Many thanks to Maury (WTAFP) for this!
Remembering the Storyteller
by his pal
Teddy Roosevelt Ruff Rider
I had the honor of spending time with the Storyteller on three different occasions.
I still have a clear recollection of the first time I met the Storyteller. It was in the fall of 2013, when I was just a very young pup, and the Storyteller and Golinka came up to Vermont to see my maw and paw. I was really fascinated by his braids; indeed so fascinated that I kept jumping up trying to grab them. But the Storyteller took it all in great stride and found it rather amusing, if anything. Thus began a great friendship. One photo of that first meeting is provided below.
The second time was about a year later when the Storyteller and Golinka, accompanied by their two corgis – Tupper and Gilly – came to visit me and my maw and paw again in Vermont during the summer of 2014. We were also blessed that day by the presence of Rose and Steve (aka the Grizz) and what I can only describe as a Rio doppelganger who crashed the party as well. It was a great afternoon of fun and frolic in the Vermont countryside, for both the two-legged attendees as well as the four-legged members of the nation within. I believe the Storyteller had a great time that day, marveling in particular at the interactions among the members of the nation within. A number of photos of that day are shared below.
Regarding the last occasion, it was in the spring of 2015, when the Storyteller and Golinka came to Chevy Chase to see me, of course, and my maw and paw as well. We went down to the mall on May 8, 2015, to see a number of the monuments including the Korean War Memorial, which was very special for the Storyteller, as he was a Korean war vet. I know the date very well because it also happened to be the 70th anniversary of V-E Day ending World War II in Europe. While we were on the Mall, there was a flyover that day of dozens of vintage World War II military aircraft participating in the Arsenal of Democracy flyover to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe (V-E Day). I know the truth, however, which was it was actually all arranged as a special tribute to the Storyteller in commemoration of his being there that day on the Mall.
While that was the last time we were together in person (or dogson, in my case), he and I maintained a written correspondence thereafter. I wrote him a number of letters over the years, including one congratulating him on his selection in 2018 to participate in the Honor Flight for Korean War Veterans to Washington, D.C., and several times when he was confined at a VA facility during the early days of the pandemic, a very difficult time when he was kept apart from his beloved Golinka for a while.
I can also confirm that, upon crossing the rainbow bridge, the Storyteller was met by a huge gathering of greeters and well-wishers, with many tails wagging, including my own. And there he stood, majestic as always and with his braids fully restored, just begging to be pulled.
29 Comments on “Remembering Leonard Fourhawks”
Greetings!
What a wonderful tribute to the Storyteller, Teddy! Thank you for sharing it and the photos. Grizz and I have such great memories of that time in Vermont.
Good Friday to all!
Thank you, Teddy, for sharing this wonderful tribute to The Storyteller. While we never met him in person, Kat told us how kind and gentle he was to her when she visited him in Western Massachusetts. And we always relied on him in times of grief or worry as he was always so wise and thoughtful. Now he is up here with me (Zeus) and Kat and Meashka, Dima and the rest of The Howlers, while Bella is filling Natty in on the stories and prayers she learned from The Storyteller on the blog.
We have several from our lot who want to honor and celebrate the Storyteller, but our Lady what with her fancy thumbs and being the one who pays for the cell phone gets the honor of going first. Her thoughts on the Storyteller are below:
How can I even begin to express the impact of the Storyteller on my life? I first met him at the same time as Kat and her maw. Initially, I planned a visit for a day with the Storyteller and Amalia, Gramps and Heartfriend because I was on the east coast for a conference. Before I knew it, I was doing a one-woman show telling stories of our life with dogs and racing. Amalia booked the venue and booked me in drive time radio before asking me if I was willing to do the show. She is very persuasive—- it is part of her charm. I love her for it. The day before the show, I met several members of the nation within leaving the pants I intended to do the show in covered in drool and fur. The Storyteller laundered my pants and brought them to me on a hanger, draped in plastic as if they had been dry cleaned— all very officiall, but all Storyteller.
