It was the beginning of fall in 1838 when the long trek of the Cherokee Removal began. The journey that was later known as the nv-na-da-u-la-tsv-yi (Trail of Tears) was a bittersweet one for Isaac. He was no longer within the confines of Fort Butler, but he was forced to leave his beloved homeland. He loved adventure be he would have wanted to chose his own adventure.
Isaac hated the yo-ne-ga a-s-ga-ya (white man) for what they had done. His Ah-lee-see (grandmother) would be alive if the white men hadn’t come and forced them into the stockade. When he told his mother how he hated the white men, she reminded, “You are half white, Nathan.”
“I’m tsa-la-gi (Cherokee),” Isaac insisted. “You can be a yo-ne-ga if you want, but I’ll be Cherokee.” Sarah could not understand her son’s hatred for the white men, nor could he understand her not hating them. They argued often about this as they were driven toward the west.
The hardships of the march were becoming to be more than Sarah’s health could endure. Isaac could see her weaken each day. Often she would sit and say, “I can go no more.” In spite of their disagreements, Isaac loved his mother and it pained him to see her suffer. When he saw her stumble he would put his arm under hers and support her as she walked. He knew if she became so weak that she couldn’t walk the soldiers would leave her to die as they had others. He saw a pregnant woman stumble and fall. The trauma caused her to miscarry. And, she lay on the ground and the soldiers left her there to bleed to death.
The government seemed ill prepared to move the thousands of Cherokees to the west to what is now Oklahoma. Each day became more miserable than the previous, and the numbers of Cherokee dwindled. Daily there were more deaths. Some faded away into the woods and began the long walk back to their homeland. Isaac thought of this himself, but knew he mother would surely die if he wasn’t there to help her.
As Sarah grew weaker each day Isaac found himself supporting her more. He was a strong young man, but he wasn’t sure how much longer he could continue. When that time came he would just sit beside her and die with her. He would no longer have any family.
One would think the hardships could get no worse, but the snows came and walking became even more difficult. Isaac soon found himself dragging his mother, rather than assisting her. He came to realize that he couldn’t go another day and resolved that he would die with his mother. He then heard his Ah-lee-see (grandmother) say, “I will send you a gi-ne-li (friend) to help you. Isaac thought the winter wind was tricking him. Then he remembered Ah-lee-see saying,). “My ah-doe-nuh-doe (spirit) will always guide you.”
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Isaac turned to see Nathan, a young mixed breed Cherokee boy about his age, on the other side of Sarah. Nathan gave a half smile and said, “I’m here to help you.” He looked more white than Cherokee. However, he was considered Cherokee because his Cherokee lineage was through his mother. He was as proud of his Cherokee blood as was Isaac.
Sarah noticed Nathan helping Isaac she weakly stated, “What a handsome white boy.”
Nathan hated being called a yo-ne-ga a-s-ga-ya, but for some reason Sarah’s statement didn’t bother him. He was there to help Isaac.
The boys found themselves becoming friends as they mostly carried Sarah. They chatted about their homeland and what the land to the west would be like. It was as if Sarah wasn’t between them.
Soon after crossing the Mississippi River Sarah died. They hardly had time to burry her before they were force to continue on with the march. The weather turned more brutal, and the government’s poor planning allowed for only one blanket per individual. Furthermore, there was no shelter and most had to sleep on the cold ground.
Isaac could not remember ever being so cold before. His body was shivering violently from the cold. He thought of his warm home back in North Carolina when suddenly he sensed another blanket over him and another body press against his. He immediately began to feel warmer. It was Nathan, he had taken his blanket and covered Isaac and then slipped in next to him to keep each other warm.
Nathan pushed himself next to Isaac and put his arms around Isaac pulling him closer. Isaac could feel himself not only getting warm, but also hard and he wondered if Nathan was hard. He turned to face Nathan when he felt under Nathan’s breechclout he felt a very hard cock. Nathan pulled Isaac’s face to his and kissed him. Isaac didn’t expect this, but didn’t resist. Had there been any chill left in his body it was warmed by that kiss. The entire time Isaac kept his grip on Nathan’s cock.
Isaac pulled away from Nathan’s lips and transferred his lips to Nathan’s cock. He could taste the wetness of his pre-cum on his tongue. He pushed the foreskin down and licked more of the sweet liquids from Nathan’s hard cock. He could hear Nathan moan with pleasure. He wondered if others could hear him, but he really didn’t care. The soldiers were far enough away that they couldn’t hear, and the Cherokees wouldn’t care.
Isaac had never sucked a cock before, but he had always been fascinated by them. He could tell that Nathan’s was larger than most. He hoped that he was doing it correctly when suddenly Nathan emptied his load in Isaac’s mouth. Isaac moved up into Nathan’s arms and felt his warmth. They fell asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.
The remainder of the journey Isaac and Nathan were inseparable and continued to share their blankets for warmth and more. The soldiers thought nothing of this since they were orphans and many shared blankets for warmth. The Cherokee for the most part accepted this. A few who had accepted the white man’s way and religion did gossip bout them.
It was March when the surviving Cherokees arrived in the new lands. Isaac and Nathan were surprised at how much it resembled their homeland. They recognized many of the same trees and plants.
More than 3000 Cherokee had died on Trail of Tears, 1600 in stockades and about the same number in route. Eight hundred more died in 1839 in Oklahoma. Isaac and Nathan had survived the journey by sharing their warmth and love under the blankets.
The supplies promised by the government were slow in arriving. What few supplies did arrive were of poor quality. The meal was full of weevils and the meat was half rotten pork. The only people who benefited form this were the contractors who made a fortune at the detriment of the Cherokees.
The Cherokees soon realized that if they were to survive in this new land they couldn’t depend on the government. The Cherokees began to build houses, clear land, plant crops and to rebuild their nation. The difficult part was rebuilding their nation.
The Treaty of New Echota was a removal treaty signed in New Echota, Georgia by officials of the United States government and several members of a faction within the Cherokee nation on December 29, 1835. The treaty was never signed by Chief John Ross, but was by the faction lead by Major Ridge, his son John Ridge and nephews Elias Boudinot and Stand Watie. They became known as the Ridge Party.
The Western Cherokee, as part of the Ridge Party had come to be known, had arrived to Arkansas and then later present day Oklahoma before the forced removal. The Western Cherokees invited the new arrivals to meet to establish a united Cherokee government. The new arrivals wanted no part of a government involving the Ridge Party. They were very bitter over their signing away their homelands. John Ridge, Major Ridge and Elias Boudinot were assassinated. Stand Watie, Brother of Boudinot, pledged revenge for deaths of party leaders. The killings lead to years of revenge killings within the Cherokees.
Nathan and Isaac built a cabin near the Barren Fork and its convergence with the Illinois River. They even managed to get a small area of land cleared for a crop. Both were skilled hunters and were soon living very comfortable in the new land. They wanted it to always be like this. They days were filled with hard labor and the nights were filled with passionate love making.
Isaac hoped that his grandmother could see how happy Nathan and he were. He was thankful that she had sent Nathan to be his lover.