People of the Snowy Egret - An original short story

This is the story of the People of the Snowy Egret. It begins twenty-one generations before the Ironheads came to the One World. It is a story you have already heard but told by a different voice.
The home of the People was Aztlan, the Land of the Snowy Egret. It was a land of plenty. There, the marshes provided the Egret People with fish and other good things to eat. The marshes also provided them with reeds for making homes, baskets, sleeping mats and many other useful things. The Land provided them with everything they needed and the People lived happy lives.
One day, a great warrior spirit came to Aztlan to bring a message to the People. They knew the warrior as Left-Handed Hummingbird but he was also known as the Hummingbird of the South. The People respected and greatly admired Hummingbird. His words were very important and all gathered to hear his words. Hummingbird told the People, "You must leave your bountiful home and travel to a land far away. The journey will be full of hardship and suffering. You, who are gathered around me today, will never see that faraway land and you will also never see Aztlan again."
The People turned sad and asked, "Why should we endure such misery when we already live in paradise?" Hummingbird said, "Do not let your hearts grow heavy. You must go because of your grandchildren's grandchildren. They will become the root that will grow into a great nation but that root cannot grow there." The People asked, "How will we know when our journey has ended?" Hummingbird answered, "Look for a war-ribbon snake in the beak of an eagle perched upon a cactus. You must make your new home there."
They prepared for the trip by gathering their most vital possessions. Unlike the Ironheads, who had their deer-dogs to carry both their things and themselves, the People did not have large beasts of burden to make their pilgrimage easier. They could take only what they could carry. Within days, the food and water they had carried were gone. Food and water became scarce because the land was drier as they went. The People abandoned the marsh way and taught themselves the desert way.
One day, while looking for food, they encountered the Others that lived in these arid lands. The Others did not welcome them because the land could not feed more than were already there. The Others scorned them because, by now, the People were thin from hunger, tired from the long journey, and dirty from the endless dust that blew across this land. The Others called them Chichimecatl, as a way of humiliating them. The word meant, among other thing, dog-children, barbarians, and wanderers.
The Wanderers resumed their odyssey into the wastelands and, everywhere they went, they were unwelcome. As each generation was replaced by the next, the People were still without a home but they remembered Hummingbird's words and did not linger. Eventually, the land became green again and mountains were visible on the horizon. When they reached the mountain pass, they stared in awe at the sight before them. It was an immense valley with a huge lake at its center. Surely, no place in the One World could be more perfect. With new hope, they entered the valley.
Their hope was soon dampened when they learned that the Peoples living around the lake were all fierce warriors. The Wanderers did not want to leave this enchanting place but they did not have the skill to fight for the land. The Flint People, the Coyote People and others forced them onto a tiny island at the heart of the lake. It was a place none wanted because only snakes and cacti flourished there. It was called Tenochtitlan, the Land of the Cactus and, fourteen generations after they began their trek, they found Hummingbird's sign there. They were no longer the Wanderers but the Cactus People.
They knew that this island was far too small if it was to become their new home. To try to make the island larger, they gathered algae from the lake and piled it around the island's shore. Dirt was needed to cover the algae but, every time they went to get it from the lake shore, they were driven back into the lake. The Cactus People quickly learned to fight back and getting dirt was not longer a problem.
Their little island was soon as large as most of the villages that surrounded the lake. Now that they had a true home, they once again used their true name, Aztlatecatl, People of the Snowy Egret. The Ironheads corrupted that name to one you are more familiar with, Azteca or Aztec.
The People never forgot Hummingbird, who had inspired them to start their long journey. They wanted to honor him, so they built a great pyramid in front of their public square. At the top of the pyramid, they built a temple for the Left-Handed Hummingbird and another temple for the Precious Twin.
Who was the Precious Twin and why did they also honor him? Ah, that is another story!
Copyright © 2002 by Isaac Saldaña

Our first journey is to find that special place for us... -- Earl Nightingale

Copyright © 2002 by Isaac Saldaña

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