#walking buffalo

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Photo: Rosemary Gillia

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“Did you know that trees talk? Well, they do. They talk to each other, and they'll talk to you if you listen. . . I have learned a lot from trees.”

Walking Buffalo (George McLean) age 92, near Morley, Alberta in 1962.

[Guillaume Gris]

+

“There comes a time when we must stop crying and wringing our hands and get on with the healing that we are so much in need of.”

- Art Solomon, Anishinaabe Elder.

[hippography]

Walking Buffalo of Nakoda Nation. 

Harry Pollard 

Provincial Archives of Alberta

History of First Nation Peoples in Alberta – Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortium

Rare Historical Photos

[dopeshitandcraftsmanship]

Supaman feat. Walking Buffalo - Ethnocide

[i-went-to-plaid]

perfect Saturday

I have this thing where I start to go all jittery and weird when I can't take regular long walks. Because of the holidays and the weather lately, it had been way too long since I took a decent walk, and I was starting to get antsy in my pantsy.

(An aside: I feel bad for my landlord, because he just had a new sidewalk poured down the side of my house. The POLAR VORTEX/cold snap put a large crack all the way down the sidewalk.)

Last week I was either inside all of the time (POLAR VORTEX), or running errands in my car whenever I could be outside, so the walking - other than the five-minute daily walk for work - was just not happening. When I heard it was going to be 50 degrees on Saturday, I got scary-excited.

My walk on Saturday was glorious! It was a bit rainy, a bit slippery, and I overdressed a little, so I was hot and sweaty, but oh, it felt so good to stretch my legs and get some decent exercise. I swung through several side streets on the west side, and I saw several cats who were watching me suspiciously.

I stopped at a library that was having a book sale, $1 for a plastic bag, which you get to fill! Also, I saw the cutest little baby there. His mother was holding him up right at my eye height as she browsed, and he was staring at me through the stacks. I would look down, look back up, and he would be smiling. He was dressed as some kind of dinosaur, and he had a perfect little Gerber Baby face.

My mom has expressed jealousy recently because babies never seem as taken with her as they are with me, despite the fact that she actually IS a kindly grandmother, and I am a woman who doesn't want kids and is actually less nice than my mom (mom and I both agree on this). But, for whatever reason, I delight babies, and it makes me happy. I am also happy that mom is jealous.

Anyway.

I feel great now, and I'm glad that I got such a nice walk in. Later, I saw "Her" - excellent, excellent film. And then some beers. Excellent beers.

A perfect Saturday.

[tuuguide]

     Biliyorsunuz, dağlar her zaman taş binalardan daha güzeldir. şehirde yaşamak, yapay bir varoluştur. orada bir çok insan, ayaklarının altında gerçek toprağı hiç hissedemiyor, saksıdakiler dışında bitkilerin büyüyüşünü göremiyor ya da caddelerin ışıklarından, geceleyin yıldızlarla süslenen büyüleyici gökyüzünü görebilecek kadar uzaklaşamıyor. insanlar yüce ruh’un yarattığı sahnelerden uzakta yaşadığında, onun kanunlarını da kolayca unutuyorlar. Biz herşeyin yaratıcısı ve yöneticisi olan yüce ruh’la iyi geçiniyorduk. siz beyazlar bizim vahşi olduğumuzu sandınız. bizim dualarımızı anlamadınız, anlamaya çalışmadınız. biz güneşe, aya ya da rüzgara övgüler düzerken, siz bizim putlara taptığımızı söylediniz. hiç anlamadan, yalnızca bizim tapınma şeklimiz sizinkinden farklı diye, bizi kayıp ruhlar olarak nitelediniz. Biz yüce ruh’un eserlerini her şeyde görürdük; güneşte, ayda, ağaçlarda, rüzgarda ve dağlarda. bazen bunlar aracılığıyla ona yaklaşırdık. bu çok mu kötüydü? bence biz, yüce varlığa, bize putperest diyen beyazların çoğundan daha güçlü bir imanla, gerçek bir inançla bağlıyız… doğaya ve doğanın yöneticisine yakın yaşayan kızılderililer karanlıkta değildir. Ağaçların konuştuğunu bilirmiydiniz? evet, konuşurlar. birbirleriyle konuşurlar; kulak verirseniz sizinle de konuşacaklardır. asıl sorun, beyazların dinlememesidir. kızılderilileri dinlemeyi hiç bir zaman öğrenemediler, bu yüzden doğadaki başka sesleri dinleyeceklerini de hiç sanmıyorum. oysa ben ağaçlardan çok şey öğrendim; bazen hava, bazen hayvanlar, bazen de yüce ruh hakkında.

Tatanga Mani (Walking Buffalo)

[maybeedmonton]

"Portrait of Walking Buffalo (George MacLean), a ninety-two year old Stony [sic] Aboriginal from Morley, Alberta," 1962.

[skullprincess]

Did you know that trees talk? Well they do. They talk to each other, and they’ll talk to you if you listen.

Walking Buffalo, Stoney [p. 7, Indian Spirit]