Weak in Body, Strong in Mind and Spirit

Pamela and Kimberly slowly drove back to Kimberly’s abode. No one said much.

“Are you going to spend the night?” asked Kimberly.

“Yes, if you don’t mind,” said Pamela. “It’s getting late, and I could use a good, hot shower.”

“Me too!” giggled Kimberly.

The conveyance entered the conveyance trail to Kimberly’s nest. The one called Danny walked out and looked in the back.

“Good. No Sasquatches,” he said with a smile.

“No,” said Kimberly. “Pamela wanted to bring a dozen to stay with us, but I told her you wouldn’t like it.”

“Good girl,” Danny laughed. “They’d probably spook the horses.”

“How are they?” asked Kimberly. “How’s my Morgan.”

“Everything is fine,” said Danny. “No surprises. I like no surprises.”

Danny helped remove the belongings from the conveyance and put them away. They then entered the abode.

“Want dinner?” asked Danny. “I was just going to order pizza.”

“Pizza! Sounds great!” said Kimberly.

“We’ve been living on hot dogs and beans!” said Pamela. “And marshmallows.”

Danny picked up his communication device, and in a short time a conveyance arrived and ejected a Little Person carrying a container of food.

Danny paid the barter for the food and the Little Person left in his conveyance. He set it on the table.

“Want a beer?” he asked.

“Yes!” said Pamela.

“Just a Coke for me!” replied Kimberly.

The pizza food was quickly devoured.

“That was great,” said Kimberly. “Thanks Danny.”

“Yes, thank you,” said Pamela. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to take a shower and turn in early. Tomorrow will be a long day of driving.”

“Sure, go ahead Pam,” said Kimberly.

“The guest towels are on the bed in the guest bedroom,” said Danny.

Pamela got up and left, and they soon heard this shower device running for a long, long time.

“I guess I’ll wait to take my shower until tomorrow,” grinned Kimberly.

“You better,” laughed Danny. “There won’t be any hot water left!”

Kimberly laughed too.

“Give her a break, Danny,” smiled Kimberly. “This is Pamela’s first hot shower in a long time.”

Pamela soon emerged wearing a robe skin and with a towel skin wrapped around her head.

“That was wonderful,” she said. “Thank you. But I’m afraid I used up all the hot water.”

“I figured,” laughed Danny.

“Well, I’m going to turn in. If I don’t see you before I leave, thank you for everything,” she said.

“No, thank you,” said Danny.

“Me? For what?” she asked.

“For bringing Kim to see your friends. I don’t know if she’s cured or not, but she looks great, she’s in fine spirits, and for the first time in a long time, she isn’t sick.”

Pamela smiled.

“Yes, thank you buddy.” said Kimberly as she rose and hugged Pamela.

“Thank you for some quality girlfriend time,” said Pamela. “I can’t wait to do it next year.”

“Next year?” asked Danny with a frown.

“Yes, next year Danny. We’re going back, maybe to spend the summer,” said Kimberly. “I’m sure you’d be welcome to come because you’re the mate of a tribe member.”

“Tribe? Mate? What?” asked Danny.

“I’ll explain tomorrow,” said Kimberly. “It’s late, and I’m tired too. I’m going to bed.”

“OK,” said Danny. “Remember that you have an appointment with your oncologist tomorrow.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” said Kimberly.

“9 AM,” reminded Danny.

“Right. Well goodnight,” said Kimberly.

“Goodnight,” said Pamela with a yawn as they both left.

Danny sat picking at a few mushrooms and such that had fallen off the pizza food.

“Tribe members,” he muttered to no one. “Sasquatches. I still can’t believe it.”

The next morning, before dawn, Pamela arose. She quietly tiptoed to the kitchen where Kimberly sat drinking a cup of coffee.

“Good morning, buddy,” said Kimberly.

“Kim, you’re up early,” said Pamela.

“Yep. I wanted to see you off, and then feed the horses,” said Kimberly. “I missed my horses. Besides, Danny’s been dealing with them all by himself. But I’m also nervous about my doctor’s visit today and I didn’t sleep well at all, so I figured that I might as well get up.”

“Well, being nervous is understandable. How many horses do you have now?” asked Pamela, changing the subject.

“Well, I’m not sure, since Danny buys and sells so many. Probably about a dozen,” she answered.

“That’s a big feed bill!” said Pamela.

“Yep, especially in the winter when they can’t graze,” she replied. “Come have a cup of coffee and some coffee cake before you go.”

“The coffee smells wonderful,” said Pamela, “and coffee cake sounds great.”

The two old friends sat and chatted about their recent adventures.

“So your oncology appointment is this morning?” asked Pamela. “Are you really that nervous?”

“A little,” said Kimberly. “It’s never good news when I go, but I feel great.”

