The Boy who Served his Tribe

Summary: The people of the Chippewa tribe was contented with their existing life style though they had a custom to send the boys to some lonely place for seven days, without food, at the age of fourteen. These days they think about the life which lay ahead of them. This time the eldest son of one of the family of the Chippewa tribe went to the woods without food for seven days to pray to the Great Spirit. On the third day a young warrior appeared in front of him and told him that the Great Spirit has heard his prayers. He asked him to wrestle with him. On the seventh day, he threw the young warrior to the ground and the warrior breathed his last. The boy buried the young warrior and came back to his family. He did not tell about it to anybody but everyday he visited the grave, weed it and water it. One day he saw the fresh clean earth of the grave was covered in green plumes. Weeks passed, and the boy went on watering and weeding the warrior's grave. The green shoots pushed up through the earth and became tall, strong plants. At last the day came when thick golden tassels swung from them. The boy fetched his father to see them and explained the whole story to him. The father told him that it is a gift from the Great Spirit for the Chippewa people. It is a new kind of food. It will grow where they plant it in the earth. The Chippewas need not spend all of their time and strength on hunting animals in the forests, instead they can grow corn, harvest it and make bread for themselves. In this way, the Great Spirit made their lives a little less hard.

Answer the following questions:

In what ways was the tribe contended?

The people of the Chippewa tribe loved the good things of the Earth. They loved sunshine, the forests and the cool springs of water. They were often cold and hungry. They did not know about growing corn. Instead they lived only by hunting. In these days, the tribe was contended.

What was one of the customs of the Chippewa people?

When boys of Chippewa tribe reached the age of fourteen, it was the custom for them to go into some lonely place, without food, so that they could be alone for seven days and think about the life which lay ahead of them.

Who do you think the young warrior was?

The young warrior was the gift from the Great Spirit. And he is the messenger of Great Spirit to teach Chippewa tribe how to grow corn. The Great Spirit has heard the boy's prayers. The young warriors came to test his courage.

Why did the boy not tell anybody about what he was doing?

The boy did not tell anybody about what he was doing because he was afraid that, if he told people about the warrior and his visits, they would say that he had dream it all because he'd been so weak from lack of food.

What was the gift sent by the Great Spirit to the Chippewa tribe?

The gift sent by the Great Spirit to the Chippewa tribe was a new kind of food. The Great Spirit has sent a young warrior to the Chippewa tribe who taught them how to grow corn. It will grow where they plant it in the earth.