“I remember when I went to the Fourth of July powwow with my adoptive parents and my brother, Kris. We had traveled all the way from Seattle in a small Honda, with the car packed. Our suitcases had to be squished beneath our feet and it was hot. We were cranky and sweaty when we arrived at the powwow grounds. My mom had died the year before, and I hadn't been back to the reservation since then, and I was looking forward to dancing.
I had been dancing ever since I could remember, and it was always the
best part of my summer. I had the outfit my mother had gotten made for
me. At the powwow I re-met my cousin, Maggie, who I had played with when
I was a baby. We became fast friends, by chance we were both Fancy Dancers,
so we started to dance together. We would dance all day and all night,
forgetting to eat, sleep, or drink. Our feet would hurt and our ribs would
ache, but the next day we were at it again. Her mom, Pam, was a major
gambler, she played stick game until four or five in the morning, sometimes
longer, and we would sleep in a green huge van. We had to snuggle to keep
warm and her brothers and sister would come and sleep with us. Her mom
would bet lots of money, and won constantly. When she was finished she
would drive to their house, and she would give us Pepsi and fry bread.
And in a few hours we would wake up and start all over again.”
Our group decided to see how much the general public knows about powwows with a survey.
