Because no one is looking

While in Cherokee I experience many things for the first time in my life. One of these things has been especially thought provoking for me. This was the first time that I have ever been in a crowd of people, stopped to look around, and realized that everyone else looks like me. This realization was both peaceful and disconcerting for me. Despite studying this phenomenon from an academic perspective, I had never experienced it at a personal level. I grew up on the fringes in a small town in West Virginia where I learned that “my people” were those rough around the edges types with good hearts and bad names. Although I never explicitly learn that “my people” looked any certain way I did learn that how I looked mattered to those people that I considered mine. 

In my life thus far my physical appearance has gotten me an identifiable amount of extra attention, both positive and negative. From being referred to as “sand nigger” growing up to being lavished with compliments on my “perfect complexion” and my “so dark they are almost black” eyes, there has always been a reason for me to be aware of my physical appearance.

I believe part of what was so comforting about looking around and seeing people who look like me was that, for the first time in my life, I didn’t stand out in the crowd because of my looks. I felt a lot more comfortable in other aspects of myself than I ever had before simply I didn’t feel like I had that “other” factor when I was in Cherokee. Instead of being noticed because I looked “exotic” (oh, the irony) I was noticed because of the things that I had to contribute.

If someone had presented me with a hypothetical question about how I would have felt in this situation before I encountered it, I would have guessed that my reaction would have been to blend contentedly in to the background. As an introvert by nature (not that most people would guess that about me) I have always been uncomfortable with the attention afforded to me because of my physical appearance. Second glances and comments, both the loud and obvious and the not-quite-quiet-enough, have always made me wish I could disappear.

What I found, however, was that my teacher’s passion, if you will, was stirred to the point of overriding my introverted nature. Essentially, my discomfort with new situations was overpowered by my recognition of an opportunity to learn and grow in ways that will help me teach and nurture others and promote peace, love, unity, and respect between all human beings.

What I have realized as I worked my way through my feelings on this topic is that each person, whatever their level of comfort is in a given situation, has something for which they are willing to step out of their safety zone. What motivates me to engage socially and contribute to my surroundings is not what motivates everyone but those distinctions are what makes humanity so beautiful. This has allowed me to recognize that my true job as a teacher is to open students up to discovering this for themselves, even if they have not yet identified their passion. Setting the foundational understandings of human interconnectedness and modeling peace, love, unity, and respect, both in my classroom culture and my curriculum development, is the most important contribution that I can make towards the creation of a better world.

Learning from the people part 1

On Friday and Saturday evenings there is an educational bonfire held down by the river banks. The program consists of cultural lectures, traditional storytelling, dancing, an intermission where kids (and adults) can roast marshmallows, and plenty of opportunities for asking questions. This program is open to anyone who wants to stop by and there is no charge for anything.

One of the guys that works at the Village, Freddy, takes part in the bonfire as a component of a group called the Warriors of AniKituwha. He and his wife invited me to attend the bonfire Friday night and I happily obliged. The following is a clip from the bonfire lectures that I put together from recordings on my phone. It was night so there was no visual and I simply added a few pictures from around the village.

A basic rundown of the clip:

From the beginning of the clip to about a minute and 53 seconds into the clip Sonny is talking about one of the two times that he tried to move away from the reservation. From 1:54 until about 3:08 he talks about his father’s experience at an all-male Indian boarding school. From 3:09 until the end of the clip he is talking about some of the ways that history as it relates to Native Americans has been perceived by different people. He discusses some of the research that has been done by Native Americans about that history and how that research is conducted.

Below you will find some quotes that I pulled from the clip and a little bit of reflection on the quotes from my perspective. After the bonfire I stuck around to ask a few follow-up questions about some of these things so some of that additional information is addressed here as well.

“After a while, this [constantly teaching about Cherokee culture] continues every day and I started missing home”

I think almost everyone who has gone away for college or for a job has experienced the feeling of missing home. We complain of missing our friends, our families, our pets, or the view out of our living room windows. What struck me about Sonny’s experience was that he was missing something else entirely. At another point in the clip he says, “You know, here I’m normal. We can walk into Food Lion just like this.” What Sonny missed about home was the ability to feel normal. It isn't that Sonny didn't want to spend any time teaching people about what it meant for him to be Cherokee and what his life had been like; it was just that he wanted to be able to connect with others on other topics as well. He loved and appreciated his culture and his identity but when people asked him things he didn’t like feeling as though he was what was being studied. I ended staying and talking with Sonny for a couple of hours after the bonfire had ended. During that time he talked with me about the one friend that he made during his time away from home. The reason that he considered this man his friend was because he would come over and they would just sit and watch basketball games together. They shared stories with one another about their lives, sure, but only about the things that came up during the course of conversation. He didn't try to pry any information out of Sonny about anything.

