The Great Acorn Worm

By Muriel Ammon

T’unq’ te’ina:wh-hit, kyułne ningyay. Hayał hay t’ehxich, xota’ nay ky’a:da’ne’ wung ya’winde:tł’.
It was time to gather acorns, the timber robin had arrived. And so the little girl and her father went out to gather some.

Hay t’ehxich ch’iqa:l, k’iwinya’n nikya:w chiłtsa:n. Ya’wing’a:n. “Xo’ji nikya:w hay de:d!” ch’ide:ne.

The little girl came along and picked up an acorn. “It’s so big!” She marveled at the size.

Hayał ky’a’a:n misgiyts ch’iłtsa:n. “Yehe!” Nida:s-ts’iw. ‘A:ch’ondehsne’, ‘Dotah niwho:ng-xw k’iwidiya:n hay me’ silay.’ Hayi heh q’ut’ k’iwinya’n me’-silay me’ no:ning’a:n.

It had a little hole. “Oh well, it’s heavy, I think there will still be something good to eat inside.” Against her better judgement, she dropped it in her bag.

Qo:-dziwoldz k’e:w me’ site:n. Łiq’a:w-xw ‘unt’e. K’iwinya’n silay-ding, qo:-dziwoldz ya:yky’a:n, hayima:n k’iwinya’n yiditile.

But hidden away, growing fat as can be, lied a little acorn worm. These larvae, relishers of acorns, are sure to be wherever the acorns are.

Do:-ch’ohłts’it hay qo:-dziwoldz k’e:w me’ site:n. Haya:l hijit xoda:na:ya’winde:tł’ qo:-dziwoldz mił.

But the girl did not know that. And so they returned home with the worm in tow.

K’iwinya’n niłtsa:y ch’ischwe’n. Hayał ‘e:n hay qo:-dziwoldz do:-heh ch’it.

The acorns were dried, but somehow, the worm managed to escape the heat.

Hayał diywho’-me-silay to:-nehwa:n-mił-wilchwe:n me’ k’iwinya’n silay dink’ no:nila:t dung’. Hay qo:-dziwoldz yiwinda’. Ts’iwahsilay yiky’a:n, mine:gits tehłchwe:n. Ts’iwahsilay yiky’a:n kiye, jahda mine:gits tehłchwe:n. Mine:jixomił, ts’iwahsilay do:-xohsle’. Hay qo:-dziwoldz yiwintehł xo’ji nikya:w-xw.

The acorn lay in a jar for months. All the while, the acorn worm grew. His grubby white body slowly replaced the acorn meat inside the shell. He grew to an enormous size. And the little girl still did not know.

Ts’iwahsilay do:-xohsle’-dung, qo:-dziwoldz ch’e:na:wh’ miyde:nde’n. Ninis’a:n na:tseh yiłtsa:n. Hayah ‘ungya’ k’iwinya’n wha:ne silay. ‘Ile:xich k’iwinya’n wha:ne silay. De:-q’i-dó:ng’ hayima:n diywho’-me-silay to:-nehwa:n-mił-wilchwe:n me’ xa:t’i-q’it site:n hay qo:-dziwoldz.

Once he had eaten all the meat inside the acorn, he decided to come out of the shell. It was his first sight of the world. Lo and behold, the world was full of acorns! For he was still in the jar, along with all the other nuts the girl had gathered.

Hay qo:-dziwoldz minist’e’ xwe:niwh. Ch’e:’indiqot’. Hay k’iwinya’n mino:ng’ay’-ch’ing’ wilqol.

The acorn worm was filled with glee. He wriggled out, heading for a nearby acorn.

‘Chwing-me:do:whle, ła:nji k’iwinya’n me:diwhchwing,’ qo:-dziwoldz ch’ondehsne. Do-xoling yehwinyay ‘e:n. Sik’et’s mina:t xo’ji yiłtsa:n. Xoh-‘a’t’e:n. Ky’a:an do:-xole:n.

He wanted more acorns to eat. But he couldn’t get in! He tried in vain, investigating the whole surface of the nut. It was no use, there was no hole.

Ting chwing-me:do:wile. Hayał ‘a:ch’o:ndehsne, ‘Sik’et’s do:-xowh do:-łixun-tse?’

He was so hungry. Then he thought, ‘I might try to eat the shell. Maybe that will taste good?’

Hayał yidiwilxuts’, yehky’a’a:n yischwe’n. ‘Ulush! Do:-ma:-wilxa’n. ‘A:ch’o:ndehsne, ‘Ts’iwahsilay wha:ne me:diwhchwing, ts’iwahsilay wha:ne wha:wilxa’n.’ Hay yehky’a’a:n ma’a:n yitehs’e’n. Yo:hłts’it ła:nji ts’iwahsilay xole:n. “Oh, ts’ehdiyah!” yide:ne. Kiye na:ła’ minist’e’ xwe:niwh hay qo:-dziwoldz.

So he chomped his way in. It did not taste good. ‘Acorn meat is the only thing I want to eat! Acorn meat is the only thing I like!’ he thought. This one bite created a door to more delicious nutmeat, he saw. He rejoiced at his good fortune.

Yik’iwinya’n, yik’iwinya’n. Hay ts’iwahsilay-tseh tin niwho:ng.

He ate and he ate. It tasted so good.

Yik’iwinya’n, sa’a:n-ding sile’n, dink’ no:nila:t.

He ate for days, he ate for months.

Jahda nikya:w sile’n, xo’ji ting-‘ułkyow sile’n hay qo:-dziwoldz. Xo’ji nikya:w din din dong, hay mich’in-ding ky’a:’a:n-i me’ do:-xoling minłung yehwinyay. Łanji ts’iwahsilay miyde:de’n, hayał ‘e:n ła:n na:lte yiky’a:n sile’n. ‘E:wa:k qo:-dziwoldz, jahda:-wingkya:w.

