Internet access has been hard to come by in Montana. It is Indian Days, a four day holiday celebrating Indian culture so the Blackfeet Community College, where I last was able to gain access, was closed. Life just moves at a different pace in these parts! I found a little internet cafe in the back of the tading post cafe in St. Mary near the park. Pictures take forever to upload, so I will have to add them another time.
I am really pleased to have met the goals I had set at the beginning of my week with Global Volunteers - to learn about the Blackfeet culture, serve the community, and make connections on the reservation and with my Global Volunteers team.
Through my work with a variety of different people on the reservation, I learned things about the Blackfeet that I never could have gotten from books. A couple of highlights for me were chatting with a group of elementary-aged children I was helping supervise as they bowled with a summer enrichment program and reading a newspaper aloud to Bud, a resident of the elder care center who has limited vision. He perked up when I began describing the picture of the rodeo rider who had nearly sweeped a recent competition. This led to stories of his own days in the rodeo. I had to smile when one began with, "Not to brag, but..." Marty, a Blackfeet elder, addressed our group at our barbeque near Two Medicine River. He brought along several Blackfeet artifacts, including a parfleche, beaded belts and hair ornaments, and several warrior headdresses.
On Thursday, a small group from our team went to Browning Elementrary school to help a new administrative team spiffy up the teacher's workroom and storage area. We sorted through seasonal decorations, organized the die cut materials, set up the laminating machine, and organized the tables and chairs so that they would look inviting. The smile on the secretary's face when she saw the fruits of our labor were worth every drop of sweat. I was also able to talk with a second grade teacher who shared information with me about the curriculum and programs she works with in her school.
My team was very productive in the community throughout the week. Several of the hardier souls spent the majority of the week erecting a shed at our Head Start "home." This will be used to store Global Volunteers' supplies during the winter months. Our team leader, Michele, was thrilled to have completed this project, as she used a tipi that is set up in the Eagle Shield Assisted Living common area to store materials last year.
After a day of service on Thursday, we headed to Deboo's Ranch for an evening of riding gentle horses and sharing stories around a campfire. Seeing the sun set over the Montana mountains while sitting in the saddle atop Colt 45 is an experience I will not soon forget. On Friday, I attended a pow wow in Heart Butte in celebration of Indian Days. I saw the grand procession, which included many of the dancers who would later compete. As a non-Indian, some of the traditions were a little lost on me. Fortunately, a group of us were able to ask Darrell, a Blackfeet who served with our team all week, to fill in the blanks.
It was hard to say goodbye to my team yesterday morning. Through our service and cultural enrichment activities, we formed some very strong bonds. Fortunately, I was able to extend one of my connections throguhout the day on Saturday. My new friend, Pam, and I explored the Two Medicine area of Glacier National Park as I waited for Ray and Alan to arrive from Missoula. Waking to the sunrise casting a warm glow over the mountains made me excited to begin the next leg of my adventure.
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| Heart Butte Indian Days |
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