Dragonfly Hunting / Nature Walking

On this beautiful Mother's Day weekend, the Wife is unfortunately working 12 hour shifts, so we'll celebrate her when she's home!  Today however was such nice weather that the kiddos and I decided to head on over to the local Nature Center and do a little walking around to see what we could see.  It is nice enough now that Odonates are emerging and taking wing, so we brought along our nets and cameras just in case.

There was plenty of wildlife to take pictures of, including the somewhat common...

Mother duck with her brood.  They followed after us hoping we'd have bread or some such.

Then there was the slightly less common, at least for me. See all of those black clouds under the water?

Millions of tadpoles!

I scooped some for a closer look,

and was proud of my kiddos being willing to follow suit and dip their hands in for some tadpole catching.

As for the dragonfly hunting.  It was our first time with nets, so I wasn't quite sure what I was doing.  But we managed to capture some Eastern Forktails, which I didn't get pictures of, and then this one...

I have no idea what he or she is.  I looked in my resource book, but couldn't find any that looked like it.

Then we found and caught this Variageted Meadowhawk female. 

I think I stunned her a bit, because we were all able to hold her for a few minutes before she zoomed away.  I was worried that I had damaged her, and was about to adopt her until, as she was walking on my daughters finger, she decided she'd had enough of show and tell and zipped off into the sky.

It was my first time holding a dragonfly, and was quite a remarkable experience.

Yesterday, Sweet Pea and I went on a dragonfly hunt and saw a male Variagated Meadowhawk...

and what appears to be some sort of Spreadwing damselfly. 

The spreadwing is what we were hunting today, but no luck with that one.  We need to get some better pictures of it to ID it correctly.

We'll go out tomorrow after church and go hunting again.  It was way too much fun, and I have some happy but tired kiddos.  You should have seen the smiles on their faces as the dragonfly crawled on their hands.  It really was something.

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Red Tail Roost Rebuild

It started out as a normal Tuesday.  Boyo off to school, me and Sweet Pea back home for a little snuggling and watching 'Tangled'.  But we got a call from our friends at The Raptor Center wondering if we could go help out a baby Red Tailed Hawk in our area.  It seems with the recent storms and high winds, their nest of several years gave way and spilled out of the tall pine tree it was in. 

Included in this "bathwater" was the Baby. She (and I'm not sure of the sex, but to keep it easy I'll just use 'she' since I called the Great Horned Owl 'he'. Gotta keep things fair.) was huddled next to a tree doing her best impression of a rock.

According to the nice folks who discovered her, the parents had been around and had even fed her. Sure enough, when we arrived the momma hawk was high in a pine tree screeching a warning to us.

I brought along a few supplies and spent some time fashioning a new nest for my fine feathered friends. I drilled 12 big holes in the bottom and packed it in with sticks and padding from the old, blown down nest.

A friendly neighbor loaned me an extension ladder and I scaled the tree to get the 'nest' in place. It is ShafferBuilt, so I could sit in that nest and it wouldn't come down.

Then it was time to get the Chicka back up the tree and into her new home.  She didn't put up a struggle as I draped a towel over her and gave her a quick checkup.

 No broken bones, no wounds or weakness.  She was ready to go back.

I took her up the tree like a football, and did a very gentle slam dunk over the rim of her new home to get her in the nest.  Then I climbed up a bit more and got her out of the towel.  She looked around a little bit, packed the pine needles down a little, then turned to face me.

"Alright buddy boy.  You've done your good deed of the day, now back away slowly for I am a FIERCE predator and will rip your face off if you should try to approach me."  At least, this is what I heard her say in my head.

A few more pictures and I climbed back down to terra firma.

As we left her, she was poking her head above the edge of her new 'nest', looking for mom and dad, who were still nearby.  I wanted to get home quickly and send pictures up to TRC so they could sign off on my first nest build.  That way if I needed to change something I could get back there today.  The family that called it in were going to keep an eye on her to make sure mom and dad found her again.  I'm not too worried.  Hawks are pretty smart.

