Bear's Den: "Don't Let Your Valentine... 'Thaw'"

Umm, the Severe Moon. Valentine´s Day falls in here. This traditional lover´s day brings a warm, fuzzy, dreamy set of mind for a two-legged. As a rule, the female of the species is paid homage by her special brave, and given gifts and sweet words of the heart from her mate. Sure, and it´s sweeter than honeyed sassafras, too. But, the couple had better be careful because the Severe Moon got its moniker for a reason. It´s not just a one-day affair – no – winter is a long time, with just an occasional thaw; and love, it´s supposed to be a life-long romance, and only has just this one day per-annum officially denoting it, too. Yep, so you sure don´t wanna to slip into of a mindset of … ´Here Today and Gone Tomorrow´.

The Severe Moon is noted for the heaviest burden of winter, when snows are deep and the cold is the most intense. But sometimes, what the Arapaho call neehii-cecinii–thriii-hon-ookuu´oo occurs – a midwinter thaw. It brings on a warm, fuzzy and dreamy set of mind for a two-legged, as well. We´ve had one just recently, here in the Mitten State, and boy… have I ever been infatuated. Yep, I´ve been struck by Midwinter Thaw´s arrow. We´ve had one sixty-plus degree day, and temperatures in the high 40´s and 30´s as of late. Most of the three feet of standing snow has melted and I, well, I… have found a long, lost love. That´s right, I have. I walked around the corner of the garage and there, lying on the melted ground, was my favorite pair of channel locks. They´re a nice yellow metal, so, I´ve always called the tool Goldie Lochs – get it? I´d wondered who had run off with her, but… she… had been there all the time… right where we´d parted last fall… after working on the car. Ain´t love grand, though? But, I reckon that midwinter thaws have always had that effect on Indians – they´re kind´a like Valentines Day. It´s a short, warm window of opportunity to do that which must be done, whether it´s the official showing of affection or the gathering of building supplies.

Papoonwi (winter) takes a toll, and a thaw such as this is a ´freed-up´ time to hunt granted by The Great Good Spirit. When the snow is high and the way is too rough, it´s difficult, if not impossible, to hunt. But during this warm and fuzzy reprieve, depleted food supplies could be filled-up quickly. In this way, the Creator helps to make survival until spring a much more doable thing. The thaw is also the time to gather materials, especially for the ´lover´ of canoe building. Now, while any birch bark will work, "Winter Bark" of the birch is prized mostly for canoes. This bark is depicted by the red colored rind that shows on the inner side between the winter freezes. It´s most pliable to harvest at this time of year. The thickest, and sweetest, of this sugared bark, is found primarily on the lowest portions of the tree. But usually, these areas are covered by heavy snow, at this time, and are unobtainable. So, it´s always gathered during a midwinter thaw because it´ll be the very best birch bark for canoe hulls. Uh-huh, as Ralph Cramden used to say, "How sweeeet it is!"

But midwinter thaws are just that, a warm spot appearing in the middle of winter. Winter, like love, goes on, everyday, in spite of a hot spot every now and again. Smart two-leggeds don´t waste a day of midwinter thaws, or of being in love, either, because they… are but brief trysts… in a long, long affair. So, with midwinter thaws and sweethearts alike, you have to treat each and every minute – as if it is highly adored and forever fleeting. Yep, you sure don´t wanna slip into of a mindset of … ´Here Today and Gone Tomorrow´.

David Walks-As-Bear is a Kispoko Shawnee Indian. He works as a private game warden and detective and is an author and syndicated newspaper columnist living in Northwest Michigan. Contact him at The White Lake Beacon: 231-894-5356 or visit his website at: www.Walks-As-Bear.com