Shiloh

When his mom and dad left, Shiloh went out to the workshop to continue on the woodworking project that Joseph helped him get started yesterday afternoon. After awhile, he heard James’ van start up and leave. The cottage was silent except for the small sander that Shiloh was running to pre-sand his project before completing the rest by hand. And then the door to the workshop creaked open.

     “Hi. What are you working on?” Petra asked.

     “Hi, yourself. I thought you and James went to interview the new drummer?”

     “I’m not interested in that,” she explained. “The band’s problem is not going to be solved by getting a new drummer. The problem will only be fixed by getting rid of another person—our lead guitarist. He hits on all the drummers. I can’t understand why. Only the drummers. But that’s for another time.” She came and looked over his shoulder.

     There is some truth in Aikido that drew Shiloh to study it. All living things have a circle—some might call it an aura but Shiloh found it to be more. It is the respectful circle that only a person that you trust is allowed within. At this minute, Petra was within this circle and her presence was unnerving—and not in a bad way.

     “I am making a birdhouse,” he explained. She continued to watch over his shoulder. He could feel her breath on his neck. “My father said I should start simple and when I’ve mastered the easy things to the extent that I’m making art, I can graduate to the more complex.” He had not turned to face her but concentrated on his sanding.

     “I can understand that,” she said. “A young man who has no experience should start slow. Sometimes a good teacher is all that is needed the first time.” She laid a hand on his shoulder.

     “You shouldn’t touch me,” he looked up over his shoulder into her eyes.

     “And why is that?”

     “Because for you and I it would be wrong to be touching—alone out here.” He turned to face her directly and gently removed her hand. “I am not saying that there is any wrong intended by either you or me. I am a Native man and I have no belief in the White man’s sin. But let me tell you about what my People do believe.” He sat back on the nearest tall stool and motioned for her to do the same.

     “A long time ago, before the White man came, some of our People thought it was right to have more than one wife. This seemed to work for a while but they noticed that there was a problem. At first, it was thought to be a matter of jealousy between the women but as time went on, a few men that were open to ask, began to question their wives. “Something is missing,” they said. “Do you know what it is?”

     “The thing that is missing is in the beat of your heart,” the woman answered. It is something that only one man and a woman can share at one time. It is this sharing that connects us to the Earth. It is part physical and part spirit. But the important thing is to have this open heart. The trust must first be felt like the beat of a drum. Trust is the key that will open our hearts to share Love with one man and one woman.”

     “Awesome!” Petra exclaimed. “I wish I could find that. So how did this change your People’s relationships?”

     “That is the point,” Shiloh said thoughtfully. “My people are open to change when Spirit tells us. This is because we are following the teachings of a Spirit Father that is alive and speaking to us through our hearts. I am not meaning to judge but for us there could not be a book of written laws.”

     “Like the part in Genesis that tells about Eve tempting Adam into sin?”

     “Yes—like that,” he smiled. “I have HIS memories when I need them. And the One that came before did not write this. It is an inspired book—that is true. But for me, and most of our People, this book is one-sided. It is all about a male view of Life. That does not make it wrong, but there is no balance. To be balanced, there would need to be more of Women’s teachings. The book called Genesis is mostly about the fear that a man is responsible for his own feelings for the woman he loves. The Spirit Father that I know wouldn’t have cursed Eve—he would have given her a blessing to be able to share love and bring children into this world. That is how I see and respect the woman with whom I will one day share this mystery. And that is how I respect the woman who shares my brother’s bed.”

     “Well said, for a man so young,” Petra leaned back on her hands. “But what about your feelings that you have minute-to-minute? The story you told us at breakfast the other day was about how our thoughts create realities. Am I right?”

     “You are as intelligent as James said you are,” he laughed. “I am learning to channel my thoughts into creative projects like this birdhouse. I am not about repressing or controlling. If there is a world in which my thoughts concerning a certain woman in the hallway yesterday morning are being enacted—I will let it be and respect that which is beyond my control.”