How I understand this story in relation to teaching:

When a student in your classroom is coming to you from a culture that you or the other students may be unfamiliar with it is tempting to ask them questions about where they came from. You are talking about the treatment of women in society during a class so you ask a student from the Middle East to talk to the class about the treatment of women where they come from. You are trying to broaden the knowledge and understanding of all of the students in your classroom but you may be pushing your student into a situation that makes them uncomfortable. As a teacher and a learner I understand that being pushed to the edge of comfortable can be one of the most powerful ways to learn something new. At the same time I also realize that for students to succeed in my classroom I have to provide an environment where they feel like they are safe and respected if I want them to engage in their own learning. What that means for me is that I need to ask questions of culture and identity at the personal level. Instead of asking a single student about the way that they witnessed women being treated in the Middle East I should ask each student to think and talk about the ways that they see women treated in their family or their community. By approaching the subject in this way, students would be able to see the differences and similarities in each of their backgrounds as it pertains to the treatment of women without singling any one person out. Students are then able to share their stories with one another at a level they feel comfortable with. They are less likely to lose their feeling of being normal like Sonny did because, while they are actually talking about themselves, they are not the subject that is being studied. Instead they are just better able to realize the ways that their lives are interconnected with the way that women are treated in society.

Life on the Rez

As I have briefly mentioned before, there is a casino here in Cherokee, NC. The casino, a Harrah’s, was built by the tribal government as a way to bring in tribal revenue. Because the casino is a tribal investment the profits go back into the tribe. A portion of those profits are set aside each year to be divided equally between all of the enrolled members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. This sum is then given to the individual members of the tribe to be used as they desire. This process takes place two times each year, once in June and once in December. Only enrolled members who are over the age of 18 are eligible to receive this money. Here in Cherokee the days that members receive this check are referred to as Per Cap day.

Yesterday was Per Cap day and for the past two weeks I have been hearing stories from lots of people about the way that this large influx of money affects life here. I heard story after story about people wasting their money on drugs and the string of overdoses that often follows Per Cap checks. I heard stories about people drinking and gambling their check away at the casino in the first week. I heard stories about the tribal police parking outside of the banks in town and waiting to pick up all of the people who have warrants when they come in and cash their checks. I heard stories about teenagers getting their first Per Cap and quitting their jobs because of a false sense of security. At the same time, however, I heard story after story about people using their Per Cap to take their kids across the mountain into Gatlinburg for their first family vacation. I heard stories about people using their Per Cap to pay up several months’ rent in advance or paying off big chunks of their home loans. I heard stories about all the different people who had saved their Per Cap money and invested it into purchasing rental properties. There were stories about teenagers who take their first Per Cap and buy themselves a car to take to college in the fall. Essentially what I was hearing was something that rang true for everyone I had ever known: there are many different levels of fiscal responsibility among people and large influxes of cash just bring that fact into the light a little more.

It was suggested to me that, after all the stories I had heard, I should spend a little bit of Per Cap day just hanging around in town and observing the different things that people are doing.  Here are a few of the different things that I saw while I was out and about:

The Food Lion: Food Lion is the only large grocery store actually located in Cherokee. It is located in a little plaza with a bank, dentist office, some type of dollar store, a restaurant, and several fast food places. There are usually 2 registers open and not much of a wait when you are trying to check out. There were six registers open when I went into the store around mid-morning yesterday to pick up some bread. The store was really crowded as well with lots of people pushing two buggies. Buggies at the checkout counters were stuffed full. Kids in the aisles were all smiles as their parents handed them the things that they asked for off of the shelves. The meat coolers were crowded by people staring at the different packages while sending Facebook invites for the cookouts they were planning. . I wasn’t particularly surprised to see that people had first flocked to the grocery since that is the first place I go whenever I have any extra money.

The bank: The bank parking lot in the plaza was packed the entire time that I was around it. Most people were in and out pretty quickly and all of the bank employees looked tired. There really was a tribal police car parked right outside of the parking and the officers were obviously observing the bank and the people who were coming in and out. I also heard about several road blocks that were out last night in order to catch anyone driving drunk or buying drugs.