“I hope it goes well, girlfriend,” said Pamela. “I’ll have my cell phone with me. Call me.”

“I will. They run all the tests right there in her office. I have to wait for the results, but it doesn’t take too long. An hour or two depending on how busy they are.”

Pamela finished her coffee and coffee cake. She stood and then Kimberly stood. They hugged each other long and hard.

“Travel safe, buddy,” said Kimberly.

“I will,” said Pamela. She loaded Olivia the Baddog into the little conveyance and it took her away. Kimberly was sad.

“Bye buddy,” she said in a low, sad voice.

Kimberly poured another cup of coffee and sat back at the table. She was tapping her finger nervously. She didn’t like visits to her oncologist, but she knew she had to go.

She heard a conveyance pull into the trail to her abode. She rose and looked out her viewing portal. It was Pamela. She had come back.

“What did you forget?” asked Kimberly with a smile as she opened the portal entrance.

“My best friend,” said Pamela.

“What?”

“I’m not leaving yet,” she answered.

“OK...” said Kimberly.

“I’m going to the doctor with you,” said Pamela with a look that Kimberly knew meant she shouldn’t argue.

“That would be great, buddy!” said Kimberly.

“I know you’re nervous, so I want to be there for you. All the while you’ve been dealing with breast cancer, I was in Florida. As I was driving down the road, I thought to myself ‘What are you doing? Stay with your best friend.’”

Kimberly smiled.

“I’d love the moral support,” said Kimberly, “And Danny had to go to the sale at Umatilla. He’s already left.”

“Then perfect. It’s settled,” replied Pamela. “Got any more coffee?”

“Sure do,” said Kimberly. She fetched the container off the counter and poured her a vessel.

They chatted about old times, about Kimberly’s new foundation Morgan, and about their big hairy friends.

“What are you going to name your Morgan?” asked Pamela.

“I’m leaning towards Gracie,” said Kimberly. “What do you think?”

“Sounds OK to me,” said Pamela. “Would you show her to me?”

“Sure, follow me to the barn,” said Kimberly.

The two arose and walked out of the abode’s portal and to another simply magnificent structure that contained beasts. Kimberly slid open a portal. She did something and it was magically lighted.

“Over here,” said Kimberly pointing.

Pamela looked.

“Oh my gosh,” said Pamela. “She’s beautiful!”

“A foundation Morgan, just like your Jeremiah!” said Kimberly.

“Yep. There aren’t too many classic Morgans like the original Morgan,” said Pamela.

“Nope. The majority of today’s Morgans have been bred with saddlebreds,” said Kimberly. “Danny surprised me with Gracie. He couldn’t believe a foundation Morgan was going through the sale, and he bought her for me.”

“Lucky you,” said Pamela. “My Jeremiah is traced back to Justin Morgan himself.”

“Nice,” said Kimberly. “I don’t have any paperwork on Gracie, so I don’t know for sure, but she looks like Jeremiah’s twin.”

“Sure does,” said Pamela. “If I bring Jeremiah to the Five Brothers, will you bring Gracie?”

“Absolutely!” said Kimberly. “We can go riding!”

“That would be a ball!” said Pamela. “Hey, what time is it?”

“Time for me to jump in the shower so we can get to the doctor’s office,” answered Kimberly.

They returned to the abode. Pamela sat at the table to finish her coffee while Kimberly bathed.

After a time, Kimberly emerged.

“Are you ready, buddy?” she asked.

“Let’s go!” said Pamela. “I’ll leave Olivia inside here. It’s too cold to leave her in the car for a couple of hours. She’s a Florida dog now and her blood has thinned.”

Kimberly laughed.

“I’ll drive, Kim,” said Pamela.

“OK,” said Kimberly, entering the conveyance portal on one side as Pamela entered the other.

“Where to?” asked Pamela.

“Amsterdam, St. Mary’s Cancer Medicine on Route 30,” said Kimberly. “Doctor Debbie.”

The conveyance quickly whisked Pamela and Kimberly away. I don’t understand how it knows where to go, but it somehow does.

Pamela’s conveyance stopped outside of what they called St. Mary’s Cancer Medicine. They ejected from the conveyance portals and entered the portal of a truly wonderful, magnificent structure. Kimberly went to a counter’s viewing portal and announced to a Little Person that she was there. They only waited for a very short time before Dr. Debbie the Healer escorted her in.

“This is my friend Pamela,” said Kimberly. “Is it OK if she comes in with me?”

“Sure, why not? After what I’ve put you through?” she laughed. “I’m pleased to meet you. And Kimberly, you’re looking really good!”

“Thanks. I feel great,” said Kimberly.

“Don’t get me wrong. I think that’s fantastic,” said Dr. Debbie, “But...”

“It’s a long story, and you wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” said Kimberly, as Pamela smiled.

