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1 / Reflections P oco and I arrived at Twin Lakes in the late afternoon. We drove the winding dirt road through the heavy forest of pine and fir, stirring a fine cloud of dust. We were en route to my grandfather ’s property, which bordered the North Twin. As we approached the lake, I remembered the smell and feel of the land and the trees. It was as beautiful as ever. The only movement on the lake was that of fishermen in rowboats quietly fishing for the large rainbow. As we exited the car to walk to the beach, a squirrel high up in a pine tree signaled our approach. We had been here before, and Poco knew that we were on our land. Poco was a six-pound Maltese, my best friend. We were inseparable. During the last six years, we had traveled half of the United States together, visiting many Indian tribes. We always learned new things about the di¤erent cultures as tribal news was shared and met many interesting people from tribes that I had only known from books. Now, back on familiar ground, he systematically re-marked his territory and sni¤ed at trails made earlier by the inhabitants of the area. We walked to a grasscovered bank above the water. I sat down to smoke a cigarette in the shade of the trees. Poco joined me, and we sat in silence, enjoying every3 thing before us. The wind blowing through the trees above knew us and welcomed our arrival. AsIstudiedthelake,Ithoughtof themanytimesmyfamilyhadassembled and camped here. I remembered the cold of 1935, when our familyof fourspentthewinter.Therewasmuchsnow,andthelakewasfrozen over. I was four, and Luana, my sister, was two. I could spot the area on the lake where my dad had cut a hole in the ice to fish for rainbow trout. Luana and I would watch in wonder while our dad caught the hungry fish. As he caught each one, he gave it to me to place in a pile away from the hole. My dad cleaned them and gave them to me. Then I took the fish to my mother, who was preparing dinner in the tent above, where we lived. My dad and mother loved the lakes and spent much time during the yearfishingandhuntingthere.Thecleanwaterwaspureenoughtodrink. The lakes were close to Gold Mountain, and during August we would go up to the summit and pick our supply of huckleberries. When we returned to the lakes, we could have some berries with our meals. The rest we cleaned and dried for future use. Over the years, we came to Twin Lakes to fish, swim, and go boating. Hunting for deer was also good in the surrounding mountains. We spent much time searching the ravines and deer trails when our meat supply was low. Once a year, almost all of the People who were living in Old IncheliumpicnickedatCarsonBeach,amilefrommygrandfather’sproperty . There, they recounted stories of the good days before the Columbia River rose to cover Kettle Falls and destroyed the great salmon runs. Those were hard but adventurous times, and everyone was occupied cooking over campfires, swimming, boating, and hunting in the ravines near the lakes. Tepees and tents were pitched throughout the area, and the days ended to the rhythm of drums as the People gambled during the stick games. After walking the trails around the property and inspecting points of reflections 4 interest, I became hungry. I felt like having an early dinner and asked Poco if he was hungry. He growled and wagged his tail. We drove the forty-eight miles to Barney’s, the only restaurant overlooking Lake Roosevelt. The best steaks in the state of Washington are served at Barney’s. It was there that my family used to celebrate many eveningsbygatheringoversteaksandcocktails.Wereminiscedandtalked about the old days before the Columbia River rose and covered Kettle Falls. My mother shared stories about her father, Alex Christian (White Grizzly Bear). She told us of his travels and his hunting and fishing adventures. She also talked about the Sin-Aikst Tribe, the tribe that we belonged to, during their good days. We always enjoyed hearing my mother’s stories about her father and the tribe. After I finished dinner, I returned to my car. I could see Poco watching me from inside. His tail was wagging. I opened the door to let him out, then knelt and gave him a part of my steak. I watched as he gulped it down. I poured some...

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