Wakhan Thánka níci un

Title translation:  May the Great Spirit go with you and guide you.

I've watched this over and over, and still I can't put into words why it moves me.   Certainly it's the horses...but there's more to it than that.  There is a beautiful symmetry here; the melding of man and horse, the fluidity of movement.  

But mostly I think that it's a peek into the past.  Were it not for the jeans and t-shirts, these men could be wearing buckskins.  But the event is the same as it's been for hundreds of years - young Native American men displaying their skill and prowess on horseback.  Warrior spirit at its essence.

This event was filmed at at the Pine Ridge Reservation during the building of a cob house, and was a race to honor the battle at Wounded Knee.  

“Let us put our minds together and see what life we can make for our children.” ~~ Sitting Bull

Frank Warren is my hero

One of my favorite quotes goes something like this:  "We are not human beings on a spiritual journey...we are spiritual beings on a human journey."  I don't recall the source, and if anyone out there does, please let me know.

A shining example of the spiritual being living the human experience is Frank Warren, founder of the Post Secret project.  My friend Aaron turned me on to it 4 or 5 years ago and I've loved watching it evolve and heal and save lives.  On many a Sunday, it has saved mine.  It's part of my Sunday morning prayer ritual and this morning I was pleased to see a new video reflecting the secrets in his new book "Post Secret:  Confessions on Life, Death, and God", all of which are subjects near and dear to my heart.

I own all of the Post Secret books, they're a great place to go to when I need to be reminded to be thankful.  I can't wait to pick this one up and I hope that you will check them out.

And...thanks Frank.

You might just live in Tennessee if...

When I lived in LA and was cranky and frustrated because someone had: 

a.) flipped me off while driving

b.) cut  me off while driving  

c.) was a jerk in general

I was able to retain some semblance of calm because I would always remind myself that I just didn't look good in orange.  By that, I meant LA County Jail orange.  I just knew that those jumpsuits just wouldn't do a thing for me; and with hips like mine, that's something to think about very seriously.

Now that I'm here I have to rethink that, because here... it's all about the orange.  University of Tennessee orange.

Every area has their local passion; here it's the UT Volunteers; "Vols" to the locals.  For me...if you can't put a saddle on it, I don't know about it.  And to give credit where credit is due, The Former Mr. Ryan put up with 23 years of my never being able to grasp the concept of football. Well, I kind of have no choice now.  And these folks are serious.

Need a Vols cake pan? Got it.  

Ice cube trays for that tailgate party?       Got it covered.

Muffin pan?   Yep, got it.

Sweater for your dog?            Of course.

Halloween decoration?       Hell yeah!

It's yet one of the many things about East Tennessee that are (in my opinion) pretty cool.  A sort of unifying agent.

This came to me courtesy of my cousin (and isn't everyone here my cousin?) Pauline, whose sheer awesomeness knows no bounds...

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Forget Rednecks!  Here is what Jeff Foxworthy has to say about folks from Tennessee -- aka 'Orange necks.'

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If someone in a Lowe's store offers you assistance and they don't work there, you may live in Tennessee .

If you've worn shorts and a parka at the same time, you may live in Tennessee .

If your favorite season is called "It's Football Time in Tennessee !", you may live in Tennessee .

If you've had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number, you may live in Tennessee...

If 'Vacation' means going anywhere south of Knoxville for the weekend, you may live in Tennessee...

If you measure distance in hours or minutes, you may live in Tennessee...

If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you may live in Tennessee ...

If you install security lights on your house and garage, but leave both unlocked, you may live in Tennessee...

If you own several articles of orange clothing, you may live in Tennessee...

If you carry jumper cables in your car and your wife knows how to use them, you may live in Tennessee...

If the speed limit on the highway is 55 mph -- you're going 80 and everybody's passing you, you may live in Tennessee...

If you find 60 degrees 'a little chilly', you may live in Tennessee...

If you know someone who has set the date of a wedding, a birth, or any other life changing event, only after consulting the UT football schedule, you may live in Tennessee...

If you actually understand these jokes you definitely live in Tennessee...

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So I've got yet another new thing to learn if I'm to hang out in the kitchen with the ladies in the family - while they watch football.

TFMR and Pauline, this one's for you....GO VOLS!

And so it goes...

Yes, it's been a while.

Miss Lillian passed away early on the morning of September 6th.  Yes, I was there.  Yes...I was terrified, but I received abundant blessings at the same time... I'm still not in a place where I can accurately write about the experience.  Maybe one day; there's just too much to chew on.

And so now I move on.

I am now a permanent resident of Johnson City, TN.  A place where it appears that I am related to EVERYONE... I can't go anywhere without hearing "are you one if the Ryans' or the Fields'?" Thank God both families have great reputations, or I'd be really nervous.  In one instance, one of my cousins (on Miss Lillian's side) married a distant cousin on my father's side.   Soon there won't be a family tree...it'll all be one stump.  It says a lot about how small the community here is - especially the black community, but that's a post for another day.

The JC in which I now reside is very different than the JC of my childhood, so it's a little like discovering it all over again.   Finding my way around isn't a challenge, because everything and anything is only 10 minutes from wherever you are - 15 if there's a traffic jam.  In LA I used to spend the hours on the road chatting on the phone, catching up with my friends; easy to do because I had the time.  Here, I do all my catching up in parking lots because I've already arrived at my destination.  The young lady at the Rite Aid now knows to wave at me from the store window.

What is there to do here?  Well, you have to shift your expectations a bit...the excitement of LA is a thing of the past; though I never really had the time to avail myself of all that LA had to offer.  But if you want a sweet, country festival...we've got them in spades!  I attended the Apple Festival in historic Erwin this past weekend, and (keep in mind that Erwin has basically one road in and one road out) I was stunned at the sheer numbers of people that came to eat fried apple pies made famous by the Mennonites.  It felt like New York on New Years Eve.  The difference is that when people bumped into you, they'd turn, pat your arm and say "Oh honey, I'm so sorry!" which would then turn into a long dialogue about how many people there are.

Anyway, I didn't get to experience the apple pies - they had sold 6,000 of them by 2:30 pm and were sold out; not a fried apple pie in sight.    And take note of the width of the street.  That's downtown Erwin, virtually unchanged since 1875 (and thank you to the Erwin Historical Society for the photo, which was taken in 1916).

 

Kind of cool, isn't it? You have to love the "old timey-ness" of it, as indicated by this sign:

                                                                                        

The Apple Festival happened to coincide with the International Storytelling Festival in Jonesboro (another 10 - 15 minutes down the road).  Please take a moment to wander around their website; I can't even begin to describe the awesomeness of Jonesboro, nor can I do justice to the magic of storytelling.  I'll just say this...I expect to see you all here next October, so that we can enjoy it together.

Well, it's getting chilly and I have to go turn the heat on before my fingers go numb...so until later...remember that I miss you all (of my personal peeps who are reading this).