Sacajawea the Enchantress

The American dollar is a beleaguered currency. Perhaps not so much as the ruble or the peso, but it has seen better days. I remember those days. In fact, they were not so long ago. It happened rather suddenly. For years all we could get a hold of were paper dollar bills. Then, out of nowhere the US treasury started pumping out really awesome coinage. The most exciting and glorified version of the dollar was the gold coin graced with the beloved image of Sacajawea, my secret love from another life.

Sacajawea was a wonderfully helpful and strong American Indian woman who was kidnapped at a young age from her tribe and became the wife of a French trapper from the Dakotas. She later helped Lewis and Clark on their trek west, suggesting routes and serving as a welcoming and peaceful symbol to those the party met along the way (because a party with a woman could not be a war party). But, to me she is more than that. Sacajawea is an enchantress to me. 

Her name alone is reason enough to like her. While the scholarly accepted spelling is 'Sacagawea', her original tribe insists that the pronunciation is closer to the Sacajawea spelling, with the soft 'tz' or 'j' sound instead of the 'g'. But either way it rolls off the tongue like a freshly poured handful of skittles. She's like a delicious skittle. Hmmm. Sacajawea. I might just name one of my kids after her.

She also is very fashionable. She is wearing exquisite attire (probably handmade by herself) on the coin. She also has nicely groomed hair, meticulously braided. And, on top of all that she's carrying her child showing her more nurturing, motherly side. Put that together with her guide duties and her ability to make delicious food, and you can see why she is an enchantress. 

But, the mint did us no favors. They made the coin out of the shiniest metal around. So not only can someone looking at it become entranced by Sacajawea's ravishingly good looks and spend hours reciting her skittle-filled name, but the gold makes it her more appealing. And, for those who like shiny things it could be a death sentence. My advice is to enjoy it, but be careful. Make sure you have a friend handy waiting to backhand you if you start to go loopy.