The Roar of the Falls: My Journey with Kaya

The horse is still agitated by the ordeal. She trots a few steps, turning her head to the side. She jumps at a stray leaf blowing in front of her, and Kaya moves to soothe the horse. We stand for a while as Kaya strokes the horse’s nose, and then her ears, and all over until she relaxes completely. When we start walking again, the horse follows us easily.

Soon, we arrive at a burbling stream that winds its way through the grasses. The horse dips her head to the water and drinks. Kaya tugs off her moccasins and dangles her legs in the water. She pats the grassy patch next to her for me to sit.

I sit and slowly unwind the laces from my moccasins. I’m still nervous about snakes and anything else that might be living in the stream. But I’m hot and tired, and Kaya looks comfortable on the edge of the stream. The water is cold and refreshing. And nothing has slithered past me—yet.

Kaya asks if I remember the story about how Nimíipuu got their horses. I tell her I must’ve forgotten. But I am confused. Didn’t Nimíipuu always have horses? Kaya begins and tells me that many winters ago, a ship came with pale, hairy men on it. The ship stopped near the shore and from the ship, three stallions came swimming through the water. Nimíipuu watched the creatures climb up onto the beach and shake the water from their manes and silvery white bodies. They had powerful medicine in their spirits and they traveled with the traders back to the Nimíipuu camp and were bred to mares. The foals born also had powerful medicine in them. These stallions are the fathers of the horses we have now, and over the years, the Nimíipuu came to call them the Ghost Wind Stallions.

I am in awe. I look down at my feet. I think of the traders with the strong stallions in the water. My throat swells unexpectedly at the beauty of the image. I can see how important the horses are to Kaya’s people, and why Kaya loves them so much.

Kaya stands up and says it’s time to go back to Toe-ta. We dry our feet on the tall grass and walk back to the herd with the gray horse. But when we get there, we see only mashed grass and bare spots. Where are the others?