Time Passes in the Blink of an Eye!

     Learning about the Navajo culture has opened my eyes in many ways. I have definitely become a lot more culturally aware of not only the Navajo culture, but my own as well. It's easy to not to think about what makes up my own culture because I just live in it on a day to day basis. I have become so accustomed to my life at home, I never really thought about what aspects actually make up my culture. I have gained a lot of respect for the Navajo people here. Going into the semester, I was not knowledgeable of Native American culture in the slightest. All I knew was what I was taught throughout school, so pretty much TeePees and the Trail of Tears. After learning about the Navajo history and life today, my ignorance has bloomed into admiration. There has been several occurrences throughout this semester which has enhanced my appreciation for the Navajo. Just this past week we went to a Navajo lady named GeorgeAnne. GeorgeAnne is an elderly Navajo woman who weaves blankets. I have seen over one hundred different Navajo blankets and the great detail in the blankets, but I had only seen the end result of the blanket. I never knew how much work, concentration, and patience it takes for the weavers. GeorgeAnne showed us how she makes the string from the wool, what she uses to dye the wool, and how to weave. The designs of these unique blankets are all in the head of the weaver. It just astounds me how precise some of the Navajo are.
     Just like every culture, there are people struggling in the Navajo community. Seeing some of the living situations here in Gallup, NM has opened my eyes. While tutoring at Church Rock Elementary School, I have learned about some of the kids living situations. It makes me wonder why God gave me the life he did. Why am I so blessed with a loving family that is financially stable while some kids are growing up in trailer neighborhoods where shootings occur weekly and alcoholism is a severe problem? It has made me realize that I need to give back to a higher extent.
   
     This weekend is our last weekend in New Mexico. We only have three more days until we make our departure for home in our separate ways. I am going to be headed to Florida for a short trip with my Dad. Megan will be off in Santa Barbra, CA only a few hours from Charis who will be in Ontario, CA. Dani and Joyce will be headed home in the van (aka "Kool Express) to Springfield, IL and Grand Rapids, MI.
     I started packing some of my clothes in one of my suitcases and it's definitely a bitter sweet experience. While I am excited to return home, I vividly remember rolling all my clothes as tightly as possible in order to cram as much as possible into two suitcases three months ago. Saying goodbye to these girls is going to be so strange. I've lived with them for three months and seen them everyday. I wouldn't be surprised if we had separation anxiety ;). haha. But seriously, I am so thankful that we have bonded over these past few months. We have shared an unforgettable experience that we can reminisce about for the rest of our lives. This has been a once in a lifetime opportunity and I thank God for giving me the opportunity to come on this semester program.

 Our last day at Calvin. Our first day of the semester spent travelling to New Mexico...and our first group picture.

Our first hike in New Mexico with the DeYoungs. I am definitely going to miss looking outside and seeing mesas/hogbacks surrounding the land. The views here are something I could never get tired of looking at...even when the mesas are covered in snow and its 20 degrees outside. 

Studying-Preparing for our last week

As the semester is coming to a close, we have a lot of homework to get done and a lot of things to wrap up. We have our Prime Kingdom Citizenship papers due tomorrow, a project and presentation in Geology due Thursday, an outline for Plantinga's book, a paper on Remember the Titans, as well as preparing for 2 tests. Seeing as there is a lot that needs to be accomplished in a small amount of time, prayers from our readers would be much appreciated. We need to focus these last few days to get things done. On top of all of our homework, we are also looking forward to going to Shallaco this weekend. This is a traditional ceremony that will be performed by the Zuni tribe. We will arrive there at around 10 p.m. and will not return until 2 a.m! This is sure to be an experience we won't soon forget. 

In closing, we are really looking forward to all of the adventures still to be had in our 10 days left here in Rehoboth! Let's pray for good endings for our semester. 

Studying hard for our final assignments! 

Zuni

On November 17, we went to Zuni, New Mexico. Zuni is known for its artists. They make pottery, paintings, fetishes (tiny statues). We stopped at a trading post in Zuni that had all of these along with jewelry and Navajo pottery.

Zunis have a unique societal structure. They live all together in pueblo buildings. Sometimes as many as 5 immediate families will live in the same complex. Community is very important to the Zunis. When we talked to a teacher at the Zuni mission school, she said that when she visited students' houses for parent-teacher conferences, sometimes she didn't know if she was talking to the child's parent or another family member.

We toured the Zuni mission school. It was a K-8th school and a church. They're preparing to add a huge addition to the school. The part we toured that was finished was beautiful. The teachers who gave us the tour said the students really enjoyed the new building.

