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Show 11 f ih Apa waddled along ahead of Chua. It was difficult for her to walk now that she was carrying the unborn baby. Her wool dress hung loosely over her swollen body. When she was not carrying a child, she tied her dress at the waist with a leather tie. Her dress covered her right shoulder, but heif left one was bare. Her hair was cropped short. She had cut it to weave into baskets, along with yucca shoots. Hair made the baskets stronger. Chua carried the two baskets she had 'M&msdeO T ^ 1 ^k&v The blistering sun was upon them. The hot dry wind swirled around them. It seemed to suck the life out of them. The rain had not come after the Snake Dance. Maybe it was because the chief had kicked them out, thought Chua. "The harvest sun is still very warm," Apa said. Her skin glistened with sweat. Apa walked with one hand on the water jar, balancing it on her head. The clay container was tall, colored with shades of yellow and orange. Birds decorated the sides. Chua knew the large amount of water in it was heavy. His mother's neck and shoulders were strong because she had carried water since she was a child. "I wish I could carry it for you," Chua said, focusing on his mother, andjettfflg J the anger knot r^t a while. "If Father were here, he wouldn't let you carry such a heavy burden." Chua wished again for his father. The ache of loneliness engulfed his body. He looked up at his long thin fingers holding the baskets. They looked like his father's hands. His black hair was straight, thick and matted like his father's. His bronze skin glistened in the sun. He swallowed his tears. They would come later when he was alone. He didn't want to spill them in front of his mother. |