For the past few days Kit and Coyote journeyed together. Coyote would serve as scout, reporting back to Kit once or twice during the day and spending the night together.

During the day time check-in’s, the focus was on basic survival needs – where Kit could find water and possibly food. At night, Coyote and Kit would pick a spot to shelter. Coyote liked to be up high where there was a view of the land. Kit and Coyote would talk about The-Way-of-The-Scout and about Coyote-Thinking.

“Once you have Clear Vision and Clear Heart,” said Coyote, “the next stage of Coyote-Thinking is to develop Clear Mind.

“It will be rare when your vision and heart are perfectly clear. Still, there are many techniques that will help you find a Clear Mind. Following The-Way-of-The-Scout will help.

“The Scout always seeks to improve knowledge of the three-zones of awareness: what is going on inside your own body, what is going on in your immediate surroundings, and what is going on in the larger surrounding.

“To be more aware of what is going on in your own body, many people use meditation and relaxation exercises. Anyone can learn how to do this. With enough practice, anyone can become a master.

“To be more aware of what is going on in your immediate surrounding, there are sensory exercises, such as owl eyes, deer ears, and fox walking that can be learned and mastered. Part of awareness is learning how to be a skilled observer.

“To be more aware of your larger surrounding, there are ways of sensing the connections between your immediate surroundings and the larger world. All life creates ripples, like an acorn hitting a still pond. These circles impact the circles created by others, and so on, stretching far across the world.

“The Scout must become a master of awareness, a master of seeing connections, and then must report the truth of the world as seen through honest eyes. To do that, The Scout must be aware of fear. Fear, more than anything else, clouds the mind.”

“I know about Fear-of-The-Cold and Fear-of-Being-Alone,” said Kit. “Fear-of-The-Cold is the fear that you will not be able to survive the world. Sometimes the world is just too difficult a place. Fear-of-Being-Alone is the fear that by yourself you will fail.”

“So, to have Clear Mind, you must address those fears,” said Coyote.

“Well…,” said Kit, “I know that the Gifts of Respect and Love will counter those fears.”

“More accurately,” said Coyote, “experiencing and expressing Respect and Love will keep those fears from growing too strong. That is The-Way-of-The-Artist.

“The-Way-of-The-Scout takes a more planned approach. Fear-of-The-Cold is addressed by planning how to get your basic survival needs met: shelter, water, food. What skills do you already have to be safe? What skills do you need to add?

“Fear-of-Being-Alone is addressed by having allies. Even now, Eagle keeps an eye on you each day. Bear and Buffalo are waiting for you to report back to them. All the animals from the Great-Council have promised to help you. What allies do you have? What allies can you gain?

“It is a sense of belonging that gives The Scout the heart to explore,” said Coyote.

“I still find this to be a difficult journey,” said Kit.

“When we explore,” said Coyote, “we must address a new fear that emerges, the fear of becoming lost. This fear takes two forms. Fear-of-The-Woods represents the fear of becoming lost in the world, unable to find the proper path. Fear-of-The-Dark represents the fear of becoming lost in your own mind.”

“When I still lived with my mom and dad, they would warn us not to wander off in the woods,” said Kit.

“Yes, when we are all very young, we feel the need to explore, but have not yet experienced Fear-of-The-Woods. That is one reason why the young need to be kept sheltered and safe,” said Coyote. “When we get older we need to seek Truth.”

“What do you mean?” asked Kit.

“You have been making a journey map,” said Coyote. “On that map you have certain waypoints that help you stay on your path. But you also must know where to find the things needed to survive. You must seek the truth of where to find the safety of shelter, where to find water, and where to find food.”

“That makes sense,” said Kit. “But how can you know the truth of a place before you actually go there?”

“You cannot always know the truth about a situation. But you can use your scout skills to seek the truth. For example, where tomorrow morning will we find water?” asked Coyote.

“I don’t know…,” said Kit. “We’ve left the stream far behind and I’ve never been to the lands ahead of us.”

“Ah, but we have been following an animal trail. New animal tracks keep joining the trail. We have a good view here. Go see where this trail heads and report back to me,” said Coyote.

Kit went to the edge of the cliff-top. Kit could see the thin line that made up the animal trail that had guided the journey for the last couple hours. In the distance, by the light of the setting sun, a small grouping of Cottonwood trees could be seen.

Kit reported back to Coyote. “I did not see any water but I did see that the animal trail heads to some Cottonwood trees.”

“So… more and more animals heading to a type of tree that only grows near water,” said Coyote.

“That doesn’t mean that there’s definitely water there,” protested Kit.

“The wind is blowing from that direction. Did you smell water?” asked Coyote.

“Well… I guess I didn’t think to try that…” said Kit, somewhat shyly.

“We coyotes have great noses. I can smell water from here. Human Beings have such small noses, I don’t know if you can smell that truth.

“Kit, you are correct, that we can never be completely sure of what is Truth. What’s important is to always seek truth. That is The-Way-of-The-Scout.

“A Clear Mind is one that is always seeking the Gift of Truth. When you can trust your sense of Truth, then you will not fear becoming lost, you will not feel Fear-of-The-Woods.”

“I will never have a nose as powerful as a coyote’s,” said Kit. “Does that mean I will always feel Fear-of-The-Woods?”

“That is a fear that all people have. The goal is not to eliminate it, but to respect it and love it, because it helps keep you safe. Nor is the goal to somehow arrive at a perfect understanding of Truth. It is the seeking that will keep you on track.

“It helps to use all your senses. It also helps to train yourself to always look for the opportunities and the threats in your surroundings. That, too, is part of The-Way-of-The-Scout.

“The Scout uses the senses to find opportunities and to avoid threats. The Scout is always preparing lists of opportunities and threats to report back to The Chief.”

“You’ve given me a lot to think about Coyote,” said Kit. “Perhaps tomorrow we can talk more about this Fear-of-The-Dark. For now, I welcome the dark, and a chance to think and then sleep!”

“That sounds wise,” said Coyote. While you settle in for the night, I will sing a coyote-song with my brothers and sisters. Songs remind us that we are not alone, that we all belong to a larger group.”