Taelo: Journey of Sages

By Ron Mueller

Taelo

Taelo lived more than thirty thousand years ago in the US northwest.

The Early Years are stories of Taelo's and Golden Hawk in their early years

• Language: English
• Publisher: Around the World Publishing LLC
• Release date: Jun 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9781682233023

Ron Mueller

About the Author Ronald E. Mueller [e-mail] Ron grew up in what is now Flint River State Park in Southeast Iowa. The 170-year-old house Ron lived in is built into a hillside. It faces a 125-foot-high cliff towering over the little Flint River. The house and the land talked to him about; the passing of time, the struggle to conquer the land, the struggles people faced and the wonder of nature. He climbed the cliffs, crawled into the caves, dove from the swimming rock, collected clams from the bottom of the pond, gigged and skinned frogs for their legs. He trapped muskrats for fur, hunted raccoon in the dead of night, and with only a stick hunted rabbits in the dead of winter. His young life was outdoors, and nature tested him. He walked to a one room stone schoolhouse uphill both ways. A stern but warm-hearted teacher, Mrs. Henry was instrumental in shaping his character as she shepherded him from the fourth to the eighth grade. A Montessori before its time. It was a great way to grow up. His experiences inter-twined with snippets of fantasy lend themselves to the adventures he leads the reader through.

Book preview

2

The sharing of the Journey of Sages

Taelo and Golden Hawk rolled the cave door stone so that the entrance to the cave was sealed. The sky was the grey before the full morning arrived but a bright yellow streak outlining the edges of the mountains let them know that the sun would soon appear.

Taelo knew that crossing the length of the valley before the sun disappeared below the mountains on the other side of the valley was a challenge. There had been no snow when they came to the cave, so they had crossed on foot. Now he wished they had a sled and wolves to pull them swiftly across, but they were on foot.

The travel pace was set by the three children who were accompanied by their mothers. Taelo and Golden Hawk brought up the rear. They watched as periodically someone would use their sling to slay a rabbit that had made the mistake of being nearby.

Each time Lasher would retrieve the rabbit and bring it to Quiet Rabbit who then passed it back to Taelo to carry.

When the sun reached its zenith Busy Bee gave each person something to eat but they continued to walk across the valley.

Once again Taelo watched as the children, on their snowshoes, shuffled easily along the top of the snow, Quiet Rabbit and Busy Bee sank slightly, he and Golden Hawk had to raise their feet as high as possible to make each step. Even then they would sink down and have to fight their way forward.

Lasher hopped along and kept up with the children.

Taelo watched the sun as it slowly kissed the tops of the mountains and began beaming its last rays as if it was signaling the moon. He knew that they would make the last part of the trip across the valley to the lodge in the dark. To ensure they stayed together, he would tie everyone together with a rope and lead the way.

He talked to Lasher as he tied the rope to him and asked him to take them to the lodge.

He recalled the last time he had asked Lasher to do the same thing. It was the time that he, Golden Hawk, Burley Bear and Little Otter had rescued Semper and Wan and their clan from where they had been trapped in the snow. He had stayed behind with twenty of their younger members and was caught by a blizzard as he led them back on foot. He had tied them all together and had led them until he could no longer see the way.

They were all saved by Lasher’s return and his ability to find the way back to the lodge.

This time it was not desperation, he could see the dim glimmers of lights from the lodges firepit.

The barking of the wolves announced their arrival. They were greeted by Grey Fox Running and a group of younger warriors all carrying their spears.

Taelo appreciated the fact that the lodge was in the defense mode and made sure to identify himself as he followed Lasher up the slope toward the lodge.

They were all escorted inside where White Swan gave each of them a hug. The surprise was that Red Oak and Quiet Pheasant had arrived the previous night and had planned to go up to the cave on the following day.

Their arrival turned the evening into a family gathering and they all sat around the central fire and enjoyed a variety of grilled meats and vegetables.

Once the mural on the cave wall was explained by Busy Bee and Quiet Rabbit who spread their hide out so everyone could view the scenes as they described them, the discussion turned to what the next journey might be.

Red Oak commented that Taelo and Golden Hawk had led journeys to the north, to the east, to the south. He asked where they would go next.

Yellow Flower got excited and jumped up and said that she knew, and she would tell them. Taelo looked around and said that a young storyteller was about to share the story of the next journey.

Taelo listened as Yellow Flower explained the trip and how it would accommodate all the Sages in the Northern Elk Clan, the Clan of Others, and the Valley of Plenty Elk Clan. She gave a small laugh and then explained that Sage was a nice word for everyone who was past being young.

