Page 90 - BraveNewWorld

90 IDPH

his own stood beside it. Looking at the two pots, he had to laugh.
“But the next one will be better,” he said, and began to moisten another piece
of clay.
To fashion, to give form, to feel his fingers gaining in skill and power- this gave
him an extraordinary pleasure. “A, B, C, Vitamin D,” he sang to himself as he
worked. “The fat’s in the liver, the cod’s in the sea.” And Mitsima also sang-a
song about killing a bear. They worked all day, and all day he was filled with
an intense, absorbing happiness.
“Next winter,” said old Mitsima, “I will teach you to make the bow.”

He stood for a long time outside the house, and at last the ceremonies within
were finished. The door opened; they came out. Kothlu came first, his right
hand out-stretched and tightly closed, as though over some precious jewel. Her
clenched hand similarly outstretched, Kiakimé followed. They walked in silen-
ce, and in silence, behind them, came the brothers and sisters and cousins and
all the troop of old people.
They walked out of the pueblo, across the mesa. At the edge of the clid they
halted, facing the early morning sun. Kothlu opened his hand. A pinch of corn
meal lay white on the palm; he breathed on it, murmured a few words, then
threw it, a handful of white dust, towards the sun. Kiakimé did the same. Then
Khakimé’s father stepped forward, and holding up a feathered prayer stick,
made a long prayer, then threw the stick after the corn meal.
“It is finished,” said old Mitsima in a loud voice. “They are married.”
“Well,” said Linda, as they turned away, “all I can say is, it does seem a lot of
fuss to make about so little. In civilized countries, when a boy wants to have a
girl, he just. But where are you going, John?”

He paid no attention to her calling, but ran on, away, away, anywhere to be by
himself.
It is finished Old Mitsima’s words repeated themselves in his mind. Finished,
finished. In silence and frum a long way off, but violently, desperately, hopeles-
sly, he had loved Kiakimé. And now it was finished. He was sixteen.

At the full moon, in the Antelope Kiva, secrets would be told, secrets would
be done and borne. They woud go down, boys, into the kiva and come out
again, men. The boys were all afraid and at the same time impatient. And at
last it was the day. The sun went down, the moon rose. He went with the
others. Men were standing, dark, at the entrance to the kiva; the ladder went
down into the red lighted depths. Already the leading boys had begun to climb
down. Suddenly, one of the men stepped forward, caught him by the arm, and
pulled him out of the ranks. He broke free and dodged back into his place

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