She Holds Up the Stars

She Holds Up the Stars — page 7
6 Sandra Laronde Her grandmother contemplated the photograph Misko stood still waiting impatiently for her to respond Too small So cute Kokum finally said softly Misko held her breath to hear A baby bird Bineshiiwens Nothing but a little chickadee I love their song she cooed So that’s where my nickname comes from I wonder how they fly south for the winter with such little wings Misko wondered aloud Kawin those birds don’t fly south m’girl Them people build birdhouses in their backyards Kokum drew the outline of a tiny box with her hands Them birds go right inside and what do they do They build a nest They build round inside I don’t know why the white man wants to put everything in a box Even cut up our land into boxes No those birds don’t leave Not like people When her grandmother spoke again the words seemed to float on the air as she exhaled Anna Gone eight years What’s that Kokum But Kokum didn’t answer and Misko could feel the energy shift in the room Kokum stood up slowly turned and wiped an invisible tear from her cheek Well dear I have to get some rest now Misko’s throat tightened as she watched Kokum amble down the hallway and into her room She didn’t remember her grandmother being sad like this the last time she was here It had been eight years since Misko’s mom disappeared Eight years of longing for her mother Eight years of