About mid-afternoon, they came over a rise and suddenly left the trees behind. In front of them, a huge mountain meadow stretched for miles, with the rutted dirt road slicing northward almost straight as an arrow. Dark green forested slopes surrounded the meadow. Above the forest, the entire northern and eastern horizons were jagged with gleaming snowcapped peaks.
Several log buildings clustered at the side of the road not far ahead. Many goats grazed nearby, as well as a few horses.
“As we go up in elevation,” Ilika explained, putting on his sun hat, “the ultraviolet radiation will get stronger.”
“That’s another thing we need for Misa,” Buna declared.
As they approached the buildings, a tall, muscular man came striding out to meet them, his grass-cutting scythe held high. All the students froze, and Misa hid behind Buna.
“If you’re homeless refugees looking for a handout, you just head right on back! There’s nothing here for you! If you’re goat thieves, I’ll chase you back!”
Ilika could feel Kibi at his side bristling with anger. He put a hand on her shoulder before she could say anything.
“What if we’re honorable travelers who can pay for supplies with good copper and silver?”
The farmer lowered his scythe and softened his tone. “Well, that’s more like it. I’m Koto. Did you say silver? What might you be needing that would
make you part with silver?”
Ilika and the group gathered around. “Buna?”
Buna took a deep breath to collect herself. “Um . . . shoes for this little girl, a couple of good blankets, and a sun hat of some kind. Oh, and a rucksack if you have one, hopefully small.”
“Well, now, I ain’t no cobbler, but I bet the wife could make up some moccasins for her — we’ve certainly got enough leather around here. And it being summer, we could sell you a couple of blankets. Come on over to the house.”
“Thank you,” Ilika said. “Also, we’d pay a silver and a copper for a hearty meal for all eleven of us, more if there’s dessert.”
“Well, my friend, in that case there certainly will be dessert!”
They entered the sturdy log structure with its steep thatched roof. A large hearth, currently without fire, dominated the main room. Nearby, the well-stocked kitchen had its own small hearth, and could easily feed dozens.
Work tables held goat skins and cheese presses, vegetables being cleaned and sewing projects. Above them, under the thatched roof, two or three more floors were accessible only by ladder.
Koto’s wife and eldest daughter, a quiet girl of about sixteen, cleared off a work table and set to work making moccasins and a sun hat for Misa, who sat proudly as she was measured. Buna stayed near to oversee.
One of Koto’s teenage sons climbed a ladder and brought down two good wool blankets.
Ilika got out his map and sat with the farmer, making notes about the roads and the trails as the local man spoke. Koto told of two herders who lived farther up the meadow, and was sure one of them would have a rucksack. He also described the only place in the mountains where supplies could be purchased.
When Misa received her moccasins, the newly-tanned goatskin felt so soft and cool against her sore feet that she danced around the room with happiness. The farmwife brought out several pairs of knitted socks, and Buna nodded.
Soon the eldest daughter finished the simple sun hat, and Misa insisted on
wearing it, even inside.
Buna smiled, remembering herself not so long before.
Two other youth came in with herbs and roots from the garden, and Koto’s wife busied herself making goat stew, fresh bread with soft goat cheese, and fresh mint tea sweetened with honey.
With plenty of tables in the house, the travelers and the entire large family ate together. A lively chatter broke out, especially among the youngest daughter, the middle son, Kibi, Neti, and Miko. The middle daughter, about fourteen and very mature, didn’t say much during dinner, but looked at all the travelers with keen eyes — especially the males.
As they ate, they could smell plum and berry pies in the oven. Ilika continued to chat with the farmer about the mountain trails that lay ahead of them, and the farmer was proud to share his lifetime of knowledge. Some of the students listened carefully, as the mountains still looked a bit frightening to them.
Mati and Sata sat with the farmer’s wife, paper and pencil in hand, to agree on a list of foods they could buy from the family. The woman looked at the written words with wonder and suspicion, as if gazing at a magical incantation instead of a simple shopping list.
Toward the end of the meal, the middle daughter fastened her admiring eyes upon Boro. When she caught him looking back at her, she smiled. It wasn’t long before everyone at the table was aware of her interest. Sata swallowed several times and tried to focus on the shopping list.
