Heart Tales is a monthly newsletter for people on an adventure toward wholeness. It is published by Jim Cyr, storyteller, author, and crisis intervention specialist.

This story comes from the Kwakiutl people, one of the native American tribes of the northwest coast of North America. It’s found in the book Echoes of the Elders: The Stories and Paintings of Chief Lelooska.

Many generations ago, there lived a handsome young boy. The people admired him very much because he was tall and straight, and he had a fine voice for singing.

On sunny days the boy would sit in front of his house oiling his long black hair and painting his face. He was born of a noble family and knew that a great heritage awaited him as a leader of his people.

The boy’s favorite place was a small lake deep in the forest behind the village. Ancient cedar and hemlock trees surrounded the lake. It was a quiet, beautiful place where the boy could bathe and then rub his body with hemlock branches. This ritual would purify him so he could sing the songs of power and call upon the spirits for wisdom and strength.

One day, as the boy was preparing to bathe in the cool dark waters, there was a slight movement in the grass near the shore. The boy saw it and was curious. He put on his robe, strode over to the spot where he had seen the motion, and parted the dense grass.

A great loon lay there. It was caught by its long, slender neck in the noose of a mink trap. The loon was weak and close to death. It stared helplessly at the boy. Its strange red eyes pleaded silently for help.

The boy turned to go but suddenly stopped. He thought of the suffering in the eyes of the poor creature. Wheeling around, the boy knelt down and took out a mussel shell knife that he wore around his neck on a string. He cut the strong sinews of the noose and freed the loon.

Immediately the loon began to breathe easier. The boy held the bird against his body to give it warmth. After a while the loon grew stronger and was able to stand. The boy helped the loon to the shore of the lake and into the water, where it swam slowly away.

“Wait,” said the boy. “Take this. It will heal you.” From around his neck, the boy took a necklace made of the ikwah shells so prized by his people for trade and ornaments.

The boy tossed the beautiful necklace to the loon. It caught on the loon’s long neck and spun round and round until it looked like the loon was wearing a white collar of shells. The loon paddled silently out into the lake, circled once, then dove deep into the water.

The boy watched and watched for the loon to surface, but it had disappeared. Finally the boy returned to his place by the lake and took off his robe. He jumped into the water and bathed himself thoroughly. Then he climbed out and rubbed himself with the hemlock branches until his skin glowed. The boy wanted so much to be a strong leader for his people.

Time passed and, alas, the healthy young boy fell ill. A wasting sickness caused terrible sores to appear on his skin and his hair and teeth to fall out. The people who had loved and respected the boy were frightened and ran away. Even his friends abandoned him.

Most of the day the boy hid in the house, venturing out only in the evening when it was near dark. The boy was weak and ashamed. He knew he would never be able to lead his people now, for even he was repulsed by his sickly image.

The boy could bear it no longer. He said good-bye to his parents and left to end his wretched existence. He knew the people would be better off without him, and they would soon forget about him.

Sick at heart, the boy followed the path to the lonely lake. When he got there, he filled his robe with stones and jumped into the water. Down, down he sank into the dark, cold depths. The light faded, and he grew weaker and weaker. Suddenly the boy felt himself being pulled upward. Up he rose until he reached the surface and sucked air into his lungs. When the boy looked around, there beside him was a great loon. Around his neck was a necklace of ikwah shells.

“I know you,” said the loon in a strange chattering voice. “You were kind to me. You saved me or at least you thought you did. You were generous. You gave me this fine necklace and your good wishes. Now I will help you.”

“But how can you help me?” asked the boy. “You are just a loon!”

“But I am rather more than a loon,” said the bird. “Indeed, I am the Chief of all Loons.”

Then the Loon Chief told the boy how he had often seen him at the lake bathing and seeking supernatural power.

“I wanted to test you, so I put my head into that mink trap,” confessed the Loon Chief. Then I waited to see if you would show me a kindness. You did. Now I will heal you.”

Loon Chief told the boy to climb onto his back. Then together they flew out over the lake.

“We will cross the lake four times” said Loon Chief. “Each time you must sing the song that I give you. Then I will dive into the lake four times. You must hold fast to my neck, because I will go deep to the floor of the lake. There you will see the houses of the Loon People, a secret that has been kept since the beginning of time. I share this secret with you because you are worthy.”

