04. Towaocing Points, Part II: The Prophecies of Dr. Jefferson

 

Last year, Dr. Jefferson wanted NASTaP to hold its annual conference on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation in the Four Corners area. It was an inconvenient location for me, a Denverite, because I would have to cross five mountain ranges and drive nine hours to get there. Life was so chaotic with bad events occurring almost daily and I just wanted to hide at home and doom scroll on my phone. 

But Dr. Jefferson had other ideas. He had hinted at these when four of us visited his home in April 2022. I asked him what he saw in our future.  He answered that we would go through a bad time, even worse than the pandemic. He was so negative that I finally asked him if there was no hope at all. “Not for me,” he answered, “but for NASTaP and the people, there will come a better time.” 


Exactly three years later. I get a call from Dr. J, as we liked to call him, that he was coming to Denver to get my help planning the conference. Dr. J, his care giver and driver Cam, and I sat down in his hotel lobby two days later and hammered out the plan. Then they left to visit with NASTaPers in the Springs area on Easter Sunday. Dr. J announced the conference’s theme of “A New Beginning” with a big smile and it was like sun breaking through clouds.

In June, I was summoned to Towaoc to help Dr. J meet with hotel staff to finalize details. I traveled with three NASTaP leaders, Heidi Weigand-Nicely, John Anderson and Kathy Budney. After an overnight in Durango, we met up with Dr. J and Cam at the Ute Mountain Casino and Hotel. Meeting in person was a good idea; the director of hospitality was very cooperative. I started to get excited about bringing people together in the beautiful desert with these wonderful people. 

Before leaving, we had lunch at the hotel restaurant. There were 11 guests, including our keynote speaker, Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk, Vida Clark and several tribal members showing support for the conference. I emerged from the hotel to see Dr. J getting into his SUV. I ran up to the car window but he could barely see me so I opened the door, wished him well, and clasped his hand. It was the last time I ever saw Dr. J but I feel his presence often. 

Dr. J’s prophecy came true: we are enduring hard times in this country and throughout the world. And it is also true that we can endure and even thrive until times get better by coming together and creating A New Beginning for each other, for NASTaP and for future generations. I hope you’ll join me for Friendship Among the Trees at La Foret Retreat Center July 31-August 1. Learn more at https://nastap.org/event-6643182  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Towaoc Journey

Image
It takes nearly an hour of driving before you can really feel like you have left Denver. I was at that place, well away from Conifer and past Pine but not yet to the mountain towns of Bailey and Santa Maria. The road emerged from the tree-lined canyon into an open meadow and I saw something out of the corner of my left eye. It was the profile of a hawk, wings outstretched, flying parallel to my car. Then my spirit lifted. I was not in Denver anymore. There were five mountain passes ahead of me. I zoomed over Kenosha Pass and down into South Park, heading straight south through that wide valley. Then came Poncha Pass which brought me to the San Luis Valley, the largest high-altitude valley in the world. In the northern half of this valley, there is no drainage. Water that falls, and snow that melts stays in this valley and nurtures the many crops and livestock growing there.  The Southern half of the valley is home to the Rio Grande that flows from its headwaters in the San Juan F...
Read more

Can Colorado Trump-proof its Precious Waters? We Can Try.

Image
  Barely noticed in the flurry of executive orders during the new Administration last week was the pronouncement of an "Energy Emergency" allowing oil and gas developers to proceed to drill and bulldoze without worrying about pesky environmental concerns.This includes development on fragile wetlands, around rivers and streams, and on banks and beaches. The damage that could be caused would be permanent and far-reaching, not only to water quality and stream flow, but also to plant and wildlife, habitat, historical and sacred sites, and future viability.  Colorado is well familiar with the harm that extractive industries can cause. With its history of mining, the state has been dealing with polluted waters from mine runoff for over a century. Such metals as gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, lead, and uranium have been mined in the mountainous regions of the state. Often, chemicals were used to extract the metal from the ore, compounding the toxicity. Many waterways have never r...
Read more

A Ute Way of Being

Image
  Our group was incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to visit the Ute Tribe's most sacred place, (Sleeping) Ute Mountain, in August. The tour came together after months of meetings with the Council of Elders of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, submitting requests and forms, and making sure all visitors were aware of the protocols. The women donned colorful shawls and everyone piled into two vans for the journey.  We stopped near the entrance to the mountain where a large "No Trespassing" sign was posted. The mountain is off-limits to anyone who is not a member of a Ute tribe, unless they are under the guidance of a tribal member. We circled around and received instruction and a prayer. I realized that this would be an experience that would help me in my everyday life. Overhead, a golden eagle passed by.  Making our way up the mountain, we circled around the central area and headed for the Sun Dance grounds. Suddenly, the van ahead of us stopped by a small tree on the sou...
Read more