LET’S TAKE A STEP BACK, OK

This site is purposed to stimulate discussion and debate on the social and political issues of  our world. It is an Op Ed site. However, every now and then one experiences an event which is totally worth sharing and I would like to do just that here.

We are all, each and every one of us, caught up in the every day matters that often engulf us to the point of distraction.  We form “compartments ” in our every day living so we can achieve things, get things done. In short, , cope.       We take a break on weekends, sometimes, or we manage to get away on vacations, sometimes ! Hobbies and side lines – those wonderful endeavors which allow us to focus on things we really like without feeling guilty – provide some level of respite. They lend to the prospect of not letting the rats actually win this race. And while I accept that many pursue professional efforts  where much satisfaction can be found, some relief from those stresses is more than necessary. There is a price to pay for the old ” all work and no play” routine, yes ?

So, every once in a  while  a truly special opportunity arises and, in the spirit of taking a break from the main vein of my posts, I would like to share something about one of those “special opportunities”.

Ya Atay !

As many of you know, I came to the desert Southwest  decades ago. What many may not know is that for two of those decades, my by far better half, Nancy, has been teaching at a MIssion School on the Gila River Indian Reservation. The tribal medicine man calls her “Two Feathers”, as I often do.

The tribal community is primarily Pima or Pee Posh but there are some families which have ties, by marriage,  to other tribal communities such as the San Carlos Apache. It is because of  the regard some of those children and their families have for their teacher that we were invited to join in what is ordinarily a very closed, private family ceremony – The  Apache Sunrise ceremony.

The ceremony was held at Gopher Springs, where a ceremonial ground on the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona is located. The ceremony is the rite of passage to womanhood for Apache girls. It is from the Apache legend of White Painted Woman ( Changing Woman ) and it begins her journey as a woman with spiritual strength and healing powers. It entails detailed preparation, five days and four nights of tests of endurance, blessings, dance and ritual. The young girl is, for instance,  not permitted water except through a special wooden straw, must engage in numerous ceremonies during both day and night. It is indeed a most intense celebration of passage. There are stages – the Dressing, the Sunrise, the Massaging, the Crown Dance and the Painting.What was so powerful for me, among other things, was the contrast of life. Imagine a circle of about sixty-five meters across composed of Fords, Chevys, Hondas and the like. But within that circle is conducted this intense and compelling ceremony which has survived for hundreds and hundreds of years.

There was one night when the rains throughout the day were particularly heavy and the mud ran fast on toward the ceremony circle which is a clearing downhill from the roadside. We watched as the traditional bon fire was built and fired even in the pouring rain. It burned large and bright against the dark skies. In the beginning of the evening, I was concerned that we might not be able to reach high ground in time as the rain and lightning continued. Then, as the young girl, her sponsor, her attendant and her family came from the dark into the light of the fire, the rains completely ceased. The brilliant lightning stayed and you could watch it careen off the rock faces of the surrounding mountains while a certain dryness came to the circle. When the Crown Dancers emerged out of the night, they were framed by lightning – dancing shadows in the dark.

Think what you might. For me, it was no less than magical !

During the morning of the fourth day, the young girl participates in more ritual, holding a crook , all the while dancing to a pounding chant. The crook symbolizes health in old age.

We then listened to what can only be described as a homily. We did not understand the words as they were in old Apache, delivered by a tribal medicine man. It probably was true that most of the younger set likewise did not understand, though like the Dine ( Navajo ) , the tribal community is working on recapturing that language. It was apparent to me, though,  that the elder generations did understand. While I did  not understand  the words, the spirit was more than communicated. That spirit of respect for life, for mother earth, for tradition, for family – a spirit held sacred by not only the Apache but  the other tribal communities of the Southwest. A spirit and lesson  to which we should all subscribe.

We exited the grounds  still in awe of it all.

We thank the Owl Clan and the Hooke family for allowing us to join them and share in this most sacred tradition.

Ya Dalanh !