As the week comes to an end, we had a visit from our final speaker last night. Marty, aka Beware of Sleeping Wolf, came to the cabin last night to talk to us about the Blackfeet culture and his family heritage. As I sat there listening to him talk, I became moved by his spirituality and his great love and understanding for his tribe's history. I wish I could replay the entire event for you, but instead I will give you a summary of one the most wonderful nights I had on this immersion trip.
 |
| DLSBS 7th Grade Class Photo |
Marty began by talking about the "American Holocaust" and how it does not receive as much attention as it deserves. He said that
when Columbus "discovered," or invaded, the Americas, there were over 40 million Native Americans. However, by the time the reservations were fully established, there were only about 200,000 Indians left in the Americas. After this he shared a story with us which filled almost all of his presentation.
The story was about how he and his wife, Vicki, met a man on a religious retreat. The man had come to the retreat to ask for prayers for his two year old grandaughter who was about to go into her sixth open heart surgery. After the retreat, Marty and his wife went down to visit the girl. He made prayer shawls for
the girl and her parents to help them during this time. He also blessed the girl with an eagle's feather. A little later they got a letter from the grandfather saying that the girl had pulled through and she was feeling great. The letter also said that they wanted to give him a gift. Marty said declined, but they eventually talked him into paying them another visit.
 |
| Sam Fallon Reviews Marty's Family Photos |
When Marty got to the house, the man had a trunk with him, and he opened it up. At this part of the presentation Marty explained something very important to us. He told us that he was a direct descendant of
Mountain Chief, a great head chief of the Blackfeet. Marty passed around a picture of Mountain Chief, and he showed us the special war bonnet in the picture. He continued on with the story after this. He said that the man gave him an old medicine man's rattle for rituals. He gave Marty many other things for helping, but the greatest gift of all was the war bonnet of Mountain Chief. Marty said that at this point he was overwhelmed by the man's generosity because of the spiritual and historical value of these gifts.
It was so incredible to meet Marty and hear such an awe-inspiring story. All of the objects that he showed us related back through his family line. I was so honored that he wanted to share this us. We all learned so much from him. This presentation was a fitting conclusion to our immersion week. I am now eager to return to learn and experience more of the Blackfeet culture.
Tom Ceraso '14
Posted with Blogsy