My Mother Is Now Earth

15. This Christmas Morning

Dear Frankie, Sorry for not writing back sooner, but things have been pretty hectic around here the past few months. I’m glad to hear that you and Germaine decided to wait until next December before getting married. Maybe you’ll be able save up some money after graduating next spring. You don’t want to go into a marriage broke, believe me. But I’m going to come for a visit before then. I got another letter from Odanah in the mail. The tribe apologized for such a long delay in getting back to me about the status of my land payment. I guess that’s what you call bureaucracy. They asked me to continue to please be patient. It sounds like the check will be sent in a few months. Don said the same thing, to be patient. I sure would like to come the day I get paid, but I can’t leave Don with the kids while they’re in school. I’ll have to wait until the end of May or early June. It’s funny. I had all but given up on ever receiving that payment. I did give up on ever getting the chance to visit you and the sisters. Every time I try to save a few dollars from selling eggs, I have to spend it on things that come up like tennis shoes and gym outfits for the older boys in high school. Last week, Philly begged me to buy her a pair of ice skates. We f15g This Christmas Morning 149 150 1972 had a lot of rain this fall that left a pond behind the barn. I found her a decent pair at the Salvation Army in the Falls (International Falls). Like I say, I had given up on that land payment. But last fall, that nice law school student who stayed with us (I wrote to you about him) helped me get all you kids enrolled in Bad River. You should be getting your tribal ID in the mail soon. Anyway, after we did that, I showed him the original land papers I received from the tribe. He reached for a new sheet of paper and typed another letter on my behalf. All of that happened in early November. He said he had to get back to Duluth. School was starting again. Dennis helped him load up his car with his books and typewriter. I packed him up some egg sandwiches and caramel rolls, which I never make because the ingredients cost so much. I don’t know if we’ll ever see him again. I hope so, but it’s a long drive this far north. If you and Germaine ever get a chance to drive up here, you’ll see just how far away we are from the rest of the world. But I actually have settled in some here in Big Falls. The kids don’t get on my nerves like they used to. When James was here last summer, he got after them to stop their roughhousing and eating in the living room, leaving their dishes and candy wrappers everywhere. Don is behaving, too. He still drinks but keeps to himself most of the time. He hasn’t bugged me about using my Indian check to pay for some oats he wants to plant in the summer. We’ll see. The only thing I know for sure is that I am going to buy a bus ticket. I haven’t heard from James in quite awhile. He called my friend Irene Cloutier on Thanksgiving. Sounds like he is still working at a radio station in Minneapolis. He and Irene talked for quite awhile, but he said he’d have to write me a long letter because it’s pretty tough to try and plan on being at Irene’s waiting for a call—and expensive. Speaking of Thanksgiving, we had more visitors. Don brought home a couple from the Nett Lake Reservation. Delma and Lonnie got stuck This Christmas Morning 151 at the tavern uptown one night. Their ride took off, I guess. And then we had one of our famous blizzards. Delma helped me cook the meal. When the roads cleared, Don offered to drive them home. Nett Lake is only a little over an hour from here. But he came home early. Delma and Lonnie wanted to stop off at...