DAY 9

The wind was blowing hard this morning when I awoke. I cleared my eyes and saw Jesse standing with his back to the fire, the furs he wore now blowing to the side as the gusts of wind would catch them. Spear in hand, he looked almost noble, regal even. It was as if he was standing guard over some valuable ancient treasure. "What are you doing?" I asked. "Warming butt" was his reply. Okay, so much for noble and regal.

We ate a quick breakfast and headed to the creek to check the traps. Still empty. Jesse crossed his arms and tapped his chin with a finger in thought.

"Know what's wrong" he said, still looking at the traps. "Too small. Beaver not fit".

With that said and a groan and roll of the eyes from me, he grabs the traps up, and we head back to camp for repairs and reconstruction.

I felt I needed to point out the facts to him again.

"Jesse, there are no Beavers in that stupid creek!" I state matter-of-factly. He turned quickly, his eyes locking on mine. There was a few tense moments of silence before he set the traps down and spoke.

"BEAVER...TOO...BIG" As he motions with his hands, "NOT...FIT..IN...TRAP". He picks up the traps, turns and starts walking again. Well, I am glad he said it like I not only misunderstood his reasoning, but was deaf as well.

After we had made the necessary adjustments and reconstruction to the traps, we took them back to the creek. Placing them back in the water, He baited each of them with berries we had picked a few days earlier. He smiled. "Beaver like berries. Beaver think berries are fruit."

Now, this kind of statement would normally start a conversation, it would have to, and this one did.

"Jesse. Berries are fruit"

"No...They vegetable"

"No, they are fruit."

"Vegetable grow on vine, like cucumber. Berry grow on vine. Berry vegetable"

"Just because it grows on a vine doesn't make it a vegetable. It is a fruit"

"Hmm. Then cucumber fruit."

"No, a cucumber is a vegetable, don't be a dummy"


He turns and looks at me now.


"Both grow on vine. Both have seed. Both tasty and juicy. Both are fruit or both are vegetable."

You can't argue with this kind of logic. As we draw closer to camp, Jesse screams and jumps from the trail, I do the same, trying to follow him, and trip over a log I didn't see, falling into a Brier patch. Still thinking something was after us, and having vivid memories of the Badger, I only make matters worse by tangling myself up in the massive patch of thorns. I yell at Jesse for help...Nay, scream at Jesse for help.

Jesse calmly walks over to me, looks at me hanging like a puppet from the thorny bushes.

"Who dummy now?"

If I could have reached my spear, I may have killed him. But if I did, who would catch the beavers with the fruit...I mean, the vegetables...