After the one-woman show, he presented me with one of my dearest and most prized possessions —- a necklace he made especially for me with a note explaining its meaning. His friend, Bill (a drummer) also presented me with sweetgrass. I remember hugging the Storyteller, a moment still etched in my mind. What is also etched in my memory and heart is that we hadn’t spoken a lot but he KNEW me. We had a special bond from the start that didn’t require a lot of words. He was my friend. He was also my teacher and mentor with me asking questions via Amalia and her providing his guidance back to me. After a while, we recognized the special bond and determined he wasn’t like a father to me—-I had a very good one of those and didn’t need a replacement—-so we settled on spiritual uncle. That’s is who the Storyteller is to me: friend, teacher, mentor, Uncle. I love him for it. I miss him for it. And, I’m grateful that Amalia shared him with the Plunderers.
At the kennel, we name dogs after people to honor them. Among our dogs, we’ve had 2 Leonards, 2 Amalias, a FourHawks, a Gramps, a Golinka (Amalia’s childhood nickname) and a Drummer (after Bill).
Thieves here! We can’t say we blame Teddy for wanting to take the Storyteller’s braids out for a spin. He have always found him to be a good sport.
Some of our favorite memories —- if you can have good memories in a hospital—- were the wheelchair races with the Storyteller around the nurses’ station. We remember the first time he won, he won by a braid. One of his braids flung itself across the finish line just as we were closing in on it. Did we challenge him to best 60 out of 100? Youse tell us.
Thank you Peter and Maury for hosting this tribute to the Storyteller.
I met The Storyteller first through the Chet the Dog blog. He was Golinka’s beloved soul mate. Later I met him in person at a PlunderFest along with Barb (Maggie) and Nancy (Staff) and Judy (Mollypop). It was a bittersweet occasion as we had wanted to meet with our Heartfriend but she was not well enough to receive us.
Golinka, Storyteller and Gramps invited us to their home and there was a fantastic feast laid out for us. I spent a little time with the Storyteller. Can I remember anything specific he said? I cannot. But besides his gentle, humble, caring and spiritual aura he also had a sweet sense of humor.
We all went to a butterfly conservatory and the butterflies felt the Storyteller’s wonderfulness/peacefulness too because all the butterflies would land on him and not flit right away but linger awhile. Especially that amazing blue one.
The last memory is of the prayers both Golinka and the Storyteller would post on the blog for us during the tense times of Justin and the Snowhook Team being on the Iditarod Trail and at other times when we were going through difficulties. They helped calm the fears and remind us to be grateful for our many blessings.
One of my most treasured belongings is a drum made by the Storyteller. I found it at the Firehawks Studio and it has the most resonant sound imaginable. I can’t do it justice of course, but I bang on it anyway, during the saddest and happiest times And sometimes just to hear it sing.
Thank you Golinka and the Storyteller for sharing your journey with us.
Dawson
Mama Luna here. Dawson, I also wanted to mention the prayer offerings that the Storyteller and his circle of Native holy people would offer up for the team each night at Plunderer prayer time until the team crossed the finish line. It brought such comfort to those of us left behind at the kennel. One year, he and Golinka send medicine bags to be attached to the dogs’ collars. Those days of racing and time with the Plunderers are special to us at Snowhook.
My Lady mentioned we’ve named two dogs after the Storyteller. Both Leonards were rescues. My Lady named the second of the two Leonard because the blaze on the top of his head flares down to his side and it reminded her of the person, not the dog’s braids. He is a good boy.
I am a friend of the Storyteller by osmosis. I’ve been participating on the blog almost from the beginning. Sometimes I would miss short periods, particularly when Truman was ill and then passed, but I always felt the support of all the blog family. And Leonard Fourhawks was a huge part of the blog family even though he spoke to us through Amalia. We always felt his peace and tranquility. I am envious of those who knew him in person. What an honor!
BigTiny’s Mom
BigTiny: You’ll be pleased to know that Truman, the dog not the husband, has become a Walmart greeter at the kennel. He, along with Little of detective agency fame, welcome our tour guests. He is such a gentle hearted dog and littermate to Bev, Fourhawks and Drummer.
Thieves! That is so exciting to hear! I’m so glad to hear the Truman, the dog not the man, has found his place at Snowhook!
Tribute!….I’m too overcome with emotion to write anything right now….sob!sob!sob!
Rio: Luna here…Belle Starr is also overcome, but with sparkles. One of her favorite photos she has of the Storyteller is one that Amalia sent of him “sleeping” covered in sparkles. He was always so good to humor her. As soon as he got to this Side of the Bridge, she couldn’t wait to show him where she keeps all the best sparkles. They’re in the closet right next to where Ole Doc keeps all the best tennis balls.
