Secrets: The Truth is Slowly Revealed

After the shaman woke me, he suggested I should fold the blankets I’d used to cover up with and place them on top of the smaller chest.  He then told me to grab the blanket I had spread out on the ground to sleep on and follow him outside, and then he advised me to shake it out, the same as he was doing to the blanket he’d slept on.  When we came back into the hohrahn, we folded those blankets and placed them on the smaller chest with the others so we could use them again when we went to sleep later.  

As soon as that had been taken care of, the shaman removed a pan from the potbelly stove and dished out something into a bowl for each of us.  It looked like oatmeal, but I doubt that’s what it was, because it had a blue tint to it.  He said I’d find it to be very filling and it would sustain me throughout the day, and then he handed me a tin cup with water in it to wash the food down.

As soon as we finished eating, the shaman went over to the long, open bookcase and grabbed some jars filled with different colored substances and set them on the ground.  He then poured a small amount of each item into his hand as it was needed, and he began to make a design on the floor of the hohrahn. 

“What are you doing?” I asked confused. 

“I am making a sand panting that will be used in the ritual.  It will help to prepare you for that which you desire.  Since you are not destined to become a skinwalker that is evil, I must prepare you first and draw out the bad qualities in yourself during this process.  I will also prepare you to make certain that your body will only absorb the good qualities from the animals you will transition into.”

“Ok, so what’s in those jars?”

“They are the colored materials I use to make the sand paintings, and the various colors are made from different materials that are ground up in advance.  The black is made from charcoal, the red from red sandstone, and the white from gypsum.  The blue, however, is formed using a mixture of charcoal and gypsum, and the yellow is made from a mixture of ochre, corn meal, and pollen.”

“So, you have to do all of this work first and prepare these items in the jars before you can make the sand painting?”

“Yes, they are the materials I need to use so I can call upon the Sacred Holy People and seek their assistance whenever I help one of the Earth People.  I would not be able to heal anyone or do any of these things without the help of the Sacred Holy People; otherwise I might disturb the harmony and balance on Mother Earth.”

“I think I understand,” I said as I watched him go about his work, “but if the materials you are using come from all of those different items, then why do you call it a sand painting?  You’re not using colored sand to do this.”

“It is true that I’m not using any colored sand, but the painting is made on the packed sand and dirt in the hohrahn to honor Mother Earth, while also seeking the assistance of the Sacred Holy People.”

“Oh,” I replied simply, even though I still wasn’t convinced that I understood it any better than before.

After he poured an adequate amount of a specific color into his hand, he would let it sift between his fingers as he produced a portion of the sand painting.  He started out by making the outline of a circle in black that was about six feet (183 cm) in diameter, and then he added different figures within the circle using the various colors.  In the center he drew a tall man with a triangular head, and eventually he surrounded that image with four animal figures and four additional symbols that were placed in between the images of the animals. 

Above the man’s head he drew the image of a black bear and to the man’s left side he placed a wolf, and between the two was a symbol for the sun.  At the bottom, below the man’s feet, he drew a deer, and between the deer and the wolf he drew a symbol for the mountains.  Following the deer he drew the symbol for a river, and then he drew a mountain lion on the man’s right, and then a symbol for the moon was drawn between the mountain lion and the bear.  I was in awe as I watched the shaman make the sand painting, and when he finished he told me what was going to happen next. 

“I will need you to get undressed and stand in the center of the circle.  I hope this will not be a problem for you.” 

“Not really, but why do I have to do this?”

“It is so no other items will interfere with the bad qualities escaping from your body.  You will also need to be naked when we do the next part of the ritual as well, but I’ll explain the reason for that later.” 

“Oh, ok,” I responded as I began to take off all of my clothes.  Once I finished, the shaman spoke again.

“I will now give you a bowl filled with pieces of dried cactus and I want you to hold onto this bowl while you are standing in the center of the circle.  You are to take one of the pieces out of the bowl, place it in your mouth, and then chew it, and you will continue doing this while I am performing the ritual.”

“But won’t I ruin the sand painting if I’m standing in the center of the circle?”

“You may, but it is not a problem.  This sand painting is only required for this particular ritual and then it will be destroyed as soon as we are done.”

“Wait!  You’re telling me that you go to all of the trouble of making the sand painting just so you can destroy it when you’re done?”