UPDATE: At 2:30 the folks watching the nest called to let me know that Mamma Bird found her nest and climbed in to make herself at home!  Woo hoo!

My first nest build is complete!  That was a lot of fun, and that baby Red Tail was absolutely beautiful.

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Remember Shingles

When I was out in South Dakota working with Re-Member, I wondered what more I could do once I left the Rez.  As I stood one morning with Bryan, I asked him if they needed anything. Did Re-Member have a wish list.  He told me he'd get back to me on that one.

Later we talked about it again.

"Shingles." He told me. They hold their own with donations of lumber and gloves and things of that nature.  They received a new shipment of donated tools when I was there. But what people often overlooked was shingles and roofing supplies.

Shingles are heavy. I mean, really heavy.  So transporting them out to the Rez would be hard on any shocks in any vehicle.  But I still plotted and planned and wondered how to get shingles to them.  Just before I left Friday morning, Ted mentioned that they could also use Menards gift cards to buy shingles and other supplies.

Stewing that over on the drive home, I wondered about starting a shingle drive upon my return.

Well, that time has come.  Up there to the left you'll see a button for Remember Shingles.  Donations are being taken in any amount.  Take some time to consider it, but don't dally, I'm only collecting funds until I go back out to the Rez in June.

If you don't feel like giving to me, head on over to Re-Member's website and give directly to them!  Tell them I sent you!

Thanks for your support.
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Leaving Pine Ridge

Friday was the day to wake up, pack up and head for home.  It was a little bittersweet because it meant taking leave of not only the people I had connected with in the volunteer group and staff, but because it meant leaving the Rez and the people I had connected with there.

One by one the groups departed.  Denver Academy, Hope College, UMD and Hendrix. Many hugs were shared and pictures were taken.  We said our toksa's as each group departed, content with the Lakota word for "Later" instead of saying goodbye.  I really do hope to see many, many of those people again somewhere along life's trails. 

I dragged my feet about going.  I wanted to see my family again, but I also wanted this experience to continue.  Some of the staff were going to the Black Hills to climb Harney Peak, and they invited me to join them.  It was awfully tempting, too.  They are good, good people and I'm happy to call them friends.  But when I called my wife I learned that a dear friend was at Mayo and in the process of losing her mother, and the pull of home was that much stronger.

I did want to get some breakfast before I left though, and the staff were heading out to the Lakota Cafe to do the same, so I tagged along with Ted and had a nice visit with him while we drove in.

The Lakota Cafe is sort of like a Perkins on the Rez, but the food tastes a bit better. We all sat at a table, and I was across from Yolanda and Allie, who regaled me with horror stories about the Indian Health Service and the Emergency Room.  It was scary stuff.

Yoland, me, and Allie outside the Lakota cafe


Ted treated the whole group, which I felt truly honored to be a part of. I have spent a great many days since I came home trying to figure out a way to join the staff out there.

When we got back to camp it was time to say toksa ake to the staff and be on my way. Of all of the difficult moments I experienced out there, this was the hardest.

Jen, Anisha, Erica, Bryan, and Ted.  I'm in the back there.  This is some of the staff.  They were all amazing. Servant hearted. Kind and compassionate.  A really remarkable group.

I drove the nine hours back to Rochester straight through, stopping only for gas when I needed it.  As I left the Rez, I listened to a CD of Will and Lil'Jess called Reservation Nights.  Will was the speaker on Monday night and had CD's for sale.  His music is gritty, just a guitar, drums and his voice for most of it.  The lyrics speak of life on the Rez, life as a Lakota, challenges and struggles, but also of hope and good times and the pride of being Lakota. 

On the drive home I did a whole lot of thinking.  What I had just experienced was a drop of help in the ocean that is the problems out there.  Looking at it from the outside just a few weeks before, I had been overwhelmed with knowing that there were huge problems and not knowing what was being done or how I could make any difference. After one short week I had been reprogrammed somewhat.  Some assumptions I'd had didn't hold water - that the Lakota hate the whites, for example.  I didn't see much hate.  Just people getting on with their lives. Are there some Lakota that hate whites?  Sure.  Just like there are whites who hate the Lakota. 

