The top pic is Slavica, Alicia, and me at Red Shirt Table in the Badlands. The next is a monument in memory of Chief Crazy Horse.
Mt. Rushmore is evil. The Black Hills are sacred to the Lakota. It was absolutely rude and selfish for Americans to dynamite the sacred land into a monument of a bunch of white people who historically did nothing but harm to the Indians of the country. I felt dirty and like a traitor going to see the monument.
These buffalo were right at the side of the road. Signs everywhere said not to approach the buffalo. But we couldn't avoid them if they were in the middle of our path!
This is as close as I would get to a buffalo! As beautiful and "American" as they are, I am afraid of them!
This is a group shot of us outside our bunkhouse at Re-Member on the Rez.
We were honored to meet Darryl Red Cloud, great grandson to Chief Red Cloud. Darryl sang a beautiful Lakota song for us at his great grandfather's gravesite. Darryl was very inspirational and informative.
The prairie was super-windy!
This home was cut in two and renovated to house a family of 4. We painted the outside, added some insulation, skirting, a stove pipe, and new windows.
My best friend, Slavica tarred a roof!!!
This was a different home where we also installed a stove pipe. I was told that Pine Ridge loses up to 125 homes per year due to unsafe stove vents.
Chris was the model for Corbin's regalia.
We went for a hike in the Badlands National Park. It was 90 degrees outside, but worth every step! What a beautiful place!
Re-Member is a non-profit organization that works with volunteers to improve housing on the Rez. It was our home-away-from-home for 2 weeks. Check them out at www.re-member.org.
