The Way of Kaw

The cool mid-winter breeze brushed my cheeks today, it was a warm one...40 degrees. Starting at third street, working my way down through the post office, "downtown", city hall, and south on DD I began my journey.
The sun shine as bright as the stars of a crystal night, the wind blew along my entire journey. However, unlike many winter winds this one was of the southern decent, it was cool, but at the same time warm, a warm wet wind. Much humidity was found in the rushing air. Keeping my lungs hot, and my face sweating I left city limits.
I began my decent into the fields, the fields of corn, the fields of beans, all gone for the season. While passing by I imagined the origin of this area, what it was before the town, before the farmer, before the current life.
Tall decidious trees sprout in the forested area, the plains and prairies just sitting over the riverway to the west. The rolling hill barely noted as the trees tend to cover everything in their paths with a sea of greens through the seasons. The snow wouldn't be as thick for the covering of the trees would prevent the large drifts that I now found myself dodging with each step I took down the two lane blacktop.
With the wind still blowing as I turned a 90 degree corner along the road I thought back to the people of the area, the Osage, Quivira, Shawnee, and the Kaw. The people of the plains, the prarie, the ghost of the past of our Midwest. How they hunted alongside the coyote, horseback, knowing of all the land and its detail as if inheritely related to it. How many instances I'm sure, the people would be riding horseback through the praire, or running through the woods, and could feel this exact warm breeze brush their face.
If you know anything about this area of land, you will know that the southern warm wind, is indeed unique, it is unlike anything you'll witness because it always means good weather is yet to come (hence being outside in mid January running down the road), and the enjoyment if brings your senses as if you're sensing what lies beyond the southern horizon.
The first of this wind in 2010, how exciting, I thought while heading back into town. As I turned at city hall, past the "downtown", and post office I thought of the people, the Kaw, whose name also is derived as "Kanza" or more commonly known "Kansas" which in its literal sense means, "People of the Southwind".
Stepping up to the front porch, trying not to slip in the melting snow, I knew today that I was part of Kaw.