On Monday we left for Redby, where we were split up to go to different homes on the reservation and sleep there for a night. I did not get a family the first stop but then we stopped at an old age home, which I was confused about at first. My instructor, Bruce, told us that the elderly woman here was very traditional and was known for bossing people around. He asked that two of us in my van stay there and so me and Kelsie decided to get out. Although the initial introduction was a little bit awkward, we all placed our bags down and gave Anna our gifts which she seemed to enjoy. The rest of the day we drove around the reservation with Anna, her daughter Anita and her boyfriend, and Anita's cousin, Sunsun. We stopped at "the point" which is where you can see both Upper and Lower Red Lake. We also got a tour of the Green House and a wild rice production warehouse. Our last stop was a random turn down a dirt road, which I have to admit worried me a little to begin with but we ended in a large open field that had two wig wams (What they used to use as houses; large sticks tied together with string that would when used, be covered with burlap). Anna informed us that this was sacred ground, no pictures where to be taken, and that very special ceremonies happened here. Although it seemed rather empty at first, it was soon very noticeable just the feeling that was there that told you this was a very important place. That night, Anita's boyfriend made us soup and Sunsun baked fried bread and talked to us about some of the alcohol and drug problems on the reservation. These were things he said he would tell us because he knew that Anna and Anita would never bring it up, out of respect. He said that these were problems that were not improving and this was not easy to miss because earlier that day both Anita and her boyfriend had told me about both of their daughters death because of a drug overdose; both which happened in the past 5 years. It is incredible how easy it is for these people to open up and I really respect there honesty. This kind of true honesty is hard to come by.
The next day was similar to the first, we drove around and toured the Natural Resources building and also the Fishery, which was kind of disgusting because I do not like being around fish, especially when they are getting cut up. We then met back up with the group and went to the High School (which is one building together with both the elementary school and the middle school). We had a tour of the school then a remarkable speaker. We closed the day with another talking circle.
Wednesday was a long day of speakers. We first met with the Tribal Council Chairman, Floyd Jourdain, which was a special honor. He talked to us about all of the economic problems and much about entrepreneurs and loans. Then we met with someone at the Tribal College and learned that only 70 students attend each semester in the 3 classroom college. We then went to a third lecture, with Larry and Violet, who are experts in recovery from substance abuse and the traditional use of the medicine wheel. We did an exercise with string to show our connectedness. We ended the day with a picnic not far from our last lecture and had some dogs. After everyone ate we played a couple fun games of musical chairs.
Yesterday, we went fishing right in the morning. This was the first time I ever fished, or ever even touched a fish. Although I was too scared to actually pull the fish out of the water when I felt it bite, I still learned how to cast and reel which was my goal. I also picked up a minnow but was too scared still to put the hook through its mouth so one of the young boys helping us did that for me. I not only picked up a minnow but also got one thrown at my face.. After this we headed to the hospital to get a tour and talk to a doctor for a while. We closed the night with a talking circle.
Today we went to Leech Lake Tribal College and talked to Judy who is a teacher there. She talked about the toxic pollutants that are in a small area of Leech Lake. This area has had to been evacuated because of the cancers and other diseases that it was causing. They are still having an extremely hard time getting the government to come in and try to clean it up and pay the medical expenses that it was causing. We then drove around the whole area and saw all the abandoned houses and swamps that are still there. Then we went to Rocky's house and he taught us how to make baskets, literally starting with a tree stump. We used axes and knives to cut thin strips of wood to weave. It was hard and took from 2 pm until 8 pm for the entire process. It was a fun day but was raining the whole time..
Tomorrow is the powwow and we're sleeping over in a tent!
Friday, May 27, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Bemidji, MN
Coming to Minnesota was a spontaneous decision, and I can say now that I could not be happier with making it. This trip has been more than I ever expected. The people I met are amazing and everything we have done has almost seemed surreal.
On Sunday morning at 6 am we left from State College, PA and began our two day journey to Minnesota. 8 of us, including our instructor, randomly all stumbled into the same van that morning to escape from the rain that had drenched us and all of our luggage. Although I thought that this long 24 hour drive was unnecessary and that it would have made much more sense to take a plane ride, I was proved wrong. The 6 of us in the back of our van became close in such a short amount of time, sharing secrets, asking questions and playing games the entire time. We passed many of the Great Lakes and some even went midnight in Lake Michigan. This was the first time I remember seeing them and Lake Superior was a beautiful sight to overlook while eating breakfast in Munishing, Michigan.
The first day we were here in Bemidji was Tuesday and our day was filled with two speakers, Dr. Anton and Steve Smith. Anton especially was an amazing speaker and taught us so much about the Ojibwe people and history. This lesson really changed my view on the people and culture hear and I learned about how Indians (this is the name that is usually preferred over Native American) were treated when outsiders came to their country and decided to call it their own. The day was hard to get through because of how tired we all were so we ended the day early and went to explore Lake Bemidji.
Wednesday we spent the day canoeing on the Mississippi River for about 5 hours. It was a beautiful day outside and my knees and shoulders paid the price. I got very sunburnt and was sore from all the paddling. I also worked up the courage to swing off of a questionable rope into the river, which was extremely cold. That night we had our first talking circle where we passed a talking stick around and everyone said a few words.