Some assumptions were spot on.  Like my belief that people everywhere smile in the same language, and that with a little conversation I can find a commonality with just about anyone on the planet.

My eyes were opened to a bunch of new things, too. 

Historically I knew about the treaties being broken and the land being stolen.  Our schools teach this as the history of the Old West.  Cowboy and Indian stuff.  It was startling to see that agreements were still not being honored by our government. That even today the deck is stacked against the Lakota and our government does very little to rectify that situation.  Before I left I had the attitude of "Well, yes the land is gone, but it's been so long since the treaty days, what can be done?" Now my attitude is with the Lakota.  Our government promised them a reservation.  We signed the treaty. Article Six of our own Constitution reads thusly...

"This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding."

First, look at this map of the ancestral lands of the Lakota/Nakota/Dakota tribes.


The last valid treaty signed by the Lakota was the Ft. Laramie Treaty of 1851. Look at this map that shows the lands promised to the Indians...

The yellow is the Great Sioux Nation, promised to the Lakota in the treaty.


Even if you accept the Ft. Laramie Treaty of 1868 as the latest treaty, the map should look like this...

That's about half of South Dakota that should be Lakota lands.
But since that time the land has been stolen away, piece by piece until what is left is the section in red...

See the difference?
BUT, one might say, the Sioux lost the wars, they have to accept the terms of the peace.  In reality, those treaties were made because the United States sued for peace because they were LOSING.  The Lakota and other tribes, being honorable, kept the terms in the treaties and stayed peaceful.  Until the US did not uphold their treaty obligations and greedy settlers headed in for gold and land.  Rather than do what was constitutionally required regarding these treaties, the Government of that time went ahead and stole the land from the tribes and gave it to the settlers. They did this by hook or by crook, changing laws and making new laws to suit the land grab.

Ancient history, you say?
During WWII part of the reservation was "acquired" by the government to be used as a bombing range for practice. Even today all of that land in red up there doesn't help the Lakota.  The Dawes Act of 1887 started a land grab by non-indians, and now all over the Rez there are non-indian farmers and ranchers who's descendants bought up huge tracts of land from impoverished Indians.  These ranches and farms today make money for the families that live on them, but not for the Lakota people.  Dig into the history from the past 100 years.  It is rife with corruption, greed and criminal acts that have left the Oglala Lakota where they are today.

These days there is still animosity towards the Lakota. Racism is rampant, especially out in Rapid City. The South Dakota politicians are still working on obliterating the tribes. It really is disturbing.

Anyone who supports and defends the US Constitution should be appalled by the injustice of this.  Article Six has been completely ignored when it comes to the Lakota.

OK, Off my soapbox.  So, what can be done?  Here again my eyes were opened.  There are many great organizations on the Rez working to restore the Lakota way of life.  Not the live in tipis and hunt buffalo life, but life living in the Lakota culture with Lakota values, apart from the "western" ways, but still modern and progressive.  I'm finding new ones about every day.  But here are a few of my favorites.

Tanka Bars!  Yep, a Lakota owned and operated business making tasty buffalo treats.  But with an amazing vision of how things might look in the future.  Explore their website a bit, they have a great mission and vision.  Find Tanka bars at a store near you, or order online.  The money is going towards a great vision, and the reward of the Tanka Bars is exquisite!

Lakota Solar Enterprises is an organization looking to get affordable heating and electricity on the Rez.  The Great Plains are the 'Saudi Arabia' of wind power, and it's sunny out there about 300 days a year to boot.  Imagine the potential waiting to be tapped into, and how that could improve life on the Rez. Don't forget to check out Trees, Water,People while you explore LSE.  They help tribes all over the nation. Maybe even one near you!