“Yes.  Every sand painting I make is only used to serve one purpose and then it is destroyed.  If the sand painting is to be used in a ritual to heal someone, then destroying it afterward will also destroy the illness that was drawn out of the person’s body.  In this case, I will be using the sand painting to absorb all of the bad qualities that I am able to extract from your body, and then I will destroy them.  We will do this again for each of the animals that I will prepare you to transition into so you will not absorb any of their less than desirable traits either.”

“It still seems like you’re doing a lot of work just to create the sand painting, and then after you use it once you destroy it.”

“That is true, but it is the way it must be.”

“Then how did it work with Grandpa Jacob and Devin?  You didn’t perform any rituals on them, only on Grandpa Isaac.”

“That is because once the ritual is performed on the head of a clan, the seed he passes along for their birth will only contain his good qualities.  His seed will also destroy the bad qualities it encounters in the egg provided by the female.”

“And how long will it continue doing this?”

“This process will continue for as long as there are descendants of the first individual in that particular clan.”

That was not only impressive, but it’s also important information for me to know as I prepared to stand in the center of the circle, as the shaman had instructed.  I carefully stepped into the circle and placed my feet on either side of the figure of the man so I wouldn’t be the one destroying the sand painting.  At the same time, I also made certain not to damage the figures on either side of the man as well.  After I’d moved into position, I took a piece of the dried cactus, which was about the size of a button, placed it in my mouth, and began to chew. 

It was quite bitter and I was tempted to spit it out, but I didn’t do it because I knew the shaman wouldn’t continue unless I was chewing on it.  As soon as he saw I was following his instruction, the shaman began beating the drum and chanting as he danced around the circle.  Unfortunately, since the ritual was being conducted in the Navajo language, I had no idea of what was actually being said. 

Chewing the piece of dried cactus proved to be not only a bitter experience, but I also discovered it had some completely unexpected side effects.  Shortly after I started chewing it, I began to feel as if I was floating above the sand painting, not standing inside it, and my muscles began to go limp, although not completely.  The feeling was similar to what I’d experienced when smoking marijuana previously, shortly after I first started college. 

It was something Devin and I had tried during our freshman year, although we hadn’t planned on doing it.  We were talked into trying it, or maybe I should say pressured into doing it, while visiting the guys in the dorm room next to ours – our noisy neighbors.  When we finally figured out what they were trying to get us to do, we balked and explained that we’d never done anything like that before, but they were insistent.  We eventually relented, since we didn’t want to look like whimps, and I think those guys merely wanted to see how we’d react to doing it, which they informed us later was quite comical.  We only did it that once, though, because we were concerned it might affect our grades

The dried cactus was apparently having a similar effect on me, and not only did I seem to be losing control over my body, but I was also beginning to sweat profusely.  Since we were in New Mexico, I wasn’t sure if my heavy perspiration was due to the temperature or caused by what I was chewing, but it didn’t seem to matter and there was nothing I could do about it. 

Somehow, I managed to remain standing during the time it took for the shaman to conduct the ritual and completely remove all of the bad qualities from my body.  I’m not certain if I would have been able to remain upright if the ritual had taken much longer, though, because the muscles in my legs, as well as the rest of my body, were starting to feel as if they were made of jelly.  Due to this fact, I sensed that my body was swaying slightly, both forwards and backwards, as well as from side-to-side, and I was convinced that I was either going to face plant on the ground or fall on my ass before it was over.  Luckily, neither of those situations occurred.

As soon as the ceremony ended, the shaman took the bowl that contained the dried cactus from my hands so I wouldn’t drop and break the bowl.  He then helped me step out of the circle and he led me over to the bench so I could sit down.  I wasn’t certain if this was any safer than standing, however.  I was still afraid that if my body started to lean in any direction that there was nothing I could do to keep from landing on the ground.  I wouldn’t have had any more control over my body than a doll sitting on a shelf, but miraculously I remained upright.

Even though I tried to be careful so I didn’t ruin the sand painting, I now observed the shaman was using his foot to eradicate it as he began another chant.  I knew he was doing this to destroy the bad qualities he’d just removed from my body, and even though I don’t understand why it happened, I began laughing hysterically.  

“I’m sorry,” I apologized in between giggles.  “I don’t know why I’m doing this, but watching you destroy the sand painting just seemed very funny.”

“It is quite all right.  Reactions such as yours typically happen the first time a person chews the peyote.”

I’d heard that word somewhere before, but right now I was unable to recall where I’d heard it or what it was.  All I knew in my muddled brain was that it had something to do with the buttons of cactus that I’d been chewing during the ritual. 

