He much preferred the whole bird wings to the limp but still ferocious looking wolf body. I love this little video of his interpretive bird dance.
The Aboriginal meal met with mixed reaction. He loved the venison sausage, the spinach salad with pomegranite seeds and pine nuts, and the bannock with strawberry preserves (2 hunks). But he ignored the wild rice casserole and spit his bison meatballs into his napkin. Then he sat front and centre for the storytelling to learn how the rabbit got its powderpuff tail and how bats came to exist. While he doubted those creation tales, he loved the notion of referring to the sun as an elder brother, to the moon as grandmother and to rocks as grandfathers. One of the storytellers gave him a polished stone last night, and this morning he ran upstairs to find it, calling "Where's grandfather?!"
The highlight of the evening, however, was when the drumming circle opened to include guests. Sam, who had been signing along from his spot on the sidelines, got right in there between two of the Native performers and did the dances. Later, as we headed for the car with our new dreamcatcher, crow feathers, and grandfather rock, Sam said "Carter and I are so going to play Natives." His Aboriginal awareness has increased to the point where now he counts Natives among pirates, cowboys, and superheroes. That may not be precisely what the CRA had in mind, but it's a good start.