Elsewhere in the plaza: There were people packed into each of the restaurants and fast food places in the plaza during the entire time that I was there. All of the food service employees that I was able to speak to said that this is often their highest grossing day of the year. They will be busier than normal for the next two weeks, as well. And while the influx of business is great for these restaurants and fast food places the number of employees that they lose during this time is not so great. They agreed that many people really do quit their jobs after Per Cap while many more call in sick or are unable to come in because of some sort of family “emergency”. Most of the people who quit are trying to get their job back within a month, however. This has led many of the local businesses to adopt very strict rules about not rehiring people while others say that they often have no choice but to let people come back because of the difficulty of finding and training new people who are qualified for whatever the position is.

Going places: Despite being a tourist area with a large casino and resort, the roads in and around town do not support a lot of traffic at one time. It took a lot longer than it ever has today to get everywhere. The Cherokee Transit Vans, which I see around town often, were out in force today. I conversed with one of the drivers while she waited for a couple of elderly ladies to finish up their shopping. She told me that she only sees some of these men and women during Per Cap. She says that health problems coupled with poverty often keeps them shut in during other parts of the year. Many of them have children and other family members who go out to the store for them and make sure that they have what they need. When she isn’t working she volunteers with a program that tries to meet the needs of those elderly people who do not have any friends and family left to provide them with that kind of help. In addition she often drops by on her own from time to time just to listen to their stories.

What I saw the most today was the effect that a little bit of extra money can have for people. A large portion of the people who live here on the Qualla Boundary are considered poor by US poverty scales. Many of these people need the little bit of money that they receive on the Per Cap checks in order to simply make ends meet for their families over the long term. As someone who grew up living below those same federal poverty guidelines it is easy for me to identify with that need and to recognize how helpful it really is. At the same time, as someone who grew up in a small town with in rural West Virginia, I can also see the problems that can be created. Sadly, many of the horror stories of drug overdoses and drunken debauchery that I heard about will probably start adding up over the next week or so.

The tribe does provide classes about the different ways that this money can be used responsibly and they are provided to tribe members for free. Before receiving their first Per Cap young people must take this class. You can’t stop everyone from making bad decisions simply by providing them with information but you certainly have to try and I think it is important that the tribe continues to provide support for good decision making. Everyone won’t choose responsibility but, from what I have seen and heard so far during my experience, most people are deeply connected to their families and are trying to make those responsible choices.

The Cherokee Language

A bit about sandwiches:

As most of us have probably recognized in our lives, the English language is ripe with opportunities for miscommunication. If you are sitting at a table during lunch break you might say, “A sandwich would be so awesome right now.” Now, if another person sitting at the table is eating a sandwich they may wonder if you simply like sandwiches or if you are fishing around for an invitation to share their sandwich. Depending on the relationship between you and that other person they may decide you are simply commenting on the greatness of sandwiches and simply finish their lunch and go on about their day. However, if you were actually trying to get a bite of their sandwich you would likely feel slightly annoyed because they didn't offer. However, you didn't actually ask for some of their sandwich because you were counting on the other person to pick up on your language cues so that you wouldn't have to go through the social awkwardness of actually asking for some sandwich. Now, although this is a simple example of a miscommunication, they can be found in all aspects of our lives where language is involved.

You might be wondering why I’m writing about sandwiches in a blog about the Cherokee language but don’t worry, I’m getting there. If the same situation described above were to take place between speakers of the Cherokee language the miscommunication that I spoke of would not actually be possible. Here’s why: In Cherokee each thing has its own word. If you wanted a bite of sandwich you would have to actually say, “Your ham and cheese sandwich would be awesome right now; I would like for you to feed me because I see that you are able to do so,” thus communicating your interest in eating the exact sandwich that the other person is eating. It isn’t just that you would choose to say it this way either. This would actually be the only way to communicate what you are thinking because if you didn’t want some of the other person’s sandwich you would use a completely different set of words which would be something like this, “I would like to eat a ham and cheese sandwich. I will get one for myself.” Whatever you are trying to say in Cherokee, you must actually say it.

As you can imagine, a language where everything is extremely specific can be difficult to learn. The number of fluent Cherokee speakers within the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is low with most of the fluent speakers belonging to the over 50 population. Concern over the dwindling number of fluent speakers has led to the formation of the New Kituwah Academy (sounds like “new gah-do-wah”). The Academy is a Cherokee language immersion school, meaning that Cherokee is the only language spoken within the school. This is done in order to allow students to learn the language naturally—through listening and repeating—just like we all learn our first language. The school currently operates on two levels with programs for infants through pre-school age children and  K-5 age children. The school has been open for seven years and the upcoming year will be the first time that the school will have a 5^th grade class.