After dinner, the family had evening chores, so the travelers got their beds ready in the soft meadow grass. Mati and Sata went around checking to see how much packing space each person had.
Soon the eldest son, newly-returned from herding, kindled a fire in the outdoor pit beside the house, and the eleven travelers and eight family members gathered around for pie and stories. The middle daughter found her courage and asked to sit with Boro. He agreed.
Sata, arriving at the fire after packing some supplies, suddenly wore a very distant expression.
To the delight of the family, the travelers had many stories ready to tell.
Ilika announced at the beginning that this was not a good place for bracelet stories, and his students grinned with understanding. The family members shrugged.
The travelers and the family alternated the telling of tales. Ilika and his students learned many things about dealing with deep winter snow, unprepared travelers, and mischievous goats.
“Is keeping goats about the same as shepherding?” Buna asked.
“Goats are smarter,” the youngest daughter spoke from experience, “and have minds of their own. Sheep wander off. Goats sneak off!”
Buna looked thoughtful, and everyone else laughed.
When another story was requested, and they were running out of those that did not include the bracelet, Boro took a deep breath and asked Ilika for their book. By the light of the fire, he slowly read the first chapter of The Adventures of Godi and Tima to the spellbound family.
After he handed the book to Kibi, the fourteen-year-old girl sitting close beside him whispered in his ear, “Will you walk with me in the moonlight?”
They both stood up and strolled into the meadow together.
Sata made mistakes constantly when she was asked to read a chapter. The family assumed it was just because she was the youngest of those who could read.
An hour later, Koto announced it was time for chores and sleep. As soon as no one else was around, Sata plopped down beside Ilika. In a choked voice she barely managed to say, “What do you think they’re talking about?”
Ilika took a slow, deep breath. “Way out here, far from any town, it’s very hard for young people to find partners. I imagine Boro is getting a marriage proposal.”
Sata was silent for a long time. Finally, in a tiny, broken voice she said,
“It’s not fair. Me and him were getting close.”
Ilika put his arms around her. “It’s actually one of the very best things that could happen, Sata. If he stays with her, you’ll know Boro is the kind of boy who would give up his education, give up his place on my ship, and give up the relationship he’s developing with you, just because a goat girl takes a fancy to
him. Would you want a partner who’s that weak and fickle?”
“Um . . . I don’t know . . . maybe not.”
“Or, if he turns her down, you’ll probably learn some new things about his feelings for you.”
“I . . . I think I see what you mean. But it hurts.”
“Tests like this are good for relationships. And yes, they hurt. Kibi and I are closer after being apart for a while and realizing how much we care about each other.”
“I saw you kissing.”
Ilika chuckled. “Try to think of this as a blessing. If he can be enticed away so easily, then the sooner you are rid of him, the sooner you can get close to a boy who likes you enough to stick with you.”
Sata was silent for a long moment. “I’ll . . . try to think about it like that.”
Ilika and Sata joined the others who were crawling under their blankets to gaze up at the moon and stars.
Sata lay in her bed thinking about the things Ilika had said when suddenly Boro appeared, carrying his bedroll. “Can I sleep beside you?”
“If you want to.”
He got comfortable under his blankets. “Josa asked me to stay here with her.”
“I
know.”
“I knew you’d figure it out. I listened to everything she had to say, just . . .
to be kind, I guess. But I finally had to tell her . . . I have a road in front of me, and a girl I like already.”
Sata’s hand crept out from under her blankets, and found Boro’s hand waiting for her.
Deep Learning Notes
People in poor rural cultures are thrilled by the opportunity to earn money because, for the most part, their day to day economies function without it, using barter instead. Money is necessary for those rare trips to the city to buy
the few things (mostly luxuries) that cannot be produced (or traded for) locally.
Thatched roofs only work at a steep angle, so a large farmhouse tends to have two or more “attic” levels under the roof for storage, drying and curing, and sleeping, all accessible only by ladder.
Why would Ilika let his bracelet be discussed with shepherdess Noni, but not with Farmer Koto and his family?
Why was Sata making lots of mistakes while reading? What did she learn that evening?