The road that leads into the Tlingit (kling'-kit) village of Saxman, Alaska is lined with Totem Poles that tell of the local history. We find one that looks especially interesting; a wood boy sitting next to the totem with one hand stuck in a mouth on the Totem.
The story behind it is this one: As the tribe was digging clams on the beach at low tide, a boy found a huge clam with an open shell. The older men warned him repeatedly to get away, at least don't touch the giant clam. Giant clams can kill a person easily, even without limbs or teeth. The boy continued to dig clams, but couldn't resist touching the large, soft body of the clam. He put his hand just inside the shell to feel the clam, when SNAP! The clam's shell closed on his hand, trapping him there. He yelled and cried out and the men came over to see what had happened to the boy.
Upon seeing the danger, they immediately began trying to pull the boy's hand out, but the big clam wanted to keep it. Each time they pulled on the boy, the clam dug itself down just a little deeper and soon they were afraid it would pull the boy under the sand, so they stopped. Now, the tide was returning and would quickly be over the boy's head, so they acted fast. They brought hollow tubes of tree bark and took great gulps of air to give him, but all their efforts were in vain as the tide came and drowned the boy. All the while, his mother sat on the beach crying and screaming, "Don't leave me! Stay here with me forever!" It was her last son left alive from War, and then she was alone. Two weeks later, she died of a broken heart.
If you ask any Saxman elder, they will tell you this story (possibly in greater detail than I have here) and then tell you that if you walk the beach where this happened, just before dark you will see the boy's Spirit walking. He looks for anyone else who might be stuck in the situation he was in so he can hold their hand and they won't die alone. He also warns others of the terrible lesson he had to learn the hard way.
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