I spent some time at the Academy last week and was fortunate enough to be able to have an in-depth conversation with one of the teachers at the school. The woman that I spoke with comes from a family where her grandparents were fluent speakers. However, her mother was not raised speaking the language and so she picked up some things from her grandparents over the years but not enough to speak fluently. She spoke of feeling drawn to becoming a fluent speaker because she did not want the language of her heritage to die within her family. Although she is still not a completely fluent speaker her knowledge has grown tremendously and she is honored to be able to work in a school where she can share that part of her Cherokee heritage with the children of her community.

Teaching Cherokee, even in a community of Cherokee people, does not come without challenges, however. The biggest challenge is that everything must be made from scratch or translated. The teacher I spoke with is a math teacher so many of the worksheets that she discovers online must be translated before she can use them which means, essentially, she must prepare every assignment twice. In addition, the Cherokee language doesn't include some math vocabulary words like parallelogram so these words must be translated as they sound. Many of these words become very long when they are translated, making the young children wary of attempting to use them. Because Cherokee is not their first language and because Cherokee is difficult to learn many of the young children have difficulty staying in the Cherokee speaking mode. They know the word or phrase in English and see that it is often easier for them to give up and use English rather than Cherokee. Keeping children interested in and aware that they are preserving and promoting their culture seems to be the key to helping them to learn Cherokee.

Things I've Been Learning

*A disclaimer: All the information below comes from talking to people in Cherokee and listening to lectures in the Oconaluftee Indian Village. Because I am interested in Cherokee life through the eyes of the people who live here I did not back up this information with research. If you find yourself really interested though, feel free to do your own

The Cherokee had a matrilineal society, meaning that children belong to their mother’s clan with property and hereditary leadership being passed down through the maternal side of the family. The Cherokee considered women to be the head of the household.

The pictures below are from the Square Grounds in the Oconaluftee Indian Village. The Square Grounds, located in the center of the village, were a sacred gathering place where people would dace as a form of prayer to the Creator. Everyone was included in the dances and celebrations, which usually included a feast. Celebrations would last anywhere from several hours to several days. There were seats surrounding the Grounds that were separated into seven sections representing the seven clans of the Cherokee.

I have been spending some of my time here learning to do many of the traditional animal dances of the Cherokee people. Visitors to the village sit in these arbors to observe the dancing each day. Before the dancing begins the dance leader calls out the name of each clan in the Cherokee language. The people sitting under the arbors respond when their clan is called by yelling out, "yo".

The Long Hair Clan: This clan was known for their wisdom and the chief (in times of peace) was chosen from this clan. Non-Cherokee who earned the right to be adopted into the tribe were most often adopted into this clan.

 The Blue Clan: This clan was known for members’ ability to create special medicine for children.

 The Paint Clan: This clan is named after the different paints, used in war and in healing, that they created for the tribe.

 The Bird Clan: Members of this clan were known to be swift messengers. This was important because the Cherokee territories were so large that messages often had to be carried by foot for hundreds of miles.

 The Wild Potato Clan: Members of this clan were known for their farming skills.

 The Wolf Clan: Members of this clan were known as protectors. The war chief often came from the Wolf Clan although the title was given to the man elected by the warriors, no matter which tribe he belonged to.

The Deer Clan: The members of this clan had a special bond with the deer and many were even said to keep the animals as pets.

The necklaces below are ones that the Cherokee use even today to help their infants through the pain of teething. Bull Nettle root is incorporated into necklaces along with beads. These necklaces are placed around the baby’s neck and are not removed, even for bathing.

This is a picture of traditional Cherokee canoe making. The Cherokee used the burning method to make their canoes. They began by locating a tree as close to the river as possible (usually a poplar tree) and packing clay around the base of the tree. Several small fires would then be built around the base of the tree with the clay acting as a fire control, causing the fire to burn inward and knock the tree to the ground. Once the tree had fallen the men would strip the bark and pack clay around the top of the canoe. More small fires were built until the correct area was burned out. The next step would be to chip away the charcoal and create a waterproof barrier using a mixture of animal fat and/or pine resin. This process would take about six months to complete.

Stay tuned because I will be posting tomorrow about the New Kituwah Academy, which is a Cherokee language immersion school for infants through 5th grade.

A Side Note: Please take a moment to check out the "Go Fund Me" link to the right of this post. The deadline is nearing for many of the things that we need the funding for. Any help, even just five dollars, will make a huge difference for us.