When the shaman had completely eradicated the sand painting, he carried the bowl with the pieces of dried cactus over to me again. 

“You have to take another piece and start chewing it.” 

When he saw that my arms were merely flopping about and I’d nearly knocked the bowl out of his hand, he selected one of the pieces for me and placed it in my mouth.  He then walked over to the larger chest and picked up the wolf’s headdress that he had worn at the ceremony the previous evening.  He’d placed it on the larger chest when we first arrived, and after seeing him pick it up, I was expecting him to put it on.  That didn’t happen, though, and he carried it over to me as he began to speak. 

“There are no longer any wolves remaining in New Mexico, but I feel it will be the perfect animal for you to begin with.  A male wolf is the closest to you in overall size, as compared to the other choices, and if you did not already know this, wolves are distant relatives of the dogs that we are so familiar with today.  I felt your familiarity with dogs, in general, will help to ensure this is also the easiest transition for you to make.  However, we have much to do before this happens, so I will help you put it on and wear it during the next ritual, the same way you saw me wearing it last night.  I will need you to stand up so you can do this.” 

I wasn’t able to stand on my own, so the shaman helped me to my feet, but before he could place the wolf’s pelt on my body, a sudden thought came to me.

“But this wolf thingy is just for a haatali to wear, not me,” I slurred somewhat comically.  I was obviously feeling the effects of the peyote, possibly even more now than before.

“Relax, because you will not be the first non-haatali to put it on.  This headdress has belonged in my family for many centuries.  Isaac wore it when he underwent this same process many years ago.”

My attitude about wearing the headdress completely changed after the shaman mentioned that Pops had worn it as well.  I not only began to feel slightly better about doing it, but I didn’t feel quite as sacrilegious about putting it on either – that is until I had another thought.  

“But I’m like all sweaty, so shouldn’t I dry off first, cuz I don’t want to ruin it for you?”

“No, you will do it just the way you are.  It is the other reason you had to remain naked, because the peyote opened up your pores so you will be able to absorb all of the positive qualities of the wolf.  Your sweat will help to make certain you bond with the animal completely, although it will be a lengthy process and this is only the first step.” 

“Ok, dude, if you think that’s what I should do.”  

Damn, I guess the peyote was affecting me more than I realized, because I would never have called the shaman ‘dude’ before chewing on the cactus buttons.  The funny thing is, the shaman acted as if he hadn’t even heard my unusual response.  He merely helped to place the headdress on my head and back, with its forelimbs draped over my shoulder, while making sure the underside of the pelt was coming into contact with my skin.  Once this process had been completed, he had me sit on the bench again, while he set about his next task.

I watched as he picked up one of the jars with the colored material in it and began to create another sand painting.  It was similar to the first one, but this time there was a wolf flanking the man on either side, and the symbols for the sun and moon were at the top, and the river and mountain symbols were at the bottom.  As soon as the shaman finished this sand painting, he turned to me and spoke. 

“This time I will need you to either sit or lie on the ground as I perform the next part of the ritual.  I will leave the choice up to you.”

“Which do you think would be best?”

“I would suggest that you lie prone so your body will make a tighter bond with the pelt, but as I said, the choice is yours.”

“Ok, then I’ll lie down, but won’t the wolf thingy get all that stuff stuck to its fur?”  My mind was slightly foggy and I was having difficulty coming up with the correct terminology to use, so I hoped the shaman understood the odd phraseology I was using.

“Yes, that will probably happen, but it can be cleaned off later.  Most of the material will fall off when I shake it out after we’re done, or it will blow off in the wind when I hang it outside.”

Now that I’d made my choice, the shaman helped me lie down in the center of the new sand painting. 

“I’m glad I don’t have to stand up this time, cuz I’d prolly fall down.  That stuff you’re having me chew is doing some weird shit to my brain and body.”

The shaman chuckled.  “Yes, peyote will do that to you.  I know, since I always chew some of it before I begin my rituals.  It helps me to make contact with the Sacred Holy People.”

Now that I was lying on the ground and the wolf’s pelt was in direct contact with my skin, the shaman grabbed his drum and began to beat on it as he chanted and danced around the sand painting.  As I listened to this new chant, I felt the skin on my body begin to tingle, especially the areas that were in contact with the headdress.  I wasn’t certain if the sensation was caused by the pelt, my embarrassment about lying naked on the headdress while the shaman danced around me, or if it was caused by the lingering effects of the peyote.  Possibly it was a combination of all three. 