We also went  to see the old Spanish mission. Unfortunately, we couldn't go inside but outside was a cemetery. The cemetery was overgrown with weeds. Even though the weeds were a bit out of control, you could tell people cared because there were flowers placed on the graves.

I'm glad we visited Zuni because we could see a community that still maintains its cultural roots and shares it with others. In a couple weeks, we're going back to Zuni to see Shaliko, their biggest religious festival of the year.

This past weekend, on Friday we went the Bisti’ wilderness area and then to a Navajo rug auction. Then on Saturday we went to various places to shop and then horseback-riding at Canyon De Chelly. Phew. For Bisti’ we parked in what seemed like the middle of nowhere and headed down a pretty flat area with rock formations around it. Nothing was especially interesting at first and we weren’t really sure what to expect. But before long we came to an area full of rock formations called hoodoos which look like a lean tall rock with a flat rock balancing on top of it. It honestly looked like we were on another planet. It’s amazing that there are places on this earth that you can’t even imagine; every single time I think I’ve kind of got the gist of what the world around me looks like I’m proven very wrong. Our teacher, Mr. De Young showed us places where millions of years old petrified wood was with the trunk still intact. We talked about how the trees fell in the same direction and so there was some type of event that made them fall down at the same time. Probably Aliens. He also showed us where dinosaur bones were sticking out of the ground.  I guess I always assumed that all the dinosaur bones that people found were dug up, but here the bones were right in front of me relatively undisturbed for millions of years. We found remnants of clams from when there was once water in the area as well as pieces of turtle shells. In just a few hours there was so much history to take in. We took some time to just relax and enjoy the silence, the blue sky, and the beautiful rocks all around us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afterwards we went to the rug auction for a couple of hours. The Navajo rugs were absolutely beautiful. They had all kinds of intricate patterns or even pictures of animals or people. Even a relatively small rug could take a couple of months to make, yet would only go for about a hundred dollars at the auction. That means that they are getting only a few cents per hour of work. Some rugs wouldn’t even sell. It was sad seeing such beautiful art not being recognized, especially since Navajo weaving is a dying art form. I think in our culture we’ve gotten so used to things being mass produced and cheap that we don’t realize when something is actually worth paying more money for. It’s definitely something I need to be more conscious of as I get souvenirs when I travel.

I guess that’s all I have to say for now. We did other awesome things over the weekend but I've save those stories for when we come back. Everything is great here and we will be beyond sad to leave in a few short weeks.

Majestic Grand Canyon squirrel

What I learned this week

https://www.michigandaily.com/arts/10coalition-queer-people-color-lead10

The link above really ties together a lot of aspects we've been learning from a lot of our classes. From cultural lenses, to acceptance between different social barriers. This article truly is a goldmine, and my friend Alex co-founded this coalition. Trust me my friends, if we could all be this bold and outspoken for social justice, the world would be a much brighter, and safer place.

Just some of the goofballs on my floor, these five girls are some of my closest friends here so far. One of the girls, Laura, was on my wilderness trip to Colorado this summer. I would love for y'all to meet them when you get back! I hope that you guys can grow closer to God as you embark upon your journeys in God's beautiful outdoors!

I'm sorry I haven't been keeping the best contact up with you guys. I miss you guys so much!! It looks like you guys are having the most amazing time in Rehoboth. I just wanted to post some pictures so that you guys could be connected to the life back at Calvin. The first picture is of a group of my friends and I at art prize in downtown Grand Rapids. It was a really cool experience that i deffinitly recommend you guys to go to another year when your back on campus. The second picture is of most of the people in Heyns Hall, but not everyone. We went on a dorm retreat for a weekend. It was really fun to get to know everyone better and really connect with people. I hope that when you guys get back, I can introduce you guys to my new friends and help you get back into the swing of things. Love you guys.

I don't think I can say I'm a vegetarian anymore.

Last week, we participated in something I never thought I'd have to do. Kill a sheep. Then skin, clean, and eat it. Definitely a new experience. Here's some pictures:

One of the students from the Navajo class killed her.

Multiple people helped to skin her.

All in all, it was not as horrible as I'd thought it be. But then again, I just watched. I didn't participate at all. It was very respectfully done. When everyone had had their fill, someone brought the leftover meat to a soup kitchen.

This last weekend we went to Mesa Verde. It was amazing to see the craftsmanship that was build so long ago.

