Keeper of the Winds

"Keeper of the Winds" by Julia Darrow Cowles is a captivating tale that weaves together elements of adventure, mystery, and self-discovery. Set against the backdrop of a rugged coastal landscape, the story follows a young protagonist as they navigate the challenges of growing up while grappling with the influence of nature and the complexities of human relationships. Through vivid imagery and evocative prose, Cowles explores themes of resilience and the search for one's identity, inviting readers on a journey filled with enchantment and introspection.

• Mystery
• Short story

								
MUDJEKEEWIS, father of the four winds of heaven, had three sons. Their
names were Wabun, Kabibonokka, and Shawondasee. Mudjekeewis said to
the chiefs of his people, “You have named me Kabeyun, the West Wind,
and have given to me all the four winds of the heavens. I will appoint
my three sons to be keepers of the north wind, the east wind, and the
south wind.”

So to Kabibonokka he gave the north wind, to Wabun he gave the east
wind, and to Shawondasee he gave the south wind.

Wabun was a hunter. He liked to rise early and to leap upon the
mountains in pursuit of the wild deer. He liked to shoot with his bow
and arrows. He was glad that the east wind had been given to him, for
he loved to watch the heavens in the early morning when the sun shot
its first rays across the mountain tops where he hunted. He said to
Mudjekeewis, “I am most grateful, my father, that the east wind has
been given into my keeping. When I hunt in the early morning I will
shoot away the clouds of darkness with my silver arrows; I will chase
away the shadows.”

So Wabun cared for the east wind, and each morning he painted the sky
with wonderful colors. He sent his silver arrows down to the earth to
waken the people, and to light up the lakes and meadows.

At last Wabun grew lonely in his home in the eastern sky, and he began
to watch day by day for a beautiful maiden who walked upon the prairie
gathering grasses for her baskets. And Wabun wooed her with his soft
breezes, and with sweet flowers, and with the songs of birds. And when
he had won her heart he changed her into a beautiful star, which he
set in his home in the heavens.

Kabibonokka, the second son, was very different from Wabun. He was
cold and cruel, and he was glad that the north wind had been given to
him. When he sent his winds across the earth the leaves upon the trees
turned to crimson and gold, and were very lovely, but they whirled and
twisted in the wind and said to each other, “Our days will soon be
at an end. We shall soon turn dry and brown and fall to the earth.
Kabibonokka laughs when we put on our beautiful colors.”

Then Kabibonokka sent icy blasts, and the waters of the lakes froze,
and the snows fell, and the winds came through the door of the tepee,
and life became hard for the people. And Kabibonokka laughed, and his
laugh was like the whistling of the wind through the bare tree tops.
The fish were deep beneath the frozen waters; the snow covered the
tracks of the animals of the forest. Food was scarce, and hard to
obtain.

Only the bravest of the Indians could fish and hunt when the north
wind blew its coldest. Shingebis was one of these, and he never lacked
for fish or fuel.

“I will get the best of Shingebis,” said Kabibonokka, and so one
morning he went to Shingebis’ tepee. And Shingebis asked him to eat
with him, and he gave him a meal of fish. And Kabibonokka ate
greedily. But the warmth of Shingebis’ tepee was too great for him,
and he had to go away. As he left he tried to put out the tepee fire,
but Shingebis blew upon it and it burned more brightly, so that
Kabibonokka had to hasten. In revenge he froze the waters more deeply,
but Shingebis only laughed, for no weather was too cold for him to
find fish for his dinner.

But the Indians did not love Kabibonokka, for he was cold and cruel.

Shawondasee was not like either of his brothers. He was fat and lazy.
He loved to lie upon green banks under shady trees. He loved the sweet
flowers, and the warmth of the South Land. He was far too lazy to send
strong winds such as came from the North Land. His breezes were soft
and traveled slowly, and they were sweet with the perfume of southern
groves and meadows.

Shawondasee, like his brother Wabun, saw a beautiful maiden that he
loved. Do you remember the story? Her hair was of golden yellow, and
she nodded and swayed in the breeze. Her home was in the meadows, and
Shawondasee looked for her day by day, and wafted sweet odors and fair
flowers to her, and he won her love, even as Wabun won the love of the
prairie maiden. But he was too sluggish to go himself to win her, and
to bring her to his home in the South Land. Instead he said to
himself each morning, “To-day I will go and seek the golden-haired
maiden, and bring her to my home,” but each day he was too indolent.

The days went by, and at last the golden hair of the maiden turned
silvery white, and when Shawondasee saw this he heaved a great sigh,
so great a sigh that it reached even to the maiden, and lo, all the
silver white of her hair was scattered over the meadow!

So Shawondasee still lives alone in the South Land, and sends gentle
sighing breezes to the meadows of the North.
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