First Impressions

The drive in:

The first thing that that I really saw after entering Cherokee was the Bingo Hall. As a Bingo lover from way back, I was super excited (and still am) to go play one evening. The next big thing that I saw was Harrah’s Casino. It was about nine in the evening when we drove in so all the lights were on and the parking garage seemed pretty full from the road. There were people walking around outside and traffic was pretty thick right in town. I was eager to get to our rental and get Pheonix out of the car so I made my way to a gas station and called our land lady so that she could come out and meet us.

Around town:

Our first mission after we arrived was to get some groceries. We drove back toward the casino in the daylight and sheer volume of vendors aimed at tourists was overwhelming. Most of the shops have signs for things like arrowhead necklaces, moccasins, t-shirts, and pottery. As the casino came into view I noticed that there was a big new pawn shop with a “Cash for Gold” sign out front. I asked around at work afterwards and found out that my assumption (that the shop popped up because of the casino and the money people were spending/losing there) was correct. The pawn shop has only been open for a couple of months.

We noticed a small grocery store/smoke shop and decided that we would go ahead and get some basics there before we continued looking around town. As we got up to the door I saw a picture posted with a note that said so-and-so (edited for privacy) you are not welcome here. I noticed that the last name on the sign and the name of the shop’s owner. Because of my own background I already know that little dramas between friends and family  can get easily blown out of proportion in a small town so I made the connection that Cherokee, despite being a tourist area with a large casino, is definitely a small town.

Oconaluftee Indian Village:

Once I made it up to the top of the mountain where the village is located I was able to take in the scenery. The village itself is shrouded by trees and has a creek running through it. There are fires necessary at several of the crafting stations so there is always that smoky smell in the air. That smell is something I love because it takes me back to the wood fires of my childhood but I did find out that a previous intern had a smoke allergy that made it really difficult for her to be at the village.

Tours of the village are provided every fifteen minutes for interested parties and they consist of visits to different stations where traditional crafts are being produced. The work that I saw during my tour was beautiful. Outside of the tours there are traditional dances performed every day (at least during May) at 12 and 3. The dancers were all dressed in traditional clothing and each performer brought their personality into the dance. I got a good idea about who I should start talking to first just from watching these dances. There is also a small demonstration of stickball, a traditional sport played by the Cherokee, at 1:30 each day. This demonstration was especially interesting because of all the history involved. It is the oldest sport in America and some version of this sport was played by nearly all tribes as a way to settle disputes and avoid war.

My initial idea of the village is that it is a really good introduction for anyone who is interested in Cherokee history and culture (including people who don't yet know that they are interested). The people working within the village know a lot about their history and seem genuinely excited to share it with others. I have begun interviewing different workers to get an idea of who they are and why they work here. After I have collected a few more I will start posting some bits of those interviews and the patterns that I see emerging from them.

My first update from Cherokee...

Today is my fifth day here in Cherokee and my third day working with the folks at Cherokee Historical Society. We spent our first two days mapping out the grocery stores and the farmer’s markets and looking for places to go swimming for free. We found all of that plus dozens of the typical tourist-type vendors selling everything from t-shirts to tomahawks.

What I’ve done so far:

Oconaluftee Indian Village—The Village is where I have spent most of my time in Cherokee so far. It is a reenactment village set in the 1700’s. There are finger-weavers, bead workers, wood and stone carvers, basket-makers, canoe makers, and more. Tour guides take you through the different areas and you are also free to explore on your own and ask lots of questions. Every day at 12 and 3 some traditional dances are performed in the village square. On my second day here one of the female dancers wasn’t able to dance and so I filled in for her. I am now on the schedule to dance two days a week. : ) I am posting a picture of me in the outfit I wore yesterday and hopefully Luke will be able to get some video of me dancing today so that I can post that.

 Me dressed up and ready to dance.

 Some of our bead workers.

 Some of the ladies working on their pottery. The cooked their pots on a fire instead of using a kiln. The hardness of the wood is what determined whether the pot would come out brown or black. Potters would often use a mix of hard and soft woods to create the multi-colored pottery you see in the middle of this picture.

 Some awesome carving.

Here are some baskets hanging to dry in the basket making area.

 Unto These Hills Drama—The drama chronicles some of the Cherokee history and performances will open to the public on June 1^st. I have been lucky enough to sit in on some rehearsal time and to meet many of the people who are working on stage and behind the scenes. Below is a picture of rehearsal and some of the background scenery.

This is a pretty short update but I will be able to get some more detailed posts up this weekend.