Four times Loon Chief sped across the lake. Four times he dove into the deep waters. The boy felt as if his lungs would burst, but he held on fast. Each time they surfaced the young boy saw there were fewer sores on his body and his hair was growing back. On the fourth and last dive, the boy was cleansed of the sickness.

“I have healed you,” said Loon Chief. “Now I will make you a great shaman, and you will use my power to do good.”

“Do good for whom?” asked the boy.

“For your people,” said the Loon Chief.

“But they hated me because I was sick and ugly!” cried the boy.

“You must forgive your people. You must forget the sickness and remember only the songs of power I give you. You must help the people even though they ignored you in your suffering.”

“This I will do!” said the boy.

For a long time Loon Chief instructed the young man at the lake. Other loons came crowding about, singing and chattering. The boy grew strong and wise. Finally Loon Chief revealed himself to the boy. He took off his robe and mask and appeared as a handsome, glowing human being. He said to the boy, “You have learned well! I will give you my robe. You must wear it when you counsel and heal the people.”

With that Loon Chief draped his robe over the boy’s shoulders. “Your life will be long and useful,” he said. “In the end I will see you again. Farewell, young friend. Return to your people.”

The boy hurried down the path. As he ran faster and faster, Loon Chief’s robe lifted him. He spread his arms wide, and they became wings. The boy flew to the village, settling down in front of the great cedar house where his family dwelled. He folded the robe over his arm and walked in.

At first the people were wary of the boy, but finally they became used to the idea that the boy had returned. He began to help people when they were sick or wounded in hunting or fishing accidents. As directed by Loon Chief, he counseled and healed the people. They loved him for all his shaman’s wisdom. And when he sang the loon songs, the people knew that all would be well.

The boy-shaman grew old, and his shiny black hair turned white. One day he heard the loons calling. He knew that it was time to visit the lake for the last time. He put on his loon robe and stood before the people of the village. “I must go now,” he said. “But I will not be far away. You cannot see me, but you will hear me in the cry of the loons. Go to the lake and bathe. It is a source of power and healing. I will always be there with my guardian loons.”

Then the shaman spread his arms and flew into the air. He soared over the tall cedars and hemlocks and vanished into the lake forever!

Thereafter when the people were in trouble, they listened for the cries of the loons. They would go to the lake, seek out its healing power, and remember the young boy who was healed by it and who healed them. They, too, became more tolerant of others in their sickness and misfortunes.

I invite you to send me your thoughts about “The Boy and the Loon.” You can email me at jim@hearttales.net

Book

My book, The Cracked Pot: Finding Grace in the Cracks of Childhood Abuse, is available at Amazon.com.

“This is one man’s true story of the unspeakable things that were done to him as a child and his rocky journey through adulthood to find God, peace AND his true self. “

Blog

If you enjoy this newsletter, check out The Heart Tales Blog at http://hearttales.net/blog. The blog is published every Monday and Thursday and contains a story with a brief reflection.

Telecast

If you missed the telecast of my interview with Diane Eble you can hear the replay at http://www.askjimcyr.com/replay.php

  About Jim & Heart Tales

The true spirit of my work is to lead people on a life-changing adventure toward wholeness by connecting their hearts to their true selves, to others, and to God, through stories of healing, wisdom, and faith. My life-changing adventure toward wholeness includes performances of folk and fairy tales, sacred stories, and personal stories, and workshops on how to tell stories in therapeutic settings.

“Jim’s storytelling spoke to many of the problems our women face on the road to recovery from addiction and gave them options for handling those problems they had not considered before.”
Helen Raytek, Program Director, Crawford House

“Jim, I want to thank you for your time, efforts, and talents in presenting your Clinical Benefits of Storytelling Workshop. I was very impressed with your professional and fun deliverance of the material and many useful resources and examples. I felt I benefited from it both personally and professionally, and will use what I learned…”
John J. D. Schweska, L.P.C. Assistant Program Director, Mobile Response and Stabilization Services, Catholic Charities, Diocese of Metuchen

“…your newsletter is a wonderful resource, and I hope that many will subscribe to it.”
Dr. Robert Bela Wilhelm, Storyfest Ministry

“…Thank you once again, Jim, for sharing your stories/your story and influencing my healing.”
Eileen

The true spirit of my work is to lead people on a life-changing adventure toward wholeness by connecting their hearts to their true selves, to others, and to God, through stories of healing, wisdom, and faith. My life-changing adventure toward wholeness includes performances of folk and fairy tales, sacred stories, and personal stories, and workshops on how to tell stories in therapeutic settings.