I’m not sure how long the shaman did this, because I dozed off before he finished.  By the time I awoke, the shaman had stopped chanting and was sitting on the bench, staring at me.  He smiled when he saw my eyes flutter open. 

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to fall asleep, so will you have to do this all over again?”

“No, you were fine, but don’t move out of the circle.  We will take a break while I prepare something for us to eat for supper, but I want you to keep the headdress on, even if you choose to sit up.”   

“Um… I gotta pee.”

“Ok, you can take it off briefly as you go outside to use the outhouse, but I want you to put it back on as soon as you return.”

I was slightly hesitant about walking naked to go from the hohrahn to the outhouse, but I really needed to empty my bladder.  After the shaman assured me that we were totally alone out here and the chance of anyone else seeing me was almost nil, I took off the headdress and placed it on the bench.  I then put on my shoes so I could race to the outhouse. 

I wasn’t gone for very long, and when I returned I put the headdress on again and sat down in the center of the circle.  The shaman then handed me a plate with my meal on it, along with a cup of water.  I looked at the plate and noticed that the food was primarily a collection of vegetables, mostly a mixture of beans, corn, and squash in some kind of gravy, and there appeared to be some meat mixed in with the vegetables as well.  He’d also placed a large chunk of flat bread on the plate beside the other items, probably so I could use it to mop up the gravy as I finished eating. 

“What kind of meat is this?” I asked after taking a bite. 

“It is mutton.”

“Oh, I’ve never had this before, but it tastes pretty good.  Where did all of this food come from, because I didn’t see any of this stuff here earlier?”

“When I am performing rituals at this hohrahn, a member of the Diné community will bring food out here for me to use.”

“But I didn’t hear a vehicle drive up to drop off this stuff.”

“And you will not hear a vehicle, because the food is delivered by a rider on horseback.  He carries the food in his saddlebags and leaves it in the small entranceway before you pass through the door and blanket to enter the hohrahn.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.”

The shaman then asked me a lot of questions about myself and what my life is like while we ate our meal.  When we finished eating, the shaman had me lie down in the center of the sand painting again, but this time he included an additional instruction. 

“While you are lying there, I want you to start envisioning yourself as a wolf.  I want you to imagine how you will look, how you will move, and what you will do as a wolf.  I want you to immerse yourself in the idea of becoming a wolf.”

“Ok, I’ll try.  I’ve seen what Devin, his dad, Grandpa Isaac, and Grandpa Jacob all do when they transition into wolves, and Devin did some work with me before we came here, so I should be able to do what you want.”

“Good, because it is a very important step for you to take if you eventually want to become a wolf.”

After a couple of hours of doing as he requested, the shaman broke my concentration when he spoke again.

“I think it would be best for us to go to sleep now, so we can get an early start in the morning.  I want you to spend the night where you are, sleeping in the circle, but I will give you the three blankets you used last night so you can cover yourself.  Otherwise, you might get quite cold while you’re sleeping, since you don’t have on any clothes.”

 

“But won’t it ruin the sand painting?”

“No more than is normal and it will not affect a thing.”

“But what if I have to pee again?”

“Then just leave the headdress on the ground and make a quick run to the outhouse.  You can carefully put the headdress on again when you return and lie down in the circle like before.”

“But I don’t want to go outside in the dark.”

“I have a battery-operated lantern that I will leave on the bench, and you can use it if you have to go to the outhouse.”

“Ok.  I just hope I don’t run into any animals on the way there.”

The night went remarkably well and I slept most of the time, even though I’d fallen asleep during the rituals earlier.  I also tried to delay making a trip to the outhouse until after the sun came up, and when I returned the shaman had picked up the headdress and shaken it out, and now he handed it to me to put on again.  He’d already destroyed the sand painting we’d used the previous day and was now fixing our breakfast, which was exactly the same as what we had eaten the previous day. 

“What is this stuff?” I asked, because my curiosity was getting the better of me. 

“It is a blue corn mush and it is very healthy for you.” 

“And it has a sweet taste.” 

“Yes, that is from the honey I added to it.”

When we finished our meal, we started the process all over again after the shaman made a new sand painting.  It was identical to the second one we used the previous day and we went through exactly the same process, which included me chewing on more peyote.  This time while I was lying within the circle and on top of the headdress, the shaman gave me a different instruction. 