The Storyteller sounds like that special kind of person you are lucky to meet once in your lifetime. Some never do. It isn’t so much what they say or even how they say it but how you feel in their presence. While it makes me sad not to have ever met the Storyteller, even just through this blog, reading the tributes of him by those who knew him gives me some of the peace and calm he give to others.
Thank you WTAFP, Thieves, Rio, Dawson, Big Tiny, Wose and Zeus and Bella for sharing their special times with The Storyteller.
I will likely reread this a few more times as I need some of his calm and magic in the next 7-10 days.
While very unlikely, should I ever have occasion to meet Franklin, I shall make it a point to wear my hair in braids just in case the fascination filters down through osmosis to Teddy’s brother from another mother (and father).
Well said, Mary. I share your sentiments.
Memories!….Reading the stories from old friends brings so many good memories to mind. My heart hurts wishing to relive those days. …snuffle!…We all had such a good time and shared so much with each other during those Iditarod years and beyond. Surviving loses of loved ones and meeting new friends here on the blog, when it was Chet The Dogs Blog. People from one coast to the other got to know each other and meet each other. It was Amazing! We were all Amazing!….snort! …Hopefully we will all come together again thru the StoryTeller. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?….snuffle!
Rio: We agree! It was a magical time, a special time and we here are grateful for having been included. Our Lady remembers the day she received an email from an evil pug and telling her father, Coach, that she was going to respond knowing it would change her life. It did. She was also contacted by another Plunderer who told her to bring her imagination to the blog and she never looked back.
There have been losses, the Storyteller among them, but also triumphs and tears, laughter and years. It would be great if we could come together again as Plunderers 2.0 through the Storyteller. That would be quite the gift…just his style.
ML: You have no idea…the Storyteller was special indeed.
Rio: Do youse remember when we’d get to two and three pages on the blog in just one day?
Pages!…Yes, yes I do. Hundreds of posts. We all had so much to say about something. And it was always interesting and funny too…heh! heh!
Big Tiny!….Your Chet Blocks!…Love those…snorkel!….It’s good to hear from youse here on this weird new blog. I know you have been here before. I finally figured out who you were after mention of your husband Truman….wuffle!
Funny! We wonder if WTAFP could spring out funniness out of Mother Jail on account if time served. We miss the antics that everyone in the blog could get up to while we innocently watched.
This is Natty (short for Nat a worry on my brain). I would like to be able to post under my own great name, but this here blog says I have to stick with Zeus and Bella’s username. Anyways, my mom says that she loves this new format way better than the old blog so far, although she says we must wait until the new day’s post to be sure. The problem for her (which made it a problem for all of us) was that youse always posted after she logged off for the day, and by the time a new day’s post rolled around, she couldn’t reply to your replies. From what little I know of facebooking, we can comment on a certain thread for days afterwards. Since Mom and I are rugged outsiders during the daytime, and dinner/wine/book readers in the evenings, the timing there was ruff.
Mom says to tell youse that it is good to hear from y’all…yep, she still speaks dutchie, while I myself am Southern born and bred.
Natty: We also have a Natty, Jr. Heh!
Had we known our login would only allow us to post under Thieves! we would have chosen an alias to avoid the long arm of the law. Had we thought it through, we might have chosen Beau or Belle Starr.
Your lat evenings are our late afternoon which is often when we can come out and play. We took a hiatus for the last 1.5 years after Coach was diagnosed with brain cancer and to help Marbella after her passed —- we’ve been told our bedside manner is, er, unique. But, we’re back! Stick around, Howler, stick around!
Thieves, Mom just entered me into a calendar photo contest! If you’re doing any more thieving, maybe you can spend some of your stolen loot to vote for me.
{whispering}. Money raised goes to Husky Education and Rescue Team (H.E.A.R.T.)
https://gogo.photo/623108
What is the link? Vote early, vote often!
Mom tried to post it, so youse could see Natty’s photo she wants on our 2025 calendar. But it didn’t make it to this here blog. However, you saw it on her facebookie post and she says THANKS!
Howlers!….Whats this???….snort!…Am I to believe the Howlers have made an appearance on this here blog?….chuffle!….Welcome old friends. Good to hear from youse….snorkel!
Hey Rio! How could the Howlers resist logging in to read everybody’s memories of The Great Storyteller? He was our spiritual leader and we fully expect he will continue in that role.
We voted for Natty. Here is the link:
https://gogo.photo/623108
Thank you, Thieves!