Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice

Author:Waubgeshig Rice
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ECW Press
Published: 2018-10-01T16:00:00+00:00

Seventeen

The sage smoke billowed high and dissipated. As it smouldered into ash, the scent weakened, giving way to the strong smell of woodsmoke now woven into the jackets and sweaters of the men and women in the crowd.

Nearly every seat was taken. There were more than twice the people gathered than the last time, and there was a more subdued hum about the room. There were fewer children in the crowd. People had quiet, serious conversations with their neighbours. And those who were silent gazed straight ahead, lips pinched with worry.

The chief had met with the council the evening before, just after Justin Scott’s appearance at the edge of town, to settle on a course of action. A stranger’s arrival didn’t sit well with any of them.

“Gchi-manidoo miigwech.” Aileen finished the prayer, but Terry stayed sitting, tapping his fingers on the table in a nervous staccato. The first two fingers on his right hand were stained a foul yellow from nicotine. He’d been chain-smoking since the power went out. He shared the general worry that cigarettes would soon run out too, but he couldn’t seem to cut down. He stood up and pulled at his thick blue sweater. “Good morning. Thank you all for being here. We asked you to come so we could bring you up to speed on what’s happening. We still don’t know what caused the problem or when the power will be back on. So we’re gonna ask you to keep being careful with how you use it. Jeff here will tell you more later in the meeting.

“We have some new information that gives us a better idea of what’s happening everywhere else. Some of you have probably heard by now about Kevin Birch and Nick Jones, who returned home from the city two days ago on snowmobiles.”

The room buzzed with the news. Terry let the murmurs subside before continuing.

“We’ve had a meeting with the boys, and they’ve told us that there’s a blackout down there too. It happened around the same time our power went out. So it sounds widespread. They decided to come home because the city people weren’t prepared and things were getting worse pretty quick. But they’re home and they’re safe. Right now, they’re just asking to be with their families, so please leave them be. You can come to us with your questions.”

From his spot behind the table, Evan scanned the room. He saw his mom, dad, and sister, Sarah, sitting to the side about halfway back. They had all kept their dark snowmobile jackets on. Most people did now. A persistent chill pervaded every room on the rez. Once again, his brother didn’t seem to be there.

“It looks like there’s enough fuel to keep the power on throughout the winter,” said Terry. “But only if everyone cooperates. As long as there’s power for the water treatment plant, it can keep pumping in water from the lake. Our goal is to keep running water in your homes for the whole winter. If we run out of diesel for the generators, we’ll have no water in our homes.

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