Taelo spoke up to clarify that the journey was planned so Broken Spear could participate. He went on to say that the Sages were the wise leaders of the three Clans. He did not want to offend those that he was trying to honor.

Yellow Flower then continued to describe how they would ride on a raft on the current of the sea. They would stop whenever they needed to hunt but what she was looking forward to was the first stop where they would go to the to the top of a volcano and watch the sun rise on one sea and then set on the other sea.

Then they would again ride the raft until they came to the land of the Condor where they would visit the Condor Clan village.

She looked at Quiet Rabbit and Busy Bee and once again asked if they would be able to go to the cave of the frozen princesses. They both replied that they were not sure that it would be allowed but they were sure they would go past the cave opening when they went up to see the nest of the great Condor.

Yellow Flower then said that she knew that they would also visit the place where the raft had been built but that was all she knew.

Taelo complimented her on remembering all the details. He then looked around and asked if there were any questions.

Grey Fox Running asked if Taelo had a list of Sages.

Taelo looked around the room and then named White Swan and Grey Fox Running.

He looked at Golden Hawk and asked him for two names. He named Red Oak and Quiet Pheasant.

He looked at Quiet Rabbit and ask for her to name two Sages. She named Floating Cloud and Whistling Arrow.

He then asked Busy Bee to name her two Sages. She named Little Pebble and Brave Deer, her parents.

Taelo then went on to call out Lily and Slow Walker, Semper and Wan, Golden Flower, Wise Council and Wise Owl and his mate.

Lily smiled and replied that she was honored to be called a Sage, but she said that her council was to always cook a good meal.

Semper, Wan, Wise Council and Golden Flower all thanked Taelo for recognizing them as Sages but they preferred to stay and help run the Northern Elk Clan. They all commented that they had survived their own journey and preferred to enjoy their new home.

Taelo was pleased to hear White Swan thank them for staying in the valley and that she asked them to form a leadership team.

He looked around and asked if there were any Sages that may have been missed.

After moment he said that there were additional Sages in the Clan of Others and in the Valley of Plenty Elk Clan.

He let everyone know that he was going to go to the Clan of Others and that Golden Hawk and Busy Bee would go to the Valley of Plenty to identify the additional Sages.

Once they knew how many Sages would be on the raft and be a part of the Journey of Sages, the final preparations could be made.

3

Broken Spear’s Surprise

The Journey of Sages was eagerly accepted by the Northern Elk Clan members. Red Oak and Quiet Pheasant said that they were sure that the other Sages in the Valley of Plenty would have the same enthusiasm.

Taelo suggested that they coordinate the visit to the Others’ cave and together share the concept. Taelo made the point that Broken Spear was one of the main considerations for his having thought of such a journey. Taelo had blocked the idea in his mind to keep it a secret from Broken Spear. He hoped to surprise him as he had never done before.

Broken Spear had periodically been on every journey as he flew in the mind of the eagle. He had confided to Taelo that he wished he had full use of his legs so that he could be physically a part of the journey. He was sure that being on such a journey in person would be an experience much more powerful than watching it from the view of an eagle.

Taelo planned to make sure that his wish would come true.

Golden Hawk and Busy Bee decided to make the trip back to the Valley of Plenty with Red Oak and Quiet Pheasant. They would stop at the cave of Others along with Taelo and Quiet Rabbit.

A few suns later, their two wolf drawn sleds left the Northern Elk Clan valley. They took their children with them and on their arrival at the cave of the Others they were greeted by Burley Bear and a small group of warriors.

Burley Bear said that Broken Spear had let him know of the arrival but had shared that there seemed to be a hidden reason why Taelo was coming.

Taelo chuckled and told Burley Bear that he had been blocking his mind because he wanted to surprise Broken Spear. He said he was sure it would surprise everyone.

Burley Bear nodded and then turned and led the way into the cave.

Once the sleds were put aside and the wolves fed, Taelo and Golden Hawk made their way to the heated pool where everyone was gathered.

Broken Spear was at the center of the gathering, joking with the children as he greeted them. He complimented them on being able to use his language.

During the Journey of Circumvention, the three had spent many hours conversing with the Others who were on the journey and all three were now fluent. They often drew a smile or laughter because some of the guttural sounds were hard for them to duplicate.

Taelo knelt down, gave Broken Spear a hug, and told him that he would open his mind if Broken Spear promised to arrange for an evening feast for the