Furs and Family: An Economy of Obligation

Coin? Where did you get that from? Well I'm sure that we could use it for something.The metal looks nice, and we have some people here that could use it to decorate their regalia. If you think that the coin alone will have some value here, I'm afraid you're mistaken. People here don't care how shiny your metal is or how much you claim it's worth. What we care about is who you know.
Our family ties go way back, you see. Some claim to know their family history all the way back to when the world was young. Those are the ones you got to watch out for: they're either very knowledgeable and respected, or trying to con their way into gift circles. Met a man once, he came up to me right after I trapped a very beautiful deer claiming that he was a relative. Swore up and down that way back, one of my grandmothers accepted his as her sister. He had a whole family history going back from that time to now that he recounted from memory. Well, I'd never seen the man before but his story was so well constructed so I said to him 'Okay, I believe you. I see you came here without anything with you. Here, have this hide of mine." Well just before I handed it to him one of those Flame Dancers rode up and grabbed the man. Turns out he's been going around to villages all around here asking people about their families, then going to the next village and telling the relatives of their people that he's part of the family too. Quite the little plan he had there, eh? Good thing that Flame Dancer came when they did or that hide would've run off with that man rather than being turned into this jacket I'm wearing today.
But back to the point: family is important. We look out for one another. If I have two good pelts and my sister has none, what kind of brother am I if I don't share? A parent has an obligation to provide for their children, but those children must also provide for their older relatives when they are in need. Having plenty is nice, yeah, but you can't enjoy it if you know that your relatives have little. That's not to say that we all keep to our own blood; family means more than that, here. Anyone can be family, provided you've gone through ceremony of course. In the case of traders like yourself, I'd normally say to come back next season for the trade fairs, when all traders become our siblings. But you're a nice listener so I'll make an exception. So tell me, my child, you were interested in my jacket? Well your sister is decorating her formal dress, and those coins of yours might just be what she needs...