“I want you to start thinking about what it will be like and how it will feel as you transition into a wolf.  You have seen others do it, so I want you to think about each step that will happen as you change from your current form and into that of a wolf.”

“Ok, I’ll try.  I’ve talked to Devin a little about what it’s like to do it.”

“Good because it’s the next step in your training.”

The entire day went like that, with the exception of when we took a break for supper and when I had to use the outhouse.  It seems the Navajo only eat two meals a day; at least that’s what the shaman did.  We’d have a hearty and very filling breakfast first, and then we’d have supper about midway between when I would normally eat lunch and supper at home.  It didn’t seem to bother me, though, mainly because I had other things to concentrate on, and then we turned in early again. 

The fourth day started off exactly the same as the third day, but this time the shaman gave me a new instruction. 

“I want you to concentrate on doing whatever you can to change your head into that of a wolf.”

“So, I just have to think about doing it?”

“That is part of the process, but you will have to will yourself to make it happen.  It will take a bit of effort on your part, but the process will become easier each time you do it.  After you do it more and more, you will eventually only have to think about changing into a wolf and it will happen, but for now you will have to mentally will it to make it work.” 

“Ok, I’ll do my best.”

Doing this was very difficult and I didn’t think I was having any success.  I was expecting the shaman to express his disappointment in my effort when we stopped for supper, so I was surprised by what he said when he looked at me and spoke. 

“That is very good for a first try and you seem to be getting the hang of changing your ears.  Your nose and mouth appear to be starting to elongate into a snout as well, and your hair is also beginning to change into fur.  There are even a few other patches of fur on your face and neck.” 

“Really?  I didn’t think anything was happening and you were going to yell at me and be disappointed,” I said, but speaking seemed to be quite weird.  My mouth moved awkwardly and I sounded differently as well.  “Do you have a mirror that I can use to see what I look like?”

“I do not have a mirror, but I do have a shiny piece of tin that will do nearly as well.  Let me get it for you.” 

“Ok, because I can’t wait to see what I look like.”

The shaman got up and retrieved a polished sheet of metal for me to use, and as I looked at my reflection I was amazed by how much I’d actually achieved.  I didn’t think I’d accomplished anything at all, so this was a pleasant surprise. 

“Will I be able to eat like this?”

“It will not be much different than what you are used to doing, since you did not completely form a snout yet, so you’ll have two choices.  You can either try to eat as you are now or you can change back into yourself, and that should be much easier for you to do.”

“But then I’ll have to do this all over again.”

“That is true, but it should get easier every time you transition.  It will also be easier by the time we move on to the next animal’s shape, so you might as well get used to doing it.  Do not be overly concerned if you decide to transition back into yourself, though, because it will probably happen on its own while you are sleeping, if you do not do it now.  It will take a while before you get used to maintaining a different shape while you are resting.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that, but I trust you, so I’ll change back now.” 

After I was myself again and before we went to sleep, I chatted with the shaman about what it was like to live on the reservation.  I didn’t think I would adjust to staying at the hohrahn so quickly, but it didn’t seem any different than when I’d camped out before, except that I missed Devin being by my side.  And the different sounds of the surrounding area, or the lack of nearly any sounds, didn’t seem to trouble me any longer either, and most of the time I didn’t even think about it and slept very well. 

There was one minor exception, though.  That night, I dreamed I was transitioning into a wolf, and it all seemed very real, but in the back of my mind I knew it was merely the result of the effort I’d been putting into doing it with the shaman earlier. 

As I was waking up the next morning, I noticed the shaman was already awake and sitting on the bench.  He was staring at me and had a huge grin plastered across his face, so I wanted to ask if I’d done something funny in my sleep, but I seemed unable to speak.

“Good morning,” the shaman greeted me, “and I have something to show you.”  He then walked over to me carrying the same piece of metal that I’d used as a mirror the previous day.  “I think you should take a look at this.” 

I glanced at my reflection in the piece of metal, and then my jaw dropped open.  My head was almost completely that of a wolf, so I’d obviously done more than just dream about transitioning into a wolf.  I tried to speak again, but the only thing I heard was what sounded like a dog whining.  I hurriedly glanced around and didn’t see a dog, or anyone other than the shaman, so the sound must have come out of my mouth. 

