Dancers at a Northern Cheyenne fair. Photo: Visions Service Adventures
Dealing with loss
By Clara Caufield
Native Sun News Today Columnist
nativesunnews.today Maheo’o (the Creator) knows how to balance things, the necessary timing for all earthly events. We must believe that, especially during challenging times such as my personal family experienced this week, sadly not unique for many other Native Americans. I guess you could say that it started on Tuesday night. I take a class at Chief Dull Knife College “Cheyenne for non-Cheyenne speakers.” That would be me. Though knowing the rudiments of basic conversation, full fluency hand-in-hand with cultural comprehension is challenging. The first class held on January 11th went from 6-9 p.m., after which I loathed to make the twenty-mile drive to my wood-heated cabin, the temperatures with wind chill about -30 zero would ensure a very chilly reception with all water frozen at my abode. Thus, Mom’s house, only about a quarter mile away promised warm refuge, her children ever welcome. “You just stay here,” she urged. And it didn’t take much to talk me into that. It had been some time since I did that, thus unaware that Mom was very sick again. She never complains always responding to daily telephone inquiry with a simple, “I’m fine.” In the meantime for the next morning, I had arranged an intervention for one of my younger brothers, currently caught in the throes of addiction, that was approved by my employers, the Northern Cheyenne Board of Health. Let me commend Pierce Big Left Hand, Cultural Affairs Specialist and addiction recovery counselor for the Northern Cheyenne Board of Health for responding to this urgent call for help, going out of his way to come to my mother’s house where that brother is now down and out, due to bad choices, but ever welcome there. Though angry about his bad choices, we love our little brother, seeking to get over that and help him with prayer. Tuesday night on the couch was worrisome as Mom, encased in a recliner coughed and coughed all night long, 82 years old and a dialysis patient she is in weakened state. Yet, she looked forward to the meeting between Pierce and my brother. “He (brother) fasted at Bear Butte, used to go to sweats and such, so maybe he will respond to that way of getting better,” she said. The intervention started well, Pierce kind and gentle in the Cheyenne traditional way, cedared off each of us (cleansing ritual) and the house. Yet, when Mom continued uncontrollable coughing, we took a break as another brother took Mom to the Indian Health Service clinic. As always, it was hard to convince her to go, but she told us to keep going with the intervention. “Ne-ah-douh” (listen) she advised. “Maybe this will help you.”
Read the rest of the story on the Native Sun News Today website: Dealing with loss (Clara Caufield can be reached @acheyennevoice@gmail.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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