He grew and grew and grew. He became so fat that he had trouble biting a hole big enough to get into the other acorns.

Mine:jixomił, t’ehxich miq’it-dahsilay na’te:tse. Ch’iłtsa:n hay de:d qo:-dziwoldz łiq’a:w.

That is how the girl found him.

“Yehe!!” hay t’ehxich ‘a’de:ne, “Xwe:di gya’awh ‘ung’?” Hay qo:-dziwoldz ne:s. Nahsqo:l. Ch’inilgit mine:gits.

“AHHHHHH,” she wailed. Opening the cupboard, she saw the giant weevil larvae, no, it was a worm now. It was scooting around the jar. It was fast. Fear crept upon her.

Ch’itina:wh, xota’ xoch’o’ne’ me’de:de’n. ‘A:de:ne t’ehxich, “Whita’ which’oyne! Whita’ which’oyne’ Diywho’ nichwin-tsiw whi-k’iwinya’n me’ na:way!!”

She ran to get her dad. “Help, help, there’s something terrible in my acorns!”

K’iwinya’n-ch’ing’ na:ydił. “Yeh’inde’iwh!” T’ehxich xota’ yeh’ch’indeh’iwh. Qo:-dziwoldz mina:’ mich’ing’ ch’itehs’e’n. Nikya:w dong. Do:-ch’iłtsa:n dung’ diywhe’eh qo:-dziwoldz miłkyow.

Together they returned to the jar. “Look!” she cried. The dad looked eye to eye with the acorn worm. How fat it was. He had never seen one so big.

“Xa’ ch’e:ninte:n!” chide:ne.

“Get it out! Get it out!” she cried.

Hayał xota’ k’iwiny’an na:k’idehłwa:tł’. Hay qo:-dziwoldz na:lts’it. Tin niłwe’ hayima:n ła:nji k’iwinya’n yik’iwinya’n.

So he took out a pan, and dumped the acorns out. The worm tumbled out, down to a stop. It was greasy from the fat of all those acorns.

K’iwinya’n ch’inił’e:n. K’iłdik, na:’iłtsa:n hay k’iwinya’n niwho:ng. Xoh-‘a’t’e:n, k’iwiny’an niwho:ng do:-xole:n. Qo:-dziwoldz ‘aht’in k’iwinya’n yik’iwinya’n. Sik’ets’ me’ chwung’ wha:ne xole:n. Hay mił xoje:’-dilma:y. Ch’iwinchweh-ne’in. Nin’-ch’ing’ ch’inił’e:n. De:di ‘ungya’ yida:’uło’-ts’eh’.

The girl rushed to see what damage that worm had done, smacking and cracking her acorns searching for one good nut. There wasn’t a single one. That worm had eaten every last nut. She looked down tearfully, and swore the worm was laughing at her.

“‘Owhts’it duxwe:di ‘awhwilah-te,” xota’ de:ne, “Whe de:de:ytin-te.”

A Perfect June Day at the California Native Ways Festival

“I know, we’ll throw it in the fire,” he said.

“‘E:wa:k. Siłwe-ne’?

EEEEEK she hissed. “Do we have to kill it?”

“Da:w. Hayał ‘e:n na:way-te’, ‘isdiya:n-de. Ła:nji k’iwinya’n yik’iwinyun-te,” xota’ ch’ide:ne.

“We don’t have to, but if we don’t it might spin a cocoon, and grow into an adult. Then it will infest more acorns.”

“Qo:-dziwoldz do:-k’iwidya’ni-heh! Q’ut siłwe!”

“Oh, I don’t want that.” So she agreed they’d feed it to the fire.

Hayi heh na:lts’it. Winse:l-de, k’iwinya’n wha:ne wung mikyun-na:way. ‘Chwing-me:do:whle, ła:nji k’iwinya’n me:diwhchwing,’ qo:-dziwoldz ch’ondehsne.

As he fell, the big worm felt the heat growing. All he could think of was, “I’m so hungry. I want more acorns.”

Xong-mich’ing’ na:lts’it. Hayał k’iwidmut! Hay qo:-dziwoldz tin niłwe’ k’iwidmut’.

He tumbled down into the flames. Then POP! The greasy, fatty thing combusted with a burst.

“’Aht’in yiky’a:n,” ch’ide:ne. Nikya:w-xw ch’e:na:k’iwinch’e’ ch’ischwe’n. “Ła’-me:nundiya:-de, q’un-k’inehsta:n ch’ing’ we:dił-te me:diwhdin. Whikyulah-‘a:k’idiyaw.”

“He ate them all,” she exclaimed with a sigh. “Next year let’s go someplace else – I never want to bring home an acorn worm again!”

“Q’ut ‘owhts’it xwe:di ‘ayninsing. Hayał ‘e:n qo:-dziwoldz k’iwinya’n ye’iky’a:n. K’iwinya’n yiditile. Nehe ‘e:n, k’iwinya’n nohtile. Sa’xa:wh łixun-ts’eh. Ła’ t’unq’it-de, do:xoling k’inehsta:n midiłwa we:dił-te.”

“I know, it is pretty unbelievable. But that is the nature of acorn worms. They live to eat their favorite food. And us, we love acorns too. As for next year, impossible.”

“Duxwe:d?”

“What?” she demanded.

“Hay t’unq’-no:’ondil ch’ing’ na:’e:dil. Yo-ch’ing’ nohma:lyo’ ky’a:ya:da:dine winte. Ky’a:ya:da:dine sa’a:-dung’, ky’a:ya:da:dine sa’a:-tehł. ‘Ohłts’it-ung diydi ma:n?”

“That is our spot. Our family always goes there. And do you know why we go there?”