Old Man Yhamm

Old Man Yhann hobbled out of the cave and looked around the camp. Something was very different. For one thing, there was no morning chill! He hadn’t seen the sun in weeks, months, years. Yhann wasn’t sure how long it had been, for time was different to him. In any case, the camp was sunny and happy and loud. The dogs were running around playing in the sunlight, and even though the newfound warmth felt good, it was so bright out here, Yhann wanted to go back inside his dark cave. But why bother? He wouldn’t be able to sleep. Not with the barking dogs. and the baby crying. The baby was louder than the dogs. He couldn’t listen to its wailing anymore. It was certainly not doing his headache any good.

He walked over to the circle of rocks, swearing yet again to stay away from the cactus crazy juice Molann had sold him. Molann was a thief for taking advantage of an old man! He was done with Molann and done with his crazy juice.

He looked down into the circle of rocks. His woman had dressed the baby in Yhamm’s fox pelt and even though the baby was Yhamm’s son, he wasn’t sure he liked the fact that the woman had given it his best pelt. He realized now he liked his son a lot more when it was quiet. Yhamm wanted to bonk it on the head to shut it up, but when he saw his woman glaring at him, he decided to just yell a stern warning down at it. He took a deep breath and using that harsh, staccato of his tongue, which was mainly a series of grunts filled with clicking chich-sounds he told the little shit to shut the fuck up.

To his surprise, the kid stopped yelling. The woman was beside him suddenly and she picked the baby up and smiled at Yhamm. “We walk,” she said. “I have a surprise.”

They walked to the duck pond where buffalo skins were laid out in a circle and his friends were smiling in the sunshine and seemed to be waiting for him.

“What’s this?” Yhamm asked his woman.

“Happy birthday!” she said.

“Again?” Yhamm asked.

“Yes, again, Old Man Yhamm!” Molann said. He handed him a horn of his cactus crazy jujice and Yhamm drank it down.

Molann told him, “You are the elder now that Wrinch is gone.” “We must listen to you for your wisdom.”

“You people are in big trouble,” Yhamm said and laughed with the others. He laughed so hard he lost a tooth, which only made it funnier.

“Old age is not for sissies,” he told the group. It was the first time in history that anyone had said those words and the people knew now they had an elder filled with wisdom and cheered for Old Man Yhamm. Everyone enjoyed the celebrations of his 16th spring.

-490 words-