It was late fall and the trees had lost most of their leaves. The cold water of the stream flowed over the stones and tumbled into pools along its way to the sea. In the quiet water along the banks, shadows were broken by the dart of a fish shooting up and through the rapids. Salmon had returned once again to spawn the next generation.

People had also come to the stream. Each year they looked forward to catching enough fish to feed their families through the winter. These people were careful and thoughtful about how many fish they took from the stream. They knew Salmon was a gift of Nature.

A child helped his father carry some fish up to their camp. He asked, "Why should we leave any fish in the river? If we take them all we will have lots to eat this winter. Besides, the ones we leave behind will only live a few more days and then they die."

The father walked with his son over to their campfire and told him the story of Salmon's spirit. "When Nature first gave us this gift of food to help us through the long cold winter, she gave us the responsibility to care for the Salmon. Even though the fish we do not take die after spawning, their spirits go to live in special stones in the stream. Those spirit stones protect Salmon's eggs until the small fish grow big enough to swim down to the sea."

The boy's father put another stick on the fire and continued the story.

"When Salmon has grown up out in the ocean, it is the spirit stones that call them back to the stream where they were born. There, Salmon lay their eggs and they too, become spirit stones. That is why we always take care not to catch too many. For, without the spirit stones to call them back, Salmon would not return each year to help feed us through the winter."