“Well, let’s get your blood test going, and pee in this cup,” she said.

“I know the routine, doc,” said Kimberly.

Dr. Debbie called in a nurse to take some blood samples as Dr. Debbie left to care for another patient. After the blood test, the nurse asked Kimberly to leave a urine sample in the bathroom.

As she left, the nurse inspected the urine sample.

“Good job,” he said. “Have a seat in the waiting room while I order up the tests.”

Kimberly and Pamela went to the waiting room and took seats. Pamela held Kimberly’s hand.

“Nervous, girlfriend?” asked Pamela.

“Yes,” said Kimberly. “Thank you for coming.”

“I can’t believe I was actually leaving,” said Pamela, “And leaving my best friend on a really important day.”

“I don’t want to go through chemo and radiation again,” said Kimberly grimly. “I won’t. I just won’t.”

“You’ll do what the doctor orders,” said Pamela.

“You have no idea how sick it made me last time,” said Kimberly.

“You told me. But I’m not losing my best friend,” she said, squeezing Kimberly’s hand. “I want you here for a long time.”

Since the waiting room was crowded, they didn’t speak of the People of the Forest, but instead of old times and the great rides they had. A door opened and Dr. Debbie appeared.

“Kimberly?” she called.

Kimberly and Pamela walked through the door and into an examination room, sitting where asked to. Dr. Debbie was frowning and shaking her head.

“I ran the tests. They came back with an odd result, so I ran them again to confirm it,” said Dr. Debbie.

“And?” asked Kimberly, as Pamela squeezed her hand even harder.

“And there is absolutely no trace of cancer. At all,” she said. “The tests we ran the last time you were here indicated your cancer was coming back, that you weren’t in remission anymore. There is now no trace.”

Pamela gave Kimberly a big hug.

“Thanks doc,” said Kimberly.

“I don’t get it,” she said. “It is as you never had cancer ever. At all. What did you do that you said I wouldn’t believe?”

“Well...” said Kimberly with a smile, “Did you see the newspaper story about Sasquatch?”

“The newspaper? I saw it on the CBS Evening News!” exclaimed Dr. Debbie. “Everyone is talking about it. They certainly look real in the photographs, and Herman’s story is amazing.”

“Oh, they’re real, believe me,” said Kimberly. “ Two of the people in the story are Pamela and me.”

“Amazing. But what does that have to do with your cancer?”

“Well, Pamela arranged for their tribe’s healer to see me,” said Kimberly.

“Tribe? Healer?” asked Dr. Debbie.

“Sasquatch live in tribes. A healer is their version of a doctor,” answered Kimberly.

“Seriously? For real? They have a doctor?”

“No, a healer,” said Kimberly. “And not just anyone. The tribe’s best and most experienced. As near as we can figure, Aurora is about three hundred and forty years old.”

Dr. Debbie looked at Kimberly with astonishment.

“Seriously? Three hundred and forty years old? Are you sure? How do you know?”

“She told me a story about Sir William Johnson that very few people know. And she claims to have been about a hundred years old at that time.”

“OK,” said Dr. Debbie, “So how did this three hundred and forty year old Sasquatch diagnose your condition, and how did she treat you?”

“Well,” laughed Kimberly, “She sniffed me.”

“Sniffed?”

“Sniffed. She sniffed a bit and said I had cancer. She needed Bitter Nightshade to treat it, which Pamela and I got. She ground the stems into a powder with her hands, and then poured it into a wooden cup of lake water. She then crushed two berries and two leaves into it.”

“Nightshade leaves and berries are poisonous!” said Dr. Debbie with alarm.

“That’s what Aurora said, but she said it was also poison to the cancer. So I trusted her and drank it. What did I have to lose?”

“Interesting. But it sounds like voodoo medicine. Quack medicine,” said Dr. Debbie. “How long did she treat you?”

“Well, the cancer was almost gone the next day, but Aurora said to continue taking the potion, only with one leaf and one berry until she told me to stop and only use stems.”

“One day? That’s not possible,” said Dr. Debbie.

“Believe it, doc.”

“Incredible. But look, I want you to come back every two weeks for awhile so I can check,” said Dr. Debbie.

“I will,” said Kimberly.

“Congratulations,” said Dr. Debbie. “I don’t know if I can believe your wild story, but the bottom line is that I see no trace of cancer. Stop at the receptionist on the way out and make an appointment.”

Kimberly went to the viewing portal while Pamela waited. She made the appointment.

“What are the damages?” asked Kimberly.

“No charge,” said the receptionist.

“No, I have co-pays,” said Kimberly.

“Doctor’s orders,” said the receptionist. “Then Dr. Debbie said something odd. Something about a tribe’s healer curing you, and not her, whatever that means.”

Pamela and Kimberly giggled and walked away, hand in hand.