The Suckerfish Moon or Midwinter Moon

Christine Reding

To preserve frozen meat, the animal was suspended

From the height of a tree, with its trunk being shaved back

Preventing the wolverines causing the carcass from being upended

Not even nibbling on the smallest portion of chack

During the day the frost was sparkling with whitish sheen

At night casting shadows of blue on the darkened crusty snow

Women decorating clothing with ermine and glass beads to preen

Men’s bodies draped in buffalo hides their strength to show

Equipped with spears or bow and arrow pointed with chert points or flint

Lowering mesh nets with cut grooves in small stones for sinkers

Utilizing torches to attract suckers, catfish, and sunfish with glint

Wrapping the catch in clay to peel the scales off during midwinter

La Crosse paddles were developed by the Oneidans during the age of antiquity

Deer antler bones rounded, sanded, and cut into 8 colorful game pieces

The snowsnake was an icy path utilizing a stick to carve length with dignity

Agility, concentration, and competition expanded their minds to increase

Spirituality pronounced during the winter months with entwined sticks inviting

Iroquis believed that the part of your spirit could leave a body that was sleeping

Woodhenge constructed of a circle of posts representing ornamental sightings

The Ghost Dance calling on the dead to save their frigid lives in keeping