Musics and Landings

Plantman hastened through the thick corn grove in search of his dearly beloved, his shouts barely audible as the stiff east wind snapped the branches like a whip. "Sin-eer-ree! Where are you"!

The strength of the wind pulling at the trees was a common enough. His lineage 7 times removed did the pain-staking experiments with the Gene Gun, shooting the genetic code from the white oak tap root into each of these trees making up the grove.  The long roots were consistent in holding the trees fast even during hurricane force winds - that didn't seem to come as often as before.

The trees were varied shapes, but all having short massive trunks, wind resistant beech bark, and thick insulating inner bark. With wood type the consistency of tamarack, flexible, durable, and strong. Plantman rubbed his own short bulbous neck as he hurried along.

Plantman heard rumors these trees did still exist in isolated areas, but here in the Yooper, the weather varied much to the extremes to allow most natural trees to grow. In his life alone he experienced prolonged near arctic cold, Death Valley-type heat, and washing monsoons like described in past Asia.

Plantman often mused with importance, if it wasn't for the specialization of his immediate ancestors, there would be far less human presence in this area!

Even the corn these trees produced refused to come loose in the wind until fully ripened, and served a dual purpose of photosynthesis and food. These long-lived trees needed to be created - as they could never propagate on their own.

Why was another clan female camped at the start of the grove? His heart pumped with concern over this development.  Besides, Plant never like her child. She just didn't look right and this unsettled him so.

There, at the end of the long garden row, he could barely make out her straight black hair waving in the wind. Was she running? As he drew nigh, she finally heard Plant's stressed calling and slowly stood up from her task of pulling the wild edible dandys from the totatoe patch.

"What has the space between your ears so upset"? She whispered brushing her full lips across his ear, hoping to calm him.

"Skitme built a tee pee not two specs from our cabin" He breathed hard. " There is not enough productive land specs for so many to be near".

The retort from Sinery was straight up, and Plant knew enough not to interject. Her training from the old woman in the caves had a certain effect. She was tougher, more direct, and seemed to know things not taught by the clan females.

"Skitme is here to share our bounty, and", with that she raised her eyebrows, "we are going to need help with the specs". She let him think on this for a minute. "Besides, you know full well the soil tilth in the swamp is building faster than we can take it for the crops. We won't have any shortage of food".

To make her point Sinery gracefully unwrapped her longer more powerful arm and pulled the nearest totatoe out by the roots. As the loamy soil was shook from the root stock, she slowly counted the root bulbs. Then made a glance at the fruit.

"Look, this one plant spirit blesses us with more than 33 mature bulbs and must be 70 fruit". The leaves were so dense it would be impossible to count without picking them.

"We still have preserves from 3 years ago"!

"But Sin-eer-ree, for 14 generations only one unit has lived on these specs". She didn't need his reminding. "The clan females will not approve of this".

"Plant, I have not told you yet, but I am about to be accepted into the clan council. The Shamonan Woman has forced them to allow me to present the new ideas". A wry smile graced her gentle bees-wax coated lips. "The oldest ones will have no choice but to accept we have more dirt than we need ".

"I think her space is more wrinkled than her face". Plant muttered even knowing her great age. He was insanely jealous of the time Sinery was sitting with the old woman in learning the spirit gifts of the plants.

This only gave him reminder of his own interest in plants, and why the long discussions with Sinery were so interesting.

Plantman didn't want to share Sinery with anyone!

Both had their eyes transfixed on the bright yellow, red, and orange fruit amongst the mellow green color of the plant - as dopamine surged through their spaces. Plant could never get enough of that feeling. It was welcomed to divert from the seriousness of his current feelings.  His destiny of becoming a plant geneticist so long ago was just that strong yet today.

Events like the coming Wishmas Haervest always strengthened the deep thinking his lineage was known so well for.  Nothing could distract him from his studies during this time. If it wasn't for the shortage of Gold - leading to the high cost to procure enough for the Gene Gun - he knew he could make the yield heavier on even less soil tilth.

Soon he will publish these studies and ask for a full measure of Gold to experiment on his findings. It would take a whole month's food production of the entire clan in trade to procure enough for the experiment.

"Skitme is here to join our us on our specs, we must make room for her in the cabin". These words echoed a numbed feeling into Plant.

"I can't have other people around, it would interrupt my studies". He shifted his glasses to the lower part of his nose and stared at Sinery above them. He normally used this tactic to bolster his point. "I have yet to absorb enough to add findings to that of my ancestors".

"You will adapt Plant, she will not disturb your studies". The decision was made.

He knew this was not the only reason she was here. Her he man mate and his friend Fishman had passed on to happy a little more than a month ago and she had yet to choose another mate. Life was harder without a man around to help.

It was Fish's turn at the trek to exchange message pigeons with a clan located more than 300 specs away, and fell into a cellar hole made by the ancients.

We all knew he had a clean break with Samhain at last months gatherings, and now Skitme, being one of the few fertile females in the geography, was thought necessary and precious to bring new presence into the clan. She needed protection.

The thought of Samhain had Plant grasping for his protective stone.

In maturing, Plantman became increasingly reliant on the religious props and ceremonies, the stone an important aspect along with his much treasured staff. Such magic he felt when using them!