Exploring

I've really enjoyed exploring the nearby trails. Here's some pictures from today's hike:

Rehoboth from a cliff

We know no bounds.

Chaco Canyon

On Saturday, we took a field trip to Chaco Canyon, the home of ancient ruins and petroglyphs. It was amazing to me that these buildings have been around for nearly a thousand years. An ancient people, who we would assume weren't advanced, had built something that could last that long. How many structures have we built today that could be this durable? And it's not like they were little mud huts. This was a massive community. Here are some pictures:

This is pueblo bonito. These were the largest ruins.

The inside of a kiva. 

Petroglyphs.

These last pictures are taken inside Pueblo Bonito.

Before we even began this trip we knew we would see some amazing things and I can safely say we were not disappointed. The area around our dorms is beautiful and we are sure to see much more on our weekend trips. But even though we knew about most of the things we would be doing over this semester it's so much different actually being here. There is always so much more to see then you ever expect. I was looking through all my pictures and come across all the things I didn't expect to see yet made me laugh, curious, or just confused. One of the best parts of traveling is all the surprises along the way.

 In the bathrooms.

 Robotic sign waver. Brilliant.

 Car covered in corks, because, why not?

 Outside the Springfield building.

At the New Mexico welcome center. 

 We found a snake!

Halfway Home

Here are some pics taken in and around Dani's hometown....

We were so grateful when Dani's parents offered to let us spend the night. After a few days of driving and sleeping in tents, there's nothing better than delicious food, kind people, and a good night's sleep.

St. Louis

We ate lunch under a bridge in St. Louis. The Gateway Arch is just barely visible....

St. Louis sprawls out in miniature from the top of the Gateway Arch.  The domed building is the Old Courthouse; infamous as the site where the Dred Scott case was overturned.

On our road trip up here, we stopped at the St. Louis arch! This is the view of St. Louis from the top of the arch.

 The road trip to New Mexico may have been long, but we saw some amazing scenery along the road. It was well worth the road trip time!

 On Sunday evening, we went on a hike with Mike & Gail De Young in their back yard along with Cindy and Jack Ippel. It's hard to believe that this is actually literally in their backyard.


This semester is a once in a lifetime experience for us all. I am personally very excited for all of the experiential learning that we will be participating in. I'm looking forward to the new experiences which we will encounter. This is my first time West of the Mississippi River, and the views are unlike anything I have ever seen before. It all looks so beautiful and I am learning how to really appreciate nature for what it is.

 Being exposed to the Native American culture has been very eye opening as well. We have gone to a few museums/cultural centers, participated in a sweat lodge, listened to books on tape, and began tutoring Navajo students at Church Rock Elementary School. The culture is so different than what I am used to in my everyday culture, that it is refreshing to learn and be a part of something so unique.

Orientation Road Trip!

To launch this blog, I am posting some of the pictures from the (Dis-)Orientation Road Trip from Calvin to Rehoboth, with stops at the St. Louis Arch, Museum of Westward Expansion, Cherokee Trail of Tears Museum, Chickasaw Nation Cultural Center and Chocolate factory (yum!).

The purpose of the stops on the road trip were to provide some orientation to the pre-history of Native American nations, and exposure to current experiences and issues. As we now encounter the Navajo, Zuni, and other Native American cultures here in New Mexico, we can begin to develop an richer understanding of the tapestry of cultures that make up the 500 sovereign nations within the borders of the United States.

First stop, Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Powwow in Dowagiac, MI.

Second stop: St. Louis Arch & Museum of Westward Expansion. The word of the day was "perspective." How is history viewed from the different perspectives -- the European explorers, the peoples who were already living here, and now -- us. How was the history of westward expansion taught to you?

 "Night at the City Museum" -- you'll have to ask them about this! The City Museum in St. Louis was closed, but they let us in anyway....totally cool.

Next stop: Cherokee Heritage Center & Trail of Tears Museum. The pictures below are from the tour of the ancient village. Our tour guide, Danny, was a fantastic ambassador for the Cherokee culture. We came away with a rich introduction to the historical ways of life.

The final stop on the orientation trip was a tour of the Bedre chocolate factory. This factory is owned by the Chickasaw nation (a tribe in Oklahoma) and sells its gourmet chocolate to stores such as Neiman-Marcus. 

And -- Now the adventure begins. Here the group is around a pinon fire at the home of Mike and Gail De Young in Rehoboth. They provided a rich, warm welcome to us and got the semester started off in a good way. An added bonus was to have dinner next to the majestic wolves that belong to their next door neighbors. How interesting!