On Thursday we had 2 more lectures. Anton, from Tuesday, came in again to talk to us about Ojibwe language which was very interesting but everyone was very tired from canoeing on Wednesday. Then Dennis Banks came in and told us stories and adding in drumming in between. This was our first experience dancing around a drum in the ceremonial way. This night was one of my favorite so far. At night we journeyed out to the reservation so that we could listen to the stories from Anne. We sat outside and her daughter, Annie sang us songs and played the guitar. They also made us amazing food and this was the first time we tried fried bread with a homemade butter. After she sand, Anne told us 3 stories that were passed down to her from her mother. She has been a storyteller for much of her life and is very talented. We then went inside and had special tea made and all crammed in and sat wherever we could and talked to Anne, Annie, and Annie's three children. Everything in their home was hand-painted and we took tons of pictures of all of the painted cabinets and tables.
Friday was strictly dedicated to learning about the sweatlodge and preparing for the ceremony. When we got to the lodge it was raining and we all sat around nervous and not knowing exactly what to anticipate. I was in the first group to crawl into the small, dark, dome shaped structure. It was an unreal experience and also an extremely hot and humid one. I also got named by a medicine man. I was named Maa Maa Gwa, which means moth. The moth is the animal of eternal life. It is capable of giving and taking life and giving eternal life with its touch. He also told me that I would be leading large ceremonies but he couldn't tell me which kind of ceremony. My color was all of the colors of the rainbow.
Yesterday we went to a big drum ceremony in East Lake. It was a very long day but we met a lot of children and got to take a tour of the school which encompassed a pre-school, a middle school, and the high school. We watched and listened to many of the ceremonies and it ended with a feast and a gift-giving ceremony. The feast was just bowls and bowls of various types of food in the center in which everyone just used their own spoons to take whatever they wanted. The foods varied from peas, to spaghetti, to potatoes, to fruit. After that we danced around the drums with the person that gave us a gift or that that you gave your gift to. I gave a painting that I had framed.
Today we had a speaker that talked about many of the current alcohol and substance abuse problems. He has written many books about all the Indians that he has talked to and had interviews with. I bought one of his books which I am really looking forward to reading. Tonight we have another talking circle as well and tomorrow we get assigned to our host families!
On Sunday morning at 6 am we left from State College, PA and began our two day journey to Minnesota. 8 of us, including our instructor, randomly all stumbled into the same van that morning to escape from the rain that had drenched us and all of our luggage. Although I thought that this long 24 hour drive was unnecessary and that it would have made much more sense to take a plane ride, I was proved wrong. The 6 of us in the back of our van became close in such a short amount of time, sharing secrets, asking questions and playing games the entire time. We passed many of the Great Lakes and some even went midnight in Lake Michigan. This was the first time I remember seeing them and Lake Superior was a beautiful sight to overlook while eating breakfast in Munishing, Michigan.
The first day we were here in Bemidji was Tuesday and our day was filled with two speakers, Dr. Anton and Steve Smith. Anton especially was an amazing speaker and taught us so much about the Ojibwe people and history. This lesson really changed my view on the people and culture hear and I learned about how Indians (this is the name that is usually preferred over Native American) were treated when outsiders came to their country and decided to call it their own. The day was hard to get through because of how tired we all were so we ended the day early and went to explore Lake Bemidji.
Wednesday we spent the day canoeing on the Mississippi River for about 5 hours. It was a beautiful day outside and my knees and shoulders paid the price. I got very sunburnt and was sore from all the paddling. I also worked up the courage to swing off of a questionable rope into the river, which was extremely cold. That night we had our first talking circle where we passed a talking stick around and everyone said a few words.
On Thursday we had 2 more lectures. Anton, from Tuesday, came in again to talk to us about Ojibwe language which was very interesting but everyone was very tired from canoeing on Wednesday. Then Dennis Banks came in and told us stories and adding in drumming in between. This was our first experience dancing around a drum in the ceremonial way. This night was one of my favorite so far. At night we journeyed out to the reservation so that we could listen to the stories from Anne. We sat outside and her daughter, Annie sang us songs and played the guitar. They also made us amazing food and this was the first time we tried fried bread with a homemade butter. After she sand, Anne told us 3 stories that were passed down to her from her mother. She has been a storyteller for much of her life and is very talented. We then went inside and had special tea made and all crammed in and sat wherever we could and talked to Anne, Annie, and Annie's three children. Everything in their home was hand-painted and we took tons of pictures of all of the painted cabinets and tables.
Friday was strictly dedicated to learning about the sweatlodge and preparing for the ceremony. When we got to the lodge it was raining and we all sat around nervous and not knowing exactly what to anticipate. I was in the first group to crawl into the small, dark, dome shaped structure. It was an unreal experience and also an extremely hot and humid one. I also got named by a medicine man. I was named Maa Maa Gwa, which means moth. The moth is the animal of eternal life. It is capable of giving and taking life and giving eternal life with its touch. He also told me that I would be leading large ceremonies but he couldn't tell me which kind of ceremony. My color was all of the colors of the rainbow.
Yesterday we went to a big drum ceremony in East Lake. It was a very long day but we met a lot of children and got to take a tour of the school which encompassed a pre-school, a middle school, and the high school. We watched and listened to many of the ceremonies and it ended with a feast and a gift-giving ceremony. The feast was just bowls and bowls of various types of food in the center in which everyone just used their own spoons to take whatever they wanted. The foods varied from peas, to spaghetti, to potatoes, to fruit. After that we danced around the drums with the person that gave us a gift or that that you gave your gift to. I gave a painting that I had framed.
Today we had a speaker that talked about many of the current alcohol and substance abuse problems. He has written many books about all the Indians that he has talked to and had interviews with. I bought one of his books which I am really looking forward to reading. Tonight we have another talking circle as well and tomorrow we get assigned to our host families!
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