Ancestor Approved by Cynthia L. Smith
Author:Cynthia L. Smith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Heartdrum
Published: 2020-11-27T00:00:00+00:00
Squash Blossom Bracelet: Kevinâs Story
Brian Young
The Tuesday of his spring break, Kevin was bored out of his mind. All his friends had gone away, and at home his mom was finishing the squash blossom bracelet that she was going to sell at the upcoming Michigan powwow. He walked to the only basketball court in his small northern New Mexico town, dribbling a smooth faded ball.
Someone was already on the concrete courts. He was powwow dancing. Kevin automatically knew he was going to annoy Alan, who was in his sixth-grade English class. Every single thing Alan did got on Kevinâs nerves. For example, Alan breathed through his mouth and chewed gum like a goat. He didnât have any friends and sat alone during lunch. Kevin wasnât going to allow Alan to dance on the court. As far as he was concerned, basketball courts were for basketball. End of story.
âMove,â Kevin said to Alan, stepping onto the crumbling concrete.
Alan pulled out his Bluetooth earpieces. âWhat?â
âGet lost,â Kevin said, annoyed.
âUse the other side of the court. Iâm using this one,â Alan said, pointing.
It didnât matter that the other court had fewer cracks. Alan had to understand who was in charge. Kevin responded, âTough break, Braids. Iâm using this one.â He shot his ball at the netless rim.
Alan went back to his dancing. Kevin, then, swung his elbows wide, hoping to whack Alan. Alan crouched low and held out his arms like a stupid bird.
Kevin knew very little of powwows, attending them only to help his mom sell jewelry. He didnât need powwows because he had Navajo ceremonies. Powwows were an âIndianâ thing, and Kevin was no âIndian.â He was Navajo.
Kevin launched the ball at the backboard. It rebounded with a thunderous clap. Just as planned, it bounced toward Alan, who was completely concentrating on his dancing. Kevin charged. Alan opened his eyes seconds before Kevin slammed his shoulder right into Alanâs stomach.
âSeriously?â Alan said, in between loud gasps for breath.
âAinât my fault you got in my way, Braids,â Kevin said, smirking. âOh, come on. You gonna cry?â
âNo!â Alan said, his eyes red and wet.
âYou gonna be a crybaby?â Kevin said.
âMan, forget you!â Alan said. He stood up and walked toward the nearby orange plateaus, where Navajo Housing Authority houses were. With Alan out of sight, Kevin shot a few hoops with a satisfied smile.
Kevinâs mom woke him up when she parked their beat-up car outside Skyline High School, which was hosting the University of Michigan powwow. There were already hundreds of cars and trucks in the parking lot. There were old, busted Rez vehicles with doughnut spares and door panels that didnât match the color of the main car body. There were even Benzes that gleamed in the gentle spring sun. Kevin helped his mom carry the jewelry carts to their booth location. On their way, they passed a group of excited Elders taking pictures of the eagle statue in the rotunda. A bored-looking boy sighed, waiting for them to finish their photos.
After they set up their jewelry booth, his mom settled into reading while he scanned the powwow brochure.
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
How Do You Live? by Genzaburo Yoshino(567)
150 Survival Secrets by Jones James C(479)
Grow Houseplants by DK(459)
The Kitchen Pantry Scientist by Liz Lee Heinecke(434)
Ultimate Paper Airplanes for Kids by Andrew Dewar(409)
Coding for Kids: The Complete Guide Python Programming for kids, Learn to Code with Games by Alice Guillen(409)
How to be a Math Wizard (Careers for Kids) by DK(401)
Getting Started with Adafruit FLORA by Becky Stern(396)
Classification in the Wild by unknow(378)
Teaching Anatomy by Unknown(376)
Iggy Peck and the Mysterious Mansion by Andrea Beaty(370)
Math Maker Lab by Dorling Kindersley(364)
Facing the Sun by Janice Lynn Mather(355)
Gardening for Kids: Learn, Grow, and Get Messy with Fun STEAM Projects by Brandy Stone(350)
The Planet Jupiter by Various(331)
The Trouble With Babies by Claudia Mills(330)
Plants on the Move by Émilie Vast(321)
This is a Good Guide by 393876456(315)
The Book of Ingeniously Daring Chemistry by Sean Connolly(310)