The Little Girl and the Fox

A little girl who is a member of the Cree nation, which lives primarily in Canada and Minnesota, was very ill one winter. The whole village was covered with a thick layer of snow, and the animals outside were having trouble finding food. The little girl's mother put her in bed, covered her with blankets and built a big fire, but the little girl kept getting colder and colder. The light seemed to be going out of her eyes, and her life just barely hovered around her tiny body.

Her father, desperately wanted to save her, so he put on his heavy overshoes and wrapped the little girl in blankets and a buffalo skin, cuddled her against his chest, and trudged through the deep snow to the teepee of the ancient healing woman who cared for their village. Her mother trudged along beside him. No one knew how old this shaman was, but everyone knew she was a sweet, loving soul who never refused to help a member of her tribe. Her name was Duck Egg.

The father brought his sick little girl into the teepee and the elderly woman sat down next to her. She carefully removed the buffalo skin and blankets from around the little girl's chest, and placed her ear on the child's shivering chest. She listened for many minutes with her eyes closed, her face intent as if the sounds she heard were extremely distant.

After a while, she opened her eyes, but keeping her ear on the little girl's chest, she spoke. "I hear the sounds of a she-fox who is struggling through the snow. She's very tired, she's limping, she's exhausted, she's starved. She has such a long journey to make. I can hear her paws breaking through the crust of the snow." The sick little girl's father sat down beside the old shaman and said, "I'm a hunter. I will go and find that she-fox." The old woman said, "When you find her, and bring her back here." The girl's mother said, "God speed."

The sick little girl's father put on his snow shoes and sets out through the deep snow drifts. The wind was bitterly cold. Gusts blew snow into his eyes, yet he persisted. He had to find the fox to save his daughter. After traveling for several days, his lips were cracked from the cold and he was tired and hungry, but he wanted to save his daughter, so he continued. As the sun was going down on the third day, he spotted the tracks of a fox in crusty snow, and he followed them. He could tell that this fox was limping because the tracks were uneven. This must be the fox that the old shaman had heard.

All night he followed the tracks by moonlight. He continued to follow them into the next day. Towards the end of the day, in the evening, finally he saw the she-fox. Yes, she must be the one! She was limping and extremely thin. She looked tired and hungry. The sick little girl's father felt pity for the fox; she looked like a bag of bones.

The old shaman back in the teepee was still listening to the shivering little girl's chest and she told the child, "I'm hearing a set of footsteps behind the she-fox. Your father has caught sight of her now, he's within distance of her." The girl's mother stroked her hair and said, "God speed."

The father approached but the fox kept moving just ahead of him. The sun set and the sky was cloudy, hiding the moon and stars. He continues followed the she-fox by the sound of her limping step cracking the crust in the snow. Eventually all was quiet. The fox must be stopping to rest.

The father was cold. He knew he couldn't find the fox in the dark, and if he sat still he might freeze to death. He built a big fire for warmth, and sat down to wait for morning. The glowing fire reflected off the gleaming eyes of the she-fox watching him, so he knew she was close.

The old woman in the teepee, still listening, told the sick child, "I can hear the crackling of a fire. You will have a fever tonight." The girl's mother brought cups of water to the old woman and her daughter, but neither drank.

The father kept vigil the whole night. He didn't sleep but stayed near the fire, and so did the fox. The next morning the continued her journey. The girl's father put the fire out and followed the fox. The fox was very tired and very hungry and very weak. When the fox stopped to eat some snow, the sick girl's father caught her. The fox trembled with fear, but she didn't have the strength to get away. The fox weighed about as much as the little girl. The father cuddled the fox against his chest, as he had carried his daughter.

The old woman in the teepee listened to the girl's chest and said, "Your heart is beating very fast now. The little fox is afraid. But it's okay. Your father is holding her safely. And he's making his way back here." The girl's mother said, "God speed."

The girl's father trudged through the deep snow the whole next day and the whole next night.

The following morning he reached the village and carried the sick and frightened fox straight to the old woman's teepee. The old woman said, "Put her down on your daughter's bed and give her some food." The girl's mother went to their teepee brought back some dried meat. She feed the fox many meals. Still her daughter and the old woman took no food. It looked like the fox would never stop eating. Eventually, quite content, the she-fox fell asleep on the bed with the little girl, and they slept together like sisters for many, many hours.

In the evening both the little girl and the fox awoke at the same time and looked at each other. The old woman immediately said, "Bring more meat to the fox." The mother went back to their family teepee and brought more meat which the fox devoured. Color returned to the girl's cheeks. Then the old woman said, "Now go and open the flap and let the fox go." The father did as he was told. The fox made her way gingerly across to the flap and saw that her job was done and her health restored. She dashed from the teepee and ran through the snow again. The little girl climbed out of bed and followed the fox to the flap. Her mother hugged her, and together they watched the fox enjoy her freedom. As the fox ran, the mother said, "God speed."

The oldwoman turned around and asked the parents, "Did the fox cure the little girl or did the little girl cure the fox?