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American Indians visit Head Start 
Samuel Stancil, a student at the Harris-Ross Head Start Child Development Center in Taylor, gets a drum lesson from Paul Frias, a Lipan Apache from Georgetown.
photo by Jason Schaefer |
By Jason Schaefer To the delicate sound of wooden flutes and the heartbeat of a drum, Lawrence Storm Hawk, a Jicarilla Apache born on a reservation near Dulce, N.M., entered Room 1 of the Harris-Ross Head Start Child Development Center in Taylor. Storm Hawk walked tall and proud. He carryed a gnarled old walking stick and was dressed in beaded buffalo skins. Around his neck was a medicine bag, filled with herbs and baubles to protect him, he said, and he had an eagle feather tied in his long salt-and-pepper hair. The thread tying the feather in his hair was colored in the alternating green, yellow and red of a Vietnam veteran’s service ribbon, and like the theme of his presentation, carried the symbolism of unity between an older way of life and American culture. Lipan Apache Paul Frias, a Georgetown resident who works with Storm Hawk to improve schools at American Indian reservations across the U.S, accompanied Storm Hawk. The pair gave the children — who sat impressed, wide-eyed and at first, a little frightened — a short introduction on what it means to be a true American Indian in today’s society, and dispelled some of the myths of life on the reservation. After a traditional greeting in the Apache tongue, “wa-shi-te,” which he taught to the children, Storm Hawk told a story his grandfather taught him when he was very young — the story of the sacred bear. In the story, a young, headstrong Apache defies the laws of his people to always respect the animal, and kills and burns a bear. From its remains a cloud of mosquitoes was born, and to this day that is why the Apache do not swat them, Storm Hawk said. Frias, who was carrying a rawhide drum with a painting of clouds, the sun and a blue wolf paw print, explained to the children that the sound of the drum is meant to mimic the sound of a beating heart — the heart of Mother Earth. Beating the drum to keep tempo, Frias sang to the children a rendition of an Apache song about thunder. Storm Hawk explained to the children about his clothing, which was made from buffalo skin and beads from Europe. “The buffalo is sacred,” he said. “We make our clothing from its skin and tools from its bones. You see the feather in my hair? It’s an eagle feather. You know what we call the turkey? The ‘giveaway eagle,’ because it gives itself every year.” During a question-and-answer session, the pair explained that some American Indians still live in teepees and ride horses, but that many live modern lives, a lot of them unaware that they are direct descendants of American Indians. Storm Hawk explained that American Indians celebrate Thanksgiving, but in a different way. Families get together for a ceremony, and the holiday carries different connotations, he said. Many of the more than 500 Indian Nations in the U.S. today still deal with problems. “The Shoshone and the Arapaho live right across the street from each other,” Storm Hawk said. “And they still fight. They hate each other.” Teacher Mary Helen Gonzales, who knows Storm Hawk as a friend through her husband, Taylor resident Benito Gonzales, invited storm Hawk and Frias to the school. Frias and Storm Hawk make it a point to visit as many interested parties as possible, when they’re not helping out on the reservation. “Any time we can come out and teach the kids a little bit about our way of life, we’re there,” Frias said.
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