The Real Me On Turtle Island

I was putting together a mobile to use at a talk I was presenting at. My grandson helped me make it. There were 4 people on the mobile. I wanted to demonstrate how we are all effected by each other in a family, community or the country, no matter if it is addiction, or happy occasions. And how we will be effected throughout our life, even if we do not realize it. He wanted to make the mobile with a turtle. When I said that was a great idea as in our creation stories, we are told this country is on the back of a turtle. He liked the story and was even more excited about helping me.

Under the turtle we put the names of the 7 Anishinabe/Chippewa reservations in Minnesota and the 4 Dakota Tribal communities. We talked about how families are made up. My grandson was adopted. At the time he had a mother and two uncles and a grandma, aunties, cousins and so many more relatives. I told him we were just making the mobile with 4 people and he could put two different people on each one if he wished. When he drew his uncle, he put a skateboard under him, as he was skateboarding when he was young and continued well into his twenties, and then the little guy had a skateboard under him also, even though he wasn't skateboarding yet. He had some of people for the mobile white and some with darker skin color as that is what his family looks like.

The real me is to share my Native American culture with family and friends. Sometimes it is welcome and other times it is not. Stories told are not believed at times and that is okay. I tell a story of how a medicine man I went to see talked about how Native Americans are aliens. A difficult co-worker was in the room, and I was hopeful that she missed that part of the talk. She did not and asked me about it. I winked at her and said, I know he believes that. She never said anything more about it! All I know is he was more helpful than my doctors were at diagnosing and letting me know what would happen with the cancer I had, and he gave me a tea that would help me with the chemotherapy and hospital stay. I didn't know there would be chemotherapy or a hospital stay, but he knew and that is what he told me.

All the medicine people, I have seen over the years have been more than helpful and have provided more than I expected. I am so happy to have been born into a culture I adore. Over the years, there have been much difficulty, and much trauma, grief and loss that has been a part of life too. I had friends that did not want to be Native American, when we were growing up, and I understood, because it wasn't easy. Thankfully I never felt that way. I was always okay with being me, just not always okay with what that would mean.

I grew up with racism and knew different things I could do about that. Then there was some things I did not expect. I was asked by a black man how I got off the reservation once when I was a young woman visiting New York. I have had many experiences with people not knowing that there were any Native Americans still alive. Then a college professor asking me why I do not wear braids in my hair and feathers in my jewelry. That was probably in the early eighties. More recently, my grandson and I were approached by a woman that thought he may be lost as his hair color is almost white and so is his skin color. She was very worried about him, even when he ran to me and said, "Grandma!" being more afraid of her. She walked away with a hesitation. This and more is difficult to experience, and what other choice is there than to teach where I can and what I can. My title in retirement is culture consultant, even though I would never claim to know everything about the culture. I think that being socialized in the culture has taught me a lot of the differences and still it does not make me an expert.

Our religious freedom was allowed back in this country in 1978. Things started to come above ground. Everything will not as many will not understand. Some of my experiences, I did not understand. I do eventually, and sometimes it is normalized with the help of our more traditional people. And I see how some people may never understand and that is okay too.

I have been using that mobile for many years. That grandson that helped me when he was just a little guy is in his 20's now. I was told not too long ago by a woman that was at an early presentation that she remembered me because of the mobile and remembers the message of the mobile and very little else I presented. She did thank me for that message. So, I learned that I have to continue with props! I will definitely use the mobile until it is worn out! This is the real me!