Where have all the flowers* gone?

*and by flowers I mean blogposts.

My dear, sweet internet followers,

I have some very good news.  I am once again the companion of my very own, paint-covered Mac Book Pro!  Which means I can commonly update you via interweb on where I am, what I am doing, and what I am creating!

As most of you know, I am currently living in St. Xavier, Montana on the Crow Indian Reservation spending a year doing service work through the fantastic organization Jesuit Volunteer Corps North West.  I am working at the Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy with 2nd and 3rd graders and somehow ended up following in my mother’s footsteps and coaching Cross Country.  It is beautiful out here.  Remote, wild, surprising, joyful, and at times, muddy.  To say that I have been enjoying myself would be a colossal understatement.

I have been writing letters galore, and receiving a fair share as well.  Thank you for all of the gems of love, hope, humor and art that I get in the mail.  I am the luckiest volunteer in the world.

Unfortunately, due to an accident involving our trailer without stairs, planting trees, little neighbor boys, and the mud and water and clumsiness involved in all of that, my camera is not working as well as it once did.  Also, a fair share of my better photographs are currently trapped on my community member Don’s computer, so until I can skype with Munir in Egypt and he can help me untangle my  technology woes, you will have to make do with these pictures which were taken on my webcam:

We have a lot of fun.

So, due to my 5 month absence in the in the internet world, here are the things that I have done that should have been blogposts.

1. Attended Crow Fair- a giant yearly powwow and teepee camp in Crow Agency, Montana.  It is the “Teepee Capital of the World.”  While I was there, I attended a naming ceremony for “Moonshine Boy,” learned how to set up a teepee, and ate my first Indian Taco.

2. Built a freakin’ awesome compost system in our “yard” in St. Xavier.  Been composting up a storm since.  Many of you received my illustrated blueprints, unfortunately I didn’t keep any for myself.

3. Painted prayer flags with my community- Janine, Don and Matt- and our visiting supervisor-Susan- for a Spirituality Night.  They are now hanging along the ceiling of our JV trailer.

4. Coached the Pretty Eagle Cross Country Team to the Championships!  Which we WON!

5. Was adopted into the Crow Clan System.  I am now a part of the Piegan Clan and a child of Ties the Bundle.

6. Just two days ago…painted prayer rocks for our rock garden which will be next to the garden in which we can use all of our COMPOST.

Obviously, I cannot even begin to sum up the huge experiences I have every day being with the kids and people of St. Xavier.  My community mates and I have been welcomed extremely warmly (as is evident by our adoptions) and have been loving every minute of our time here.  I wrote a couple of articles for the Catholic Messenger back in Davenport (of which there will be more to come) on the reflections of my experience.  Please feel free to hit the following links if you are interested:

What Led me to Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest

‘Holy Insecurity’ Living on the Crow Reservation

In the continuing world outside of Crow, I currently have a painting at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport at the College Invitational Show.  It is one of the body of work that I did for my show last Spring entitled BEWILDER.  If you are in the area, please swing by and check it out.

The works of BEWILDER are also set up to be exhibited at The Meadowlark Gallery in Grant, Nebraska in May.  I will unfortunately not be able to be there, but those of you in Grant should swing on by.

Love, peace and blessings to you all!

Hopefully I’ll be seeing you around here more often!

AHO! (Amen, goodbye, bless you and thank you in Crow)

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