Maybe his acquiring attention to his birth religion stemmed from the idea he did not have to take on the full brunt of the daily challenges he faced by himself, or maybe it was the arrogance of youth. But now he knew there was always help he could draw from higher powers.

Of course, the blood staff also served quite useful as a walking stick!

Thinking back, Plantman wished as hard as he could to have shared his magic studies more fully with Fishman. Maybe the faith would have been made him aware of the pitfall.

Afterall, Sinery seemed to believe it was because of the clan more full participating in the gatherings that gave rise to the healing forces being washed over the Earth, just a shame it was too late for his good friend. A rush of remorse shuddered through his entire being.

Sinery even believed his devotions were being followed by other male members of the clan and encouraged him to continue learning and Plant wasn't to make this mistake again.

In spite of his growing devotions, there was always this; his thoughts experienced so much conflict at the idea of having to extend his genetic code into the future. Not that he didn't try, as he loved Sinery with all his self and spirit, but even in the most devoted of studies, Godarn refused to help. She seemed to have made this fertility choice permanent.

Skitme was a chosen female and his dear Sinery was not.

There have been a growing number of fertile females, why couldn't my only true love have been one of them? He pressed the thought to Godarn.

"Let's do 5 plants today and get a jump on the haervest season". Sinery pointed her dirty hand holding an imaginary wand. ""This one, and those over in the next row". Apprising the ripe fruits, she picked one and carefully sucked it in between her lips. Her face shown glee as the fruits burst it sweet ripe reward. Puffing her cheeks she added "Yeah, they ARE ready".

They worked in silence carefully placing the picked fruit in the weed-wove basket - one at a time - until the basket was full over heap. The fruit bruised easily and only the firmest fruit would be chosen for preserving.

Time allowed for careful work with the longer growing seasons. A good thing!

Fighting the wind, he took the basket up on to the leeward side porch of the cabin. The five foot thick tree-trunk walls never wavered in the wind.

Traded the full basket for an empty, pausing only long enough to pump the well hard enough to fill Sinery's water reed. This was going to be another good year. With the more consistent rains of the last decade the water tables were again high.

Plantman could vividly remember how the decades were sharply defined by very high tree-damaging winds, extreme droughts, and heavy persistent rains. Unbelievable how the major weather patterns have changed in only 90 years of his life.

He purposefully walked the garden row that allowed full view of his she woman, imagining then wrapping his arms around her belly. Ever so gently he buried his forehead into the back of her neck and took a long slow draw of scent from her totatoe leaf-infused hair.

He wouldn't discuss this with her yet, but he knew being seated on the council meant 21 years of no contact with any other member of the clan outside the council. There always had to be intermediaries in an effort to keep the minds clear to concentrate on future thinking.

He will refuse her to comply with this service if they did not change this rule. If the clan was going to change, then it will change, like it or not.

She turned and fully kissed him for a long satisfying time and whispered how much she loved him.

"The Shamonan Woman threw the sticks last gathering, and for the first time ever remembered, all of them struck promise".  Sinery paused. "Even the elderberry stick".

Afraid of being redundant she whispered, "Aibheaog has been whispering in my dreams and she has used up all the powers of the well to heal most of the land from the poisons of the ancients". In an awed-inspired voice she added, "the sticks are even growing roots now".

"Yes, you have told me of these visits every time", Plant responded. "The rooting sticks are promising the beginning time of the trees". Sulking he added, "the clan will not have need of my services soon".

Absolute terror filled Plant at the thought, so powerful it pushed him back against the wind-breaking fence.

Sinery recognized Plant was again going to trance and in an effort to pull him back, Sinery pointed towards the hives and made mention of how much extra honey the Primorskys had put up. She added, "Enough to use in all the preserving recipes with more than enough left over to make your favorite candy"!

Certainly, the favored climate changes have encouraged the wild golden rod to flourish nectar beyond anyone's expectations. Now every beekeeper looked forward the the late gatherings of the bees.

Yet Plant yearned for the back years when a sweet recipe was just that extra special. Sometimes he would have to eat inner bark of dying trees for weeks. That would make the honey that much sweeter.

Harder times seemed to have made for a more interesting moments.

Sinery click off more glad happenings, motioning towards the river and commented about how the fish are growing larger and more plentiful. "And just look at all the birds in the sky"! "Its even blue now"! Sinery was determined to make the short time she had left with her only ever mate in happiness. "Remember the deer we saw last year"?

With the ancients having used up every bit of the fossilized carbon, Plant became more discouraged to think no one would ever again see the green sky. He didn't much favor the blue glow reflecting from his skin either.

And the deer will certainly eat his totatoe plants.

"And our glorious cattails grow taller"! Sinery's voice rose with emotion. Yes, Plant thought, the cattails were worthy to think about.

"You should also know the Shamonan Woman said Skitme's child is what humans are supposed to look like". Then with a broad smile, revealing twisted teeth, "the child is very healthy and there are plans to celebrate her this coming Wishmas period".

Sinery was happy to inform.

After the sweetness of the evening had drawn down, Sinery had one more bit of good news to share with Plant. That when he had his love donation analyzed as being clean and fertile 5 years ago, it was inseminated into Skitme.

The child was his daughter.