Zeke Cook is having curious dreams about an Indian Lady. The discovery of an ancient cemetery while on a camping trip with his older brother deepens the mystery. In the cemetery, Zeke comes upon a gravestone marked with the name "Moon Willow" Below the name reads the following: "Take a willow stick home and place it under your pillow" That night he is awakened by a strange white light illuminating his bedroom. Was it the willow stick that made this happen or was it something else? Zeke tries to talk about these happenings with his older brother Griffen. But Griffen is not interested in Zeke's troubles - he is having troubles of his own. Ever since visiting the cemetery he is hearing a strange voice in his head. He doesn't understand where it is coming from or why the voice keeps asking him "are you ready" Journey along with the brothers as they uncover the mystery of the dreams, the strange voice and how it connects them to a deeper understanding of the universe.
Journey with Zeke
Gift or CurseBy Lynette TeachoutBalboa Press
Copyright © 2012 Lynette Teachout
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4525-5533-1 Chapter One
Standing before Zeke was an Indian lady. As in the other dreams, she was wearing a long tan dress with black beading on the front, a thin piece of material belting it at the waist. A beaded headband sat on her head, decorating her long dark hair. The head band had a single feather that rose above the back of her head. What was odd about her was that she appeared to be floating. Even stranger was that he had seen her several times now, but she never spoke. He thought that she was kind, intelligent and very giving. Giving of what, he didn't know; it was just something that he sensed.
This time, as a few times before, a beautiful white wolf was sitting at her side. He knew there was a special purpose to her being there, and to the fact that a white wolf was with her now, although he didn't fully understand what the purpose could be. He asked the Indian lady about the white wolf, thinking that maybe this time she might talk to him, but she didn't answer. Then, just like all the other times, they both just faded away.
"What time is it?" thought Zeke, as he struggled to waken. Glancing over at his alarm clock he saw that it was 8:30 a.m. Slowly, he stretched his arms above his head as he thought about the dream he had just had and wondered again why he was having these dreams. He knew he should get up and get around. It was Saturday and there was always so much to do. Instead of getting up he continued to lie in bed. He could hear the birds chirping outside his window as he once again yawned. He turned to face his bedroom window, as he decided fifteen more minutes and then he would get up.
Zeke loved Saturdays. It was hard to believe that a week had already gone by. It was just last Saturday that he had turned thirteen. They had celebrated with a big party and he had received some really cool gifts. One of the best gifts was the X-Box game from his friend Justin. They had an ongoing competition about who was best at the game. The last time the two had played against each other Justin had won. Zeke was determined not to let that happen again. He practiced all week after school and felt confident that he would whip Justin the next time they played. Smiling to himself, he suddenly knew exactly what he was going to do today. He would call Justin and invite him over to play. He would show his friend that he was in fact the true champion.
As Zeke continued to lie in bed imagining the surprised look on his friend's face when he beat him, he heard a familiar voice calling his name. He hollered back, "Yeah, Dad?" Zeke knew from the sound of footsteps that his dad was coming to his room. He quickly sat up and watched as his bedroom door opened.
"You going with us today, Buddy?" asked Dad.
"Going where?"
"Well, the last I remember, you were going to go camping with your brother and me."
Suddenly wide awake, Zeke responded, "Oh yeah, Dad. I'm coming! I totally forgot. Don't leave without me!"
"Then you'd better get up and get dressed. We're leaving within the hour." As Dad shut his bedroom door, Zeke jumped out of bed and ran to his closet. He wondered how he could have forgotten about the camping trip. He always looked forward to the fresh smell of pine, swimming, eating marshmallows, and sitting around the campfire after dark listening to his brother's scary ghost stories.
Downstairs, Griffen, two years older than Zeke, was eating breakfast. He, too, was excited about going camping. He loved swimming, fishing and scaring the pants off of his little brother with his ghost stories. His dad grabbed a bowl from the cupboard and joined him at the table. Griffen passed him the box of cereal and milk.
"Did you wake him up, Dad?"
"Yes, Zeke's up. I thought he'd be the first one down here this morning after all his excitement about going." Dad enjoyed camping with his sons, as it was a family tradition from his youth. Wanting to make sure his city boys were well acquainted with nature's beauty and mystery, he planned as many camping trips or nature hikes as he possibly could.
Griffen, who had become a great lover of nature, nodded in agreement. "All I heard about yesterday from Zeke was camping-this and fishing-that. He wouldn't quit!" They both laughed.
"By the way, Griffen, I would appreciate it if you would not tell your ghost stories this time." Dad peered over the cereal box to judge his son's reaction.
"Oh, come on, Dad, I love those stories. Not telling them takes away all the fun," whined Griffen.
"I know, son, but Zeke's been obsessing over his strange dreams about some Indian lady and a white wolf. I don't think it's a good idea."
"I know, Dad, but they're just dreams! I don't think a dream is going to hurt you, is it?"
"No, son, it isn't, but I still don't want you scaring your brother with your stories."
Sighing, Griffen replied, "Okay, Dad."
In the background they could hear Zeke running down the stairs to join them for breakfast. In a flash, Zeke ran across the kitchen, opened the cupboard, and grabbed a bowl. He grabbed the cereal and sat down in a chair. "Okay, Dad, I'm all packed and ready to go! When we get there can I go swimming right away?"
"We have to set up the camp and gather some wood first," answered Dad, who was a firm believer that you needed to teach your children that life was not all fun and games; instead, fun was a reward after the work had been done.
"Okay," said Zeke, as he shoved more cereal into his already full mouth. He was accustomed to the camping routine and knew from experience that setting up camp and gathering the wood would not take all that long. There would be plenty of time for swimming.
Having finished his bowl of cereal, Griffen took it to the sink and then looked at his dad. "I'm going to make sure the fishing poles are in the truck."
"I'll go with you," replied Dad.
Grabbing his bowl, Dad headed for the sink and looked back at Zeke. Before his dad could say a word, he blurted, "I know, Dad. I'll take care of my bowl." Dad nodded and headed to the garage.
In the garage, Griffen double-checked the truck. Dad had packed the truck the night before with camping and fishing gear, but Griffen wanted to take a look to make sure he had not forgotten anything. "Hey, Dad, it looks like everything is packed. So whenever Zekey Boy is ready, I'm ready."
"Thank you, Griffen," answered Dad. At that exact moment the garage door flew open and Zeke charged out excitedly. "Let's go!"
Griffen loved his brother unconditionally, but there were many times that he found him to be totally annoying. This was one of those times. Zeke always seemed to want the spotlight. Griffen rolled his eyes in Zeke's direction. Zeke noticed the eye roll and made a face back at him. Griffen retaliated, "Dad, can we leave him home, please?"
"Don't be funny, Griffen," replied Dad, while giving him a "you know better" look. Dad knew that the brothers would quickly escalate their squabbling if he didn't quickly change the subject. He returned his attention to his youngest son. "Did you say good-bye to Mom?"
"Yep," responded Zeke, "and I gave her a hug. It's cool."
"Okay, then. Let's double-check our list to make sure we didn't forget anything. Tent?"
Both boys responded, "Yep."
"Sleeping bags?"
"Yep."
"Fishing poles?"
"Yep."
"Flashlights?"
"Yep."
"Cooler?"
"Yep."
The list continued until everything that they needed for the camping trip was accounted for. With the...
