Black Earth

We still have quite a lot black silty dirt hanging around in our yard.   The winds we had earlier this year held so much dirt.  We need rain to clean things up.

Not very far away the ground is turning black in a different way.

One day this week we saw smoke in the air.  It is a usual occurrence on the Reservation.   The BIA comes in and does control burns to burn off grass that will be set on fire one way or another.

The grass will come in nice and green, green grass does not burn well..although sometimes they will still find a way. 

A long time ago another firefighter and I put out seven small fires along one road, we must have been right behind the characters that were setting the fires.  No one ever seems to go to jail, according to Law Enforcement the behavior must be witnessed preferably by Law Enforcement.  Ya right…

Wistful Wednesday: Ponsford Minnesota

I have an old postcard of Ponsford Minnesota.

Indian Camp Ponsford Minnesota

I wrote about the bad spelling of the Ponsford sign yesterday.  Ponsford is seven miles from where we live.   Ponsford used to be one of “the” places on the map with a bank, two boarding houses, grocery stores, Post Office, gas stations and even a movie theater. Then a new highway was built and Ponsford became one of those forgotten towns.

Ponsford and Pine Point Indian Reservation are one mile apart. Once a year on the 4th of July there would be a big gathering and a party in Ponsford…everyone would come.  Far Guy’s Mother remembered going there as a child.  There would be a Pow Wow and a parade.  The Ojibwe; Ottertail Pillager Band settled at Pine Point.  Some Indians were traditional hunters, gatherers…and some adopted white mans practices and built homes and sent their children to school…and some mixed part of the two cultures. The whites lived at Ponsford and the Indians at Pine Point.

The Mission:  When I was growing up we always called it “The Mission”…not Pine Point and not the RES.  Long ago they had a Mission School and a Episcopal Mission Church, and a Catholic Mission Church on the reservation. 

One of the first teachers at the mission school in 1890 was Orville D. Ponsford.  He taught for two years and then went back to farming.  The school had troubles and was taken over by the Government…then it was called the Government School and it boarded the students there during the school year.

In 1890-1891 the residents wanted their own Post Office so names were sent in…Pine Point was one possibility but it was rejected because another place was using that name. The petitioners sent in their own names and as it happened Mr. Nunn underlined Ponsford’s name so the Post Office became Ponsford. The Nunns remained in the area for years and still have descendants in the area…and Mr. Ponsford well he visited Ponsford twice before he died.

Pow wow 2012

Last evening we headed over to the Pow wow.  We got there just in time to scarf down some homemade French Fries, cheese curds and a hamburger before the Grand Entry.

Just before the Grand Entry is a sacred peace pipe ceremony.  It is not photographed.

The Grand Entry begins with the eagle staffs, then the flags, followed by the royalty.  The men enter next followed by younger men and older children.  Women and small children encircle the men and soon everyone has entered and they are all dancing around the circle.

Traditional men’s regalia with a feather bustle.

Jingle dancers.

My favorite regalia this year was this simple oh so soft looking buckskin dress. This older lady is carrying her eagle feathers in her right hand and carries her buckskin beaded bag on her left arm.

This is one of the littlest Jingle Dress dancers.  She is our friend Edith’s Granddaughter.

We came home right after the Grand Entry.  It was a nice evening..two date nights this week:)

Reluctant Dancer

At the PowWow on Saturday night, I observed one of the smallest dancers.  I am not sure if this reluctant dancer is a little boy or a little girl.  The first time they danced around the circle was fine and dandy. Note the Spiderman slippers..too cute!

Then he/she pitched a fit. It was a total meltdown.  The parent in me was embarrassed for the Dad, the Grandmother in me was just charmed by a child showing his/her true feelings.

The Dad was patient.

The dance continued:)

PowWow at Pine Point

We live just seven miles from the Reservation.  The public is invited every year to the PowWow.  Far Guy and I went over on Saturday evening between rain showers.

No photographs are allowed during the Peace Pipe Prayer Ceremony.  Other than that, you can take photographs.

The Flags are honored in the Grand Entry.  They make one circle around the drummers and then the dancers dance another circle around the flag bearers, who are all men who have been or are in the Military.  The entire PowWow area is made up of circles..everything is done in a circle.

This is the first year I noticed the turtle shield.  I was curious..curiosity should be my middle name.  It seems that there is a story about an Indian Brave who lost a battle, everything was taken from him..even his clothing.  He ran wildly through the woods when all of a sudden he heard his native drum and recognized the singing.  He swam across a river to get there, while he was in the river a snapping turtle attached itself to his arm, he ran screaming into the camp, dancing wildly..since then turtle shields are used during ceremonial dances to remember this great warrior.  In the photo above, the dancer is carrying eagle feathers in his left hand and a deer antler in his right hand..he honors these animal spirits by dancing with them as part of his Regalia.

I also saw a turtle rattle, this is attributed to an Anishinabe Tale of an Indian brave who tripped over a turtle and felt bad because the turtle was just soft skin and bone, he brought two shells and placed them on each side of the turtle and said “Here is your protection, you can carry your home with you always.”  The turtle could live on land or in the water, the shell is like Mother Earth a round hump that resembles hills and mountains.  The turtle can also represent a long life.

The men dancers seemed to outshine the women this year.  Many of the dancers I recognized from last year, it was a very nice way to spend the evening:)