“See, I told you that you would get the hang of it, and I am impressed. I did not expect you to get this far so quickly.  I know you can’t say anything right now, but I am going to fix breakfast.  You can either transition back into yourself to eat or you can eat the food out of the bowl like a dog, or more appropriately like a wolf.”  He chuckled after saying this. 

I decided to study my current condition in more detail first and quickly realized that I was only a wolf from the neck up, but even so I decided that I’d try eating as a wolf – well not exactly.  I held the bowl in my hands as I lowered my snout down to eat, and then I used my tongue to lick the bowl clean. 

After we finished our meals, I transitioned back into my human form again, since I had some things I wanted to discuss with the shaman.  As soon as I was myself again, I addressed him. 

“I know you said you were surprised that I did this so quickly, but I think it was only because I’ve hung around Devin and his family for so long.  I’ve seen them all transition loads of times, so I had a pretty good idea about what I needed to do.” 

“Then this process may go more quickly than I anticipated.”

This time before we started, the shaman made a completely different sand painting.  On the left side of the upper half of the circle was the image of the man with the triangular head and to his right was a wolf, and above them were the symbols for the sun and moon.  In the bottom half of the circle, the wolf was on the left side and the man was on the right, and below them were the symbols for the mountains and river. 

“Is the man on the top transitioning into a wolf and the wolf on the bottom is transitioning back into the man?”

“You understand correctly, grasshopper.”

I stopped momentarily and then laughed.  “Devin and Grandpa Isaac use that expression too.”

“It is something I picked up from watching the TV show Kung Fu.  It ended many years ago, but the main character’s teacher called him grasshopper whenever he wanted to impress a point on his student, and I use it whenever I feel it is appropriate for a similar reason.” 

I must have looked at him oddly, which confused him, and then he continued.  “I am trying to teach you about what it is like when you transition, and it was my way of praising you when you understood what I was doing.”

“No, that’s not it.  You don’t have telephones, cable, or the internet on the reservation, so how do you know about certain TV shows?”

“Ah, I see and I misunderstood.  You see, even those of us living on the reservation get to enjoy an occasional TV show if we know one of the other Diné that have a large antenna hooked up to their TV.”

“Ok, I saw a few of those antennas sticking up from the roofs of their homes when you were showing us around the first day, but I thought they were for a CB or ham radio.”

“Some might be, but most are hooked up to a television set.”

The next few days went about the same as the sixth day, with one notable exception, and it was that each day I was able to transition more and more of my body into that of a wolf.  In fact, by the middle of the second week I’d completely transitioned into a wolf, at least that’s what the shaman told me. 

I had to take his word for how I was doing, because there were areas I just couldn’t see.  The shaman would have me either lie on my side or get down on all fours in preparation for the transition for now, but I wasn’t able to observe all of my body to tell how I was doing.  There wasn’t a full-length mirror available in the hohrahn, and the shiny piece of metal was only about the size of a folder or binder.  Even though I could see some of my body by turning my head one way and then another way only using my eyes, I was unable to get a complete impression of how I appeared.  The shaman even leaned the shiny piece of metal against the larger chest so I could see as much of my reflection as possible, and it helped a little, but it was still difficult to tell if I was totally a wolf. 

Another problem was that I was concentrating so hard on maintaining the form of a wolf that not everything I saw was registering in my brain.  It also didn’t help that I wasn’t able see my entire body at one time, and for that reason I had to rely on what the shaman told me.  Once I had his word for how I was doing, I was finally convinced that I’d truly completed the transitioning process and changed into a wolf and then back again.

“I am very impressed that you have even managed to get the wolf’s fur correct when you transitioned.  It is not something that is easy to notice, so you must have been using your hands, as well as your eyes, to examine my ceremonial headdress and discovered there are two types of hairs that make up the wolf’s fur.  There are the coarse outer guard hairs and a softer undercoat, and that’s very good for this early in the process.”

“I didn’t discover that on my own.  Devin showed me the difference before we made the trip here.”  

“In that case, Devin seems to have made my job much easier.” 

That was all very well and good, but I would have been happier if I had my phone so someone could take a photo of me now that I was a wolf.  In fact, maybe I’ll be able to talk Gramps into doing it for me if the shaman ever allows them to come here.  Of course, it will just be a photo of a wolf with no indication that it was actually me, so it won’t be a big deal to anyone else and it won’t give away any of our secrets as skinwalkers.  Therefore, I hope he’ll agree with my logic and take a photo of me that I can have printed later.