 The arena was decidedly busy. Josh was equally
as busy watching the events unfolding before him. Heavily decorated
dancers slowly maneuvered their way across the area. Their regalia of
feather, intricate beadwork, and leather gently swung and swayed to the
rhythm of the drum beat and to the movement of their bodies. Beautiful
women both youthful and elderly placed their moccasin feet carefully to
the steps while the fringes on their shawls swung back and forth as easily
as their own graceful movement and unison with their partners and or
quietly alone. The feel of a singular purpose permeated the night set
there by the actions of the participants.
It seemed to Josh there was a tremendous
level of controlled emotion. Just the day before he had seen these same
people but tonight some way they were of another place. This was a time
for them to become absorbed in something different from their usual daily
chores, and he knew it. The power of the man dancers could only but reach
out and send a shiver of excitement through him while he saw their working
at controlling their body to the quick beat of the drum. Their softly
covered feet were being lifted from the dusty ground in delicate light
ways and they were just touching it lightly here and there as they kept
the tension of measured steps. The shape of their foot was even
transformed from that of being covered with a heavy shoe to this lovely
dream light wispy way as their feet simply made staccato motions treating
the ground as with a caress, there and then away, playfully.
If the men dancers worked at their
performance, so too, the women were intent on what they were doing. Their
countenance was different also. Straight forward they proceeded into the
arena , giving no break from their concentration to anyone. Each one of
their dress was different but still alike. Rich strong colors graced their
shoulders in the softly draping fabrics of the shawls they wore. The girls
who wore buckskin carried that shawl on her arm and it became a part of
her total beauty with the color and design displayed while the fringe
swayed in an opposite direction from her own movement giving a joyful look
of sweet abandon from anything that is humdrum or dull. All this was
achieved with the dignity of stoic appearance attributed to these people.
Catching the attention of the boy were the
children. Each one of the small ones were simply miniature duplicates of
their elders. If they did not get the steps or if they trailed their
shawls loosely, sometimes, on to the ground it didn't matter. There was
equally with them the same pleasure seen with their parents. In their
miniature way the children were very serious in trying to follow in the
steps of their parents. If Josh could not be a part of these activities
because of his skin color this was not a problem with him. That was the
time when fair skinned children of mixed blood were not pushed out into
the arena and he accepted what could not be changed. As the years passed
this was no longer a problem and there were in later times people of all
races to participate in the social dances of the tribe.
Maybe it was this moment of a little
sadness on Josh's part to have caused him to allow his attention to be
caught by a solitary dancer. When he first looked up to see the performer
it was as if the man's eyes were directly on him trying to catch his
attention. While the boy gazed across and through the haze of dust kicked
up by a sudden gust of wind he could see the tormenting stare of the man
before him. Rather than ignoring this look he simply chose to meet it.
When the man caught the boy's attention there was a change. Quickly now,
there was the silliest stance to be adopted by the dancer. He was
awkwardly pushing his derriere into an exaggerated posture wagging his
backside in a most unbecoming posture. Where the other dancers were
lightly touching the ground with their feet the clown was clomping along
in a rough way so obviously unconnected he was standing out, but in an
unattractive laughable way. There was a dress he presented to be even more
of a joke. His breech cloth had triple x's marked on it like what had been
originally a sack for flour.
When the drum beat picked up in tempo the
war dancers did spin and whirl. The flurry of the feathers were whipping
as they were pulled back and forth with the active speed put upon them.
All the excitement of the moment was alive and upon all who were there. As
if the clown was demented by his inability to keep up with them, all of a
sudden he tore across the arena to the benches setting around the circle
put there for the dancers between dances and during intermission. Leaping
up onto one of the benches he was then head and shoulders above the
others. With the attention given to his antics the spectators were as
entertained by this clown as were those of any culture with their
entertainers. Before he could continue with his solitary dance on top of
the benches one of the judges stepped up to direct the antics of this
unruly performer to a more sedate position.
Gone was any thought as to not fitting into
the way of things. Josh was so taken by the light hearted silliness of
that clown there was no place left for anything else but laughter. |
