Chasing the Sun with Kenam and Olulah

"Kenam, you were born here." I looked up at my mother, her black eyes glinting in the light of the fire. "You will die here, just like your father and his father before him. This land is our home." She placed a hand on my forehead. "One day, this land will be yours to care for. You must remember that."

I nodded in response, partially to acknowledge her words, but mostly to stop her from talking. Her eyes held mine for several seconds longer before she turned towards the fire and lowered herself into position. My father took his place beside her, a small smile playing about his lips as he stared into the flames. The two of them sat there for hours, their hands clasped together as they watched the fire dance in its restless dance. I knew my parents well enough to know what was going on behind their eyes; they were imagining themselves young again, with fresh soil beneath their feet and a whole world ahead of them. They had no idea how right they would be when they finally woke up from this reverie.

The first drops of rain began to fall as my father opened his eyes and pushed himself onto his feet. He stretched out his back and then moved across the room to the small pile of possessions we owned. Our meager possessions were all arranged on top of each other in such a way that they formed a sort of pillow standing vertically against the wall. My father reached out and extracted an ancient looking book from one corner of the pile and placed it gingerly in his lap before sitting down next to my mother once again. He ran a hand lovingly over the cover, feeling every bump and groove as if he was tracing the lines of his own face with his fingers.

"We must start preparing Kenam," he said softly as he placed a hand on my head once more. "Today is your day." I cringed inwardly at his words; I had been dreading this day ever since I realized what it meant for me growing up in this village many years ago. The moment I realized that something was different about me was one of pure terror; I hadn't understood why everyone else didn't seem fazed by little things like taking baths or wearing clean clothing, and then one day I realized why- it wasn't because they were too stupid to know better, it was because they just didn't care at all!

My parents had been nothing but kind to me ever since they realized that I did not share their lackadaisical attitude towards personal hygiene. Instead, they slowly introduced me to everything I lacked: soap, clean water, food that didn't taste like mud... and eventually clothes that weren't made from animal hides or leaves plastered together with tree sap or some other type of natural glue invented by the elders over time to keep us alive while living off whatever scraps came our way on a daily basis. They made sure that everything I knew about myself was different from them so that whenever it was my turn to receive the 'honor' accorded only to men in our society, I would feel grateful rather than disgusted by my new life ahead of me.

I wondered what lay ahead as I followed my parents outside into the rain; would something change? Would someone take me away? Would someone kill me? My mind raced with questions as we walked through puddles made large by generations of people walking through this same path countless times before us. It wasn't long before we reached our destination: an old oak tree standing tall above everything else around it in our small village. As we approached it from multiple sides, a young boy emerged from underneath its branches and stood facing us defiantly with a rock clenched tightly in his fist- he was ready to fight for his spot among us today! A cry rose up among us as we circled around him; only one person could claim him today...

A sharp whistle rang out from somewhere behind me and everyone fell silent instantly as we turned towards its source. A group of older boys emerged from between buildings carrying between them a wooden table on their shoulders- after today one more seat would be added to their number! We gaped at them in awe as they carried their prize towards us; it seemed even older than any of us present! Suddenly there were cries all around us- some people were cheering while others were wailing loudly- we had never seen anything quite like this before! Amidst all the noise there was suddenly another sound- a deep groan emanating from within the old oak tree itself! Everyone fell silent once more as Elder Kal stepped forward proudly with a round stone held aloft in one hand while he beckoned impatiently for everyone else to step aside with the other...

Everyone parted ways reluctantly as Elder Kal stopped directly under where he assumed was the hollowed out interior of the tree trunk. He threw down his stone with amazing precision given his age before reaching up into what appeared to be empty air inside the trunk itself! For a moment nothing happened at all until suddenly there was a deafening crack followed by an eruption of sawdust which rained down upon everyone gathered below! It quickly cleared away however revealing Elder Kal already standing proud next to an opening leading downwards into darkness....

Elder Kal motioned for everyone else to step aside before disappearing into the darkness without even making eye contact- it seemed almost like he knew exactly where he wanted to go without seeing where he needed to go first! There were several moments during which nothing happened... but then there was another creak within the tree itself followed by yet another loud groan rising above those present! It took only moments for roots and branches alike to begin falling away into space revealing an opening large enough for several people walk side-by-side through easily! Everyone gasped as Elder Kal reemerged with two more people behind him dragging between them yet another antique table similar to the one they carried earlier towards us! All three men stepped forward together towards where everyone else had gathered around their prize...