Julia Chee's New Dress

 

    It only took a day. They decided to leave the old wooden bed frame made by John Chee out in the hogan. They just switched bedding. The old bed wouldn’t have fit in the mobile bedroom anyhow. Beth emptied out the small dresser in the hogan and brought their things into the mobile home. Soon everyone was rearranged. Jessie and Beth and Emmy would live in the house. Julia would sleep out in her old hogan where she had first lived long ago with her husband when he was a young fellow.

    There were some adjustments. It’s always a little disconcerting to awaken in a new place. Somehow before the eyes open the body senses a different spatial orientation. The ears alert to different ambient sounds. But they did fine. And it truly is easier to care for a small child once the child becomes a walker or even a crawler in a modern space, with carpets and all mod cons as the Brits say.

    Beth continued to do the cooking and all the usual household stuff, with the addition of caring for Emmy. Jessie maintained the garden, cared for the six hens, and did a little work in the mine. He still didn’t work out there a great deal. He had some small success but was beginning to wonder about his life’s goal. Sometimes though, he thought that maybe their pleasant unhurried life was enough. Sometimes he felt like he was getting off too easily. But then he would look at Emmy and Beth and the whole funny outfit, and just be filled with happiness.

    Julia had electric light in the hogan but that was all that would not have been there years before. She presented quite a charming picture in the old place. She had Jessie bring out some of her old things, such as Navajo rugs and blankets. Her old pictures were on the walls. Her bible and her few other books were placed on the dresser.

    One night, in the fall of that year, Julia and Billy went out to the old hogan after dinner to prepare for bed. Beth watched her go from the porch, just to make sure she got there okay, seeing as she was rather old and not excessively steady. She got there, then turned and waved to Beth, and passed through the doorway. She closed the handmade wooden door.

    Once inside, she undressed, hanging her little blue dress on a hook, folding her sweater, placing it on the dresser, and putting her leather leggings by the bed. She put on a thick red flannel nightgown and climbed in under the black, red, and white blanket woven by one of her friends years before. She patted a spot beside herself, and Billy hopped up to sleep beside her, as they had always done since he had come to her.

    Perhaps she dreamed that night, for Julia was a dreamer of dreams. She lay on her back still as an ancient bit of woodwork, brown, fine, and small. Both of her hands lay beside her on the blanket. Her hair was spread out on the pillow, long and silver, like the strands of a dream itself.

    Perhaps a great shining tawny lioness came to her in the night. It could be that the great lioness had a message for her. It seemed as if the lioness lay beside her, breathing softly and telling her that the time was here. That it was this time, it was now. Billy watched with golden eyes wide open sensing change and finality.

    The lioness sang a soft and mighty purring song, breathing out sweetness and loving farewell. Breathing in and breathing out gently and slowly, comfortingly, she lay beside Julia for as long as her passage took.

    Then Julia found that she was young again. Her skin was smooth and supple. She danced over the green and shining grass of some beautiful place. Her brand new skirt swirled around her ankles, and she sang a greeting song, new for only herself to sing. Far down the green way, away off, she saw ones that she knew awaiting her arrival. She saw her love turn and face her and she ran flat out toward him.

    In the morning, Billy came to the door of the little house alone. He scratched at the door and Beth opened it. When she saw Billy she knew why he was alone. She knew without a bit of doubt that Julia had gone on without them. She went back inside with Billy in tow, to talk to Jessie. Moments later they left Emmy sleeping inside the house with Billy watching over her and went out to see how it was and to begin planning for changes once again.

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