Norris 1 C.J.

Norris Raymond 1102 English February 17, 2014 Learning to Draw

The oldest family member who was fortunate enough to have acquired such knowledge usually presents Storytelling in my family. The problem I have always had was deciphering what was fact or fiction. I use to wonder where my ability to draw came from, and I learned from hanging around with my grandfather, Papa Howell, that it came from generations of imaginative and aspiring ancestors. He used to love telling the story about how a bald eagle called Aldo taught his great- great- great grandfather, Big Chief Drawde Howell, how to draw. He swears this is how each generation developed the eye for art. He said Big Chief Drawde was the eldest member of the great western Native American Cherokee Indian Tribe in the plains of North Carolina. Papa described Big Chief as a lanky, fair-skinned, and very muscular man who on occasion retreated to the peaceful mountaintop during thunderstorms to cleanse his mind and body of evil spirits. Big Chief was known for his ability to communicate with the animals and often did so with Aldo. Papa Howell had a slight grin on his face as he continued the story, and cautioned me to take heed. He said on one awful evening as the sun hid itself behind the great dark and thunderous clouds, Aldo swiftly perched on Big Bears shoulder to reveal the secrets of the Englanders who believed they could find gold that was buried in the Indians lands. The

Norris 2 Englanders always plotted how they could steal the Native Indians land; however, they did not realize that certain animals such as Aldo were always on the lookout for Big Chief. Aldo cackled a sharp, Kleek-kik-ik-ik-ik! and then a soft, Kak-kak-kak! Aldo grabbed a thin twig with his claws and drew many stick figures that resembled men on horses with huge rifles, and immediately Big Chief knew they were planning a big attack. Big Chief pride himself on trying to keep peace, however his heart ached because so many of his people have died from senseless bloodshed. Big Chief hurried back to his tribe to warn his family. Little Chief Okwa, the oldest son of Big Chief, wanted to devise a plan for retaliation by burning the Englanders homes before they could attack the tribes. Big Chief reprimanded Little Chief and explained that he had a better plan that could avoid further bloodshed. His plan was to draw a phony map of where the gold was and to have Aldo deliver it at dawn. He called his animal friends to bury gold painted stones deep in the remote plain areas. Little Chief thought that the plan would work as it would make the Englanders think that the buried gold was only a myth. Big Chief also explained that the tribe needed to pray for protection and remain on watch. Big Chief never drew a map or a picture before. Aldo cackled some strange words to Big Chief and suddenly Big Chief drew a map. The Englanders received the map at early sunrise as Aldo dropped it in eyesight of Commander Ferguson who led the attacks. Ferguson discovered the fake stones, and called off all attacks against the Native Indians. Grandpa chuckled and proclaimed that the real gold is still buried on Native Indian land, and asked if I believed. I shook my head up and down.