And of course, Re-Member. One of the most trusted non-native programs out there, but doing so much towards the betterment of not only living conditions on the Rez, but understanding of the people that live there.  I am certain there are many, many opportunities to go help people on Pine Ridge.  What I learned most of all through my experience with Re-Member was to stand with the people of Pine Ridge.  That even from far away I can make a difference.  That I can be an advocate by sharing what I learned out there, and writing my politicians to see what can be done.  By raising not just money for the people, but awareness of them.  If we can get Pine Ridge on the radar somehow, perhaps there would be enough rational people to create change, over the objections of the bigots and greedy that now seem to have control of the situation out there.

Things are changing. Slowly. Slowly. And even if you disagree with just giving the land back, if you have any respect for our constitution, then you can't deny that something needs to be done. If you don't live with our constitution as your form of government, then you must see that strictly on a humanitarian platform, something must be done.

Soapbox again. Sorry.  It's hard not to get riled up about this.  Even now, many weeks away from the trip. Start digging yourself.  Go on a trip to Re-Member.  Education is the key to understanding, experience is the door.  You will not be sorry you went.  And if you're scared to go alone, drop me a line and I'll go with you.



I did finally get to see some buffalo. 

It was on the Rosebud Reservation though.

 I hope I live long enough to see giant herds on the Great Sioux Nation lands.  Time will tell.

In closing, it was an amazing, life changing, eye opening trip. I've had a fire lit within me to continue to pursue the improvement of the living conditions for the Lakota, but more importantly to try and find some justice for them. I stand with the Lakota Oyate, today and into the future, until I become grass myself. And I will teach my children the true history, so that they may continue to stand with the Lakota after I am gone.

Mitakuye Oyasin. We are all related.
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Great Horned Owl

Before I get to my final post about my Pine Ridge trip, which I am still working on, I thought I'd share today's adventure.

As I was getting ready for church this morning, we got a call from The Raptor Center about an owl tangled in a soccer net.  I went to pick him up and found him at a private residence in their backyard, thoroughly entangled in a little soccer net.  There were two families gathered around and one of the mom's was trying to cut away the tangle from a distance. 

They seemed amazed that I dug right into the bird's feathers to get to the string, but having no experience with raptors they are not faulted at all for their efforts. 

As I said, he was pretty well tangled, and had some superficial wounds on his shoulders and neck from where the string had dug in.

After I got him out, I took him home and showed him to my own kiddos so they could see a Great Horned Owl up close.  The Boyo took some pictures with my camera, and both of them were awed by the size of the great bird.

Heck, I was awed by his size, too.  Here's some pics...

One other thing that was amazing.  As I was working him loose from the string, using my fingers and scissors, the bird stayed still and calm. Even as I worked around his head, he never once nipped at my bare fingers. I usually wear thick welder gloves on rescues, but I had to get to the string, and the gloves were too thick.  I did have one of the mom's assist me by wearing the gloves and holding the legs just above the strong feet and talons. I think he knew I was there to help.  As I worked to free him he didn't nip or foot me once. 

This changed once I had him in the transport box.  As I showed him to the kids and got him into a bigger, more comfortable transport box, he footed me a few times - thank goodness for the welders gloves!  It was like having my finger in a vise. Amazingly powerful.  If I had not been wearing the gloves, I'm certain the talons would have gone right to the bone.

I took him up to the Raptor Center and dropped him off.  The initial exam verified my on scene exam.  Superficial skin wounds and no obvious broken bones.  They were X-raying him as I left, and I'll know more in the next day or two whether he will heal enough to be released, or at least enough to be an education bird.  Most of the birds I've taken up have been too sick or injured to save, so I'm very hopeful that this one will survive.

As I drove home, I wondered what the Lakota think about owls.  As it was, I had on my Mitakuye Oyasin bracelet from Re-Member.  It means We are all related. So I wished my owl brother a speedy recovery and sent up a quick prayer in case anybody was listening to my thoughts.

He's a magnificent bird.

