Buffalo...

That morn I had to go a huntin' Buffalo. I jumped on Chip, my new mare. It was near 2 o'clock when we left. I's felt brave, sittin' on Chips' back. I kicked 'er flanks with the heal of m' moccasin. We were off! My partner and I knew just where to find buffalo. We had seen the droppings and the tracks of a herd of about 5 or 600. It was a good sign, those fresh tracks. We only had to go about a mile until we saw them. Not alive - dead. All dead. They were covered with flies. They had no skin on their bodies, just fat hangin' loose. And it smelled horrible. Only one was alive. A newborn calf.

I jumps off me horse. Me knife in hand, as I cut the cord o t' newborn. Wolf dried him off, named him Boggles and adopted 'im as 'is own. They were inseparable and I's got me' buffalo - a big ole bull a mile away.

My wife - my Angie...

It was 12 o'clock when I returned to our teepee. We were joined, then we ate. I realized that I was a man, a full grown man, with a wonderful wife. My dreams were realized and life was beautiful - Angie was beautiful. Days, nights, weeks, months passed, all joyful. Then, one day she told me the marvelous news. She was going to have a baby. My mouth hung open as my heart exploded. Happiness surrounded me. I picked her up and I whirled her around gently.

That night we discussed names and agreed that if it was a boy - Frank William. If it was a girl - Bethany Angeline-Marie. We also decided that it was time to leave the tribe and set up a cabin in Yellowstone, where I had been as a boy.

Bethany Angeline-Marie...

We traveled for many moons. When we finally arrived, I noticed a strange look on Angie's face and asked "Why are you worrying?"

"Because I'm so happy" was her reply. "It's just so beautiful and I realized we're really free!!"

"We are? How'd you find out?" I asked.

"A man came to the camp a week ago, just before we left."

"Why didn't you tell me?" "Because I was afraid - afraid that it wasn't true."

"So you're sayin' the war's over? The North won? Yippee!"

Angie yelled out. I stopped me gibber gabber and realized that Angie went into labor because of the excitement.

I's took 'er to a soft spot and laid down m' buffalo hide. Wolf 'n' Fred 'n' Boggles (the buffalo) came to our side. Twelve hours and 24 minutes later, she was born, at 12:24 pm, August 12, 1868. Her name was Bethany Angeline-Marie Taylor. We was the happiest family on earth.

We set up camp in the cliffs of the great forest. We were warm inside our large and cozy cave where we had a fire going. It was raining, but our small family was dry and happy. We intended to stay that way, and we did.