WHAT A DAY

What a day! I attended a Pow Wow, visited an art exhibit, visited an historical exhibit, and attended an International Expo. And I did all of this in the span of four hours, one of the advantages of living in a small university town. I want to tell you about each of these events as each had emotional and intellectual impacts. Each made me think and ponder and wonder.

Okay then. My first visit was the Pow Wow. I'm not new to pow wows. I've attended quite a few at the Saginaw Chippewa Reservation. This pow wow, however, was held inside a sports arena at the university. Universities educate. Attendees were given a program with information about the pow wow, pow wow events, as well as the meaning of the different dances and the "drum".

The Grand Entry was spectacular. A tribe elder carried the "Eagle Staff" and was followed by war veterans bearing the United States flag, Canadian flag, Michigan State flag, and POW flag, then head dancers and dancers dressed in colorful regalia. I felt priveleged to be able to share in this celebration even if my participation was only as a spectator.

Some interesting facts:

Pow wows were originally held in the spring to celebrate the new beginning of life.

For the Grand Entry all the dancers enter from the eastern direction to signify this is where everything begins.

A dancer's clothing is called a regalia or outfit, not a costume.

The "drum" calls the dancers into the dance arena and symbolizes a heartbeat. The songs are a form of oral history.

Some of the dances include Traditional Dance; Grass Dance; Jingle Dress Dance; and Fancy Dance

TO BE CONTINUED