More Later

Thursday

Thursday was my last full day on the Rez during this visit.  I awoke with just a bit of sadness at this fact, but quickly shifted into work mode.  As exhausted as I was at the time, it was daunting to think of spending another day working. But, as I did in the Corps, I just thought in my head "I can do anything for the next 24 hours. Tomorrow will take care of itself."

Thus geared for the day, I had breakfast, listened to the last Wisdom of the Elders from Ted, and we broke into our teams again.  Yesterday's work crew headed out on tour, and my group headed for a trailer with the goal of skirting the entire thing in one day.  Looking at the faces that morning I knew it would be no problem.  This group was packed with excellent workers.  True servant hearts.  So we packed up the trailers, piled into vans and headed for the trailer.

We met a very nice family there who had set up their house in a buffalo field with an amazing view of the surrounding hills.  Our group split into two teams, with one team starting on the front side, and another starting on the back.  We had a friendly competition going, and since everyone now knew what needed to be done to get going, there was little instruction given by our leaders.  Everyone just started working!  It was inspiring to see.

Picture by Katerina Klavon

Before too long, it was lunch time.  And we headed back to work.  Finishing the entire skirting project in about four hours. We rocked it, plain and simple.  I bonded even more with my fellow volunteers, which was fun.

Picture by Katerina Klavon
 And behold...

NM
The crew, the family, and the finished trailer!

We headed back to the camp to get ready for supper and clean up the camp a bit.  Kate and I went with Bryan to unload the garbage and pick up the pizza's that were for supper.  While we were out, we drove through Whiteclay. A "town" just over the border into Nebraska. Population 14, and comprised entirely of liquor stores...oh and a western wear store tucked in to try to make it legit.

 I had read about Whiteclay, and knew some of the problems that it created.  But to be there weighed pretty heavily on my heart. Yet more proof that the Rez is off the radar of the majority of the people in this country. Google Whiteclay and read some of those reports for yourself.  It is truly disgusting what happens there.  It is as if AA were to start selling cocktails at their meetings or NA had a break in the middle to shoot up. It really is a big part of the problems that plague the Rez.

Money talks when it comes to Whiteclay.  That is the only reason it exists, to sell legally or illegally to a people who are addicted.  Disgusting.

On a much brighter note, I also got to visit Bart again and see the finished decks that the team after us had put on his house.  It was pretty cool. I also gave him a blanket that the Wife and I had purchased at a quilt sale at church.  Giving a blanket in the Lakota culture is a way to honor that person, and I had been so inspired by his giving spirit that I thought Bart should get the blanket I had brought from our family. 

Before the lesson that night, we were able to go up on the hill one last time to watch the sun go down.  On this evening it was particularly spectacular...

 And I got another bunch of pictures of my "Hope Girls".  They are awesome.

Our last speaker of the week was Naomi. She is a teacher at the school and gave us a lesson in the Lakota language. She taught us the words for various body parts and then we played "Naomi Says". Like "Simon Says" but with Naomi as the leader and all in Lakota! It was pretty cool.

NM
I am happy that the Lakota language is being taught in their schools again. After so many decades of the dominant society trying to extinguish the language in the hopes that the Lakota would become more "civilized", the young people are able to speak their own language again.

After the lesson I was invited to go back up on the hill with the group from Hope College to be a part of their last circle.  They had been going up to debrief each night and on this night I was privileged to join them.  It was exactly the right way to end my time there.  There was much laughter and some excellent insights into the week we had all just shared.

That night I played Euchre with my new friends who had taught me the game the night before.  I was partners with Jess, who is a euchre wizard. 

And quite the character.

The game was going well for us, but when we got down to needing just one point for the victory, something strange happened.  Jess picked up the two cards we were using for score keeping, tucked them behind her ears, entwined her fingers together with her thumbs pointed down, thrust them towards me and commanded "MILK THE COW!!!"

Being a neophyte in the world of euchre traditions, I had no clue what she was doing and found this a rather amusing and endearing custom.    So I joined in the fun...

Picture by Allie Hoyt
Soon it was time to sleep.  It was an amazing week, which I will try and sum up in my next posting.

More Later