is that?”

“That’s where you belong. You shouldn’t be with us.”

“Why’s that?”

“It’s just the way it should be.”

“Sir, I was born and raised here in Columbus, graduated from Ohio State, then I moved to New Mexico to finish my schooling.”

“You should have stayed in New Mexico, and worked on what? A degree in basket making?”

I looked at Amy, then glared at the man, and said, “Yeah, I’m working on my doctorate in basket weaving with a minor in pottery. And, it’s obvious that you have a masters in bigotry.”

“Are you calling me a bigot?”

“Yes, sir. I’m calling you a bigot. And it’s because you are one.”

Just then Mark ran up, and said, “Uncle Frank, leave them alone. They’re my friends.”

“They don’t belong here.”

“Sir.”, I said. “This is neither the time nor the place for this. We’re here to say so long to a wonderful person, your nephew and our friend. Don’t ruin his memory by acting this way.”

An older lady had quickly walked up, grabbed Mark’s Uncle Frank by his ear, and started dragging him away, as he said, “It’s none of … OW! Mom stop.”

She also started giving him a tongue lashing, “Frank, this is no place for your crap. This has to stop. You’re an embarrassment to the … ”

We didn’t hear the rest of it because she pulled him out of the room.

I looked at Mark, and asked, “Who was that lady!?”

“That was my grandmother.”, Mark replied. “And, Uncle Frank’s mother.”

“Tough lady.”

“Very. Grandma was an officer in the WASP's (Woman’s Airforce Service Pilot's) during World War II. And, is a tough old bird.

“She won’t take much from Uncle Frank and is constantly putting him in his place. Mom and I saw you and Uncle Frank nose to nose over here and figured that he was up to something, I ran over, and mom told grandma. And, you saw what happened.”

“It was getting a little nasty.”, I said.

“He’s a bigot.”, Mark said. “And doesn’t know when to keep his mouth shut.”

“It sure isn’t helping with what’s going on here tonight.”

“No, it’s not.

“I’ve been told that he wasn’t this way until he came back from the Korean War.”

I looked at Amy, and she raised an eyebrow. Then I said, “Something must have happened.”

“We figure that it did, but Uncle Frank won’t talk about the war.”

“Maybe that’s what he needs to do. Talk to someone.”, Amy said. “There is something called combat stress, and he needs to talk to someone before it gets any worse.”

“The family’s tried. And, even his ex-wife, before she divorced him, couldn’t do anything.”

Just then the older lady walked up, and said, “I’m sorry for what happened.”

“Nothing came of it.”, I said.

“Grandma.”, Mark said. “These are my friends, Amy Young and Kai Nez from New Mexico. Amy and Kai, this is my Grandmother Davidson. My mother’s mother.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”, Mrs. Davidson said. “And, thank you for helping my daughter.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Davidson.”, I said. “I just wish it was under better circumstances.”

“So do I. Frank didn’t hurt you did he?”

“No, ma'am. It was just words.”

“It looked like you were holding your own against him.”

“I was. And I don’t think he liked it.”

“He probably didn’t. So, young lady, it appears that you stand up for yourself?”

“Yes, ma’am. Being in the field that I’m in, I have to.”

“And, what field is that?”

“Electrical engineering.”

“Oh!”

“Yes, it’s a man’s field. And, I’ve learned to stand up for myself.”

“She does very well for herself in a man’s world.”, Amy said.

“Good for you, young lady.”, Mrs. Davidson said. “More of us need to do that. Now, I’d better get back to the family.”

“We’ll see you later, Mrs. Davidson.”, I said.

It was going on eight o’clock, and there weren’t many people here. Amy and I walked over to where Mark and Maria, and their family were. Larry and Kelly went with us.

As we walked up, Mrs. Roberts said, “Girls, thank you for everything that you did today.”

“We didn’t do anything.”, Amy said.

“Yes, you did. You helped me, and you helped Mark and Maria yesterday.”

“Think nothing of it.”

Kelly and Larry excused themselves and left.

Then I saw Mark and Maria whispering back and forth. Then Maria looked at me and smiled. I knew what they were thinking, and I shook my head no. Maria frowned at me. I shook my head no again. And, she gave me a look of frustration.

I walked over to them, grabbed them by their arms, and pulled them away from the group. And Amy followed along. As I got them out of earshot, Maria asked, “Why were you shaking your head no?”

“You were going to tell them that you’re pregnant. Weren’t you?”, I asked.

“How did you know?”

“I can read you like a book.”

“So, why shouldn’t we?”

“Is this the right place to do it!?”

“Ah. Maybe not.”, Maria said.

“No, no maybe about it. It isn’t.”, I replied. “Have you been to the doctor to verify that you are pregnant?”

“No, I haven’t had time. You guys just told me. But you said that you’ve never been wrong.”

“There’s always a first time.”

Maria looked at Amy, and said, “Amy!”

Amy smiled, and said, “What Kai said. This isn’t the place or time, and she could be wrong.”

“Oh, all right.”, Maria said with a little pout. “We’ll wait a little while.”

“Good girl.”

We walked back over to where Mark’s family was standing around, and his mother asked, “Kids, is there a problem?”

“No, mom.”, Mark said. “We just had something to discuss.”

“Mrs. Roberts, may I share something with you and your family?”, I asked.

“Of course, Kai.”, Mrs. Roberts replied.

I looked at Amy, then said to everyone, “I’m a member of the Navajo Nation, and when someone passes we believe that it’s part of the natural cycle of things; birth, life, and death. On our flight here from New Mexico a prayer kept running through my head. And I’d like to share it with you. In English it’s called Life Must Go On. Please pray with me.

Grieve for me, for I would grieve for you.
Then brush away the sorrow and the tears
Life is not over, but begins anew,
With courage, you must greet the coming years.
To live forever in the past is wrong;
It can only cause you misery and pain.
Dwell not on memories overlong,
With others, you must share and care again.
Reach out and comfort those who comfort you;
Recall the years, but only for a while.
Nurse not your loneliness, but live again.
Forget not. Remember with a smile.

It was quiet for a few seconds, then Mrs. Roberts said, “Kai, thank you very much for that. I felt a calm come over me as I heard it. Could you write it down for me?”

“Of course, Mrs. Roberts.”, I replied.

“Me too, Kai.”, Mark’s grandmother said.

“Of course Grandmother Davidson.”, I replied with a little smile.

“Now, Amy and Kai.”, Mark’s mother said. “We’d like you to join us for a late dinner.”

“No, Mrs. Roberts.”, Amy said. “This is a time for family.”

“Amy, I know how Mark and Maria feels about you and Kai. So, I’d love it if you’d join us.”

Then Mark’s grandmother said, “I’ll second that, and I’m paying for their dinners?”

“No, you’re not, Mrs. Davidson.”, I said.

“It’s the least I can do for what Frank pulled.”

“It’s not your fault.”, Amy said. “The war did something to him.”

“Have it your way, young lady. But, I still want you to come with us.”

I saw everyone nod yes, so I said to Amy, “You’re not going to win this, Amy.”

Amy said, “I think you’re right. Okay, we’ll go.”

Mark’s father looked at Amy and me and said, “Is a Mexican restaurant okay?”

“Mr. Roberts.”, I said. “We live in New Mexico. My mother fixed us Mexican last night. Do you think we could go somewhere with good old fashioned American food.”

“Hamburgers, fries, and shakes?”