Each native youth on reaching age,
Before declaring himself a man,
Goes in soltiude like Christ himself,
To prepare for life as best he can.
One native youth a mountain he saw,
Decided to climb it as a test,
And upon reaching its summit cold,
Congratulated himself fro his conquest.
And then... a rattlesnake he saw,
Backed away he did with a start,
Though aged it was... and stiff with cold,
And looked to have faint heart.
It looked as it was nearing its dying days,
No, rather was in its dying throes,
And to the boy, the snake it spoke...
Or so the story goes.
Aye, the same as to Eve in Eden,
Who was to by a serpent spoken
The apple to eat was tempted,
And so the promise to God was broken.
This rattlesnake spoke to the boy,
And with its rougish charm,
Pleaded to be brought down the mountain,
And it would do him no harm.
After stalling for a while,
So the storys told,
The boy, or good heart or bad sense,
Lifted the snake from the ground cold.
And so safe the rattlesnakes life,
Or try to at least he might,
And in return he'd save his own
As the rattler promised not to bite.
And descending down the mountain,
Snake wrapped in warm buffaloe hide,
Of the shirt that up the mountain he had worn
The snake slept soundly inside,
And at the foor of the mountain tall,
The boy set the rattle snake free,
Upon touching the ground it rattled and hissed,
Rose... sto strike the boy on the knee.
But you promised you wouldnt pleaded the boy,
As to the ground in pain he fell,
"You knew what I was when you picked me up"
The snake to him did tell.
So should you meet a skanke in the snow,
Or in the lushest of grass,
Belive not the promises they speak,
Back off! And by them pass...
Readers of these pages from Ireland
will be familiar with Fr Brian Darcys
"A Little Bit of Faith" column in
the Sunday Word, and Irish sunday newspaper.
In the October 1 2006 edition, Fr Brian
quotes a tale told by Native American
actor Iron Eyes Cody.
While he tells it to warn of the dangers
of drink and drugs, I feel it can equally
apply for those who go into personal or business
relationships that are dodgy from the start
with their eyes open.
In summary, be wary of all who offer false promises
be aware of the reality behind them. |
