There is always another beautiful shawl dancing around the corner!

I was desperately trying to shut my Cedar Chest the other day.  I pushed, pulled, rearranged and finally SAT on my Cedar Chest to get it closed.  The problem was a mountain of Shawls bursting out of my trunk.  Beaded Shawls, Give away shawls, Spanish Shawls, Ribbon work Shawls,

Shawls! Shawls! Shawls!  

What I know for sure is that anyone can always use another shawl.  Danette and I were at the dances in Hominy last year when a woman offered Danette money if she would sell her shawl.   I immediately said YES!  (After all it isn’t my shawl) Danette said NO!  (and gave me the Stink Eye) the woman was confused.  Danette accused me of selling the clothes off her back. (She was right!)

 

She has never been one to part from her clothes and I am not either which is why I had no problem saying YES!

When I feel like changing my wardrobe I just put a different shawl on and I am good to go.  

Recently, Danette went to the Osage Sovereignty Day PowWow.  She had a new style of shawl fabric that had Velvet Flowers on it.   She went out to dance one time and put the shawl over her chair.    In a split second this very nice woman came up to the table and said she had to have that shawl.  At first, Danette hesitated…..that is my shawl she said.  The nice lady  answered “That shawl is so pretty let me just try it on.  So Danette let her try it on and she could see true joy in the woman’s face (exactly how I feel every time I put on a new shawl) So I can proudly say she sold the shawl off her own back.

 The woman looks Lovely in her new shawl.

Danette called me later that evening and sadly told me that she had sold her shawl.  And I repeated my favorite motto.........There is always another beautiful shawl dancing around the corner!!  

Oh!! by the way Danette said she will not be selling anymore of her shawls!!

Memory Markers and Makers....our moccasins

The Osage word for moccasin is hom-pey. From the time our children are infants, we put tiny moccasins on their feet. Here is a picture of Julie's moccasins from when she was a baby. They are an exact minature of an adult size pair of Osage moccasins. 

 

Here is a photo of an all beaded pair of baby moccasins that were her fathers, Rusty Gilliland. Perhaps you have a pair that were your father's, mothers, or your grandparents. Often times we keep these small moccasins in our trunks or perhaps on display in our homes. These tiny treasures connect us to who we are. 

As we grow, we receive moccasins to dance in at our Osage ceremonial dances called the In-lon-Schka. Here is a pair of all beaded red moccasins for a first son called an elompah. These were commissioned especially for him by his mother. These moccasins took many months to make, because the artist wanted them made perfect for this special son. The hide they are constructed from is smoked brain tan. 

As we move throughout our lives, there comes a time to prepare for the next transition. I recall when my grandmother told me "Danette it is time to get my bundle ready for when I go home."  We gathered her blanket and her moccasins, and tied them in a bundle.  The bundle was prepared and set aside, ready for the next transition from her life on this Earth on to her next journey. 

We begin our life journey on this earth with minature moccasins on our feet. We mature and grow into our lives... dancing our ceremonies in our moccasins. At the end of our lives here on Earth, our moccasins carry us-physically, spiritually, and metaphorically. So truly moccasins are the memory markers and memory makers of our lives. 

Memory Markers and Makers....our moccasins

The Osage word for moccasin is hom-pey. From the time our children are infants, we put tiny moccasins on their feet. Here is a picture of Julie's moccasins from when she was a baby. They are an exact minature of an adult size pair of Osage moccasins. 

Here is a photo of an all beaded pair of baby moccasins that were her fathers, Rusty Gilliland. Perhaps you have a pair that were your father's, mothers, or your grandparents. Often times we keep these small moccasins in our trunks or perhaps on display in our homes. These tiny treasures connect us to who we are. 

As we grow, we receive moccasins to dance in at our Osage ceremonial dances called the In-lon-Schka. Here is a pair of all beaded red moccasins for a first son called an elompah. These were commissioned especially for him by his mother. These moccasins took many months to make, because the artist wanted them made perfect for this special son. The hide they are constructed from is smoked brain tan. 

As we move throughout our lives, there comes a time to prepare for the next transition. I recall when my grandmother told me "Danette it is time to get my bundle ready for when I go home."  We gathered her blanket and her moccasins, and tied them in a bundle.  The bundle was prepared and set aside, ready for the next transition from her life on this Earth on to her next journey. 

We begin our life journey on this earth with minature moccasins on our feet. We mature and grow into our lives... dancing our ceremonies in our moccasins. At the end of our lives here on Earth, our moccasins carry us-physically, spiritually, and metaphorically. So truly moccasins are the memory markers and memory makers of our lives. 

Memory Markers and Makers....our moccasins

The Osage word for moccasin is hom-pey. From the time our children are infants, we put tiny moccasins on their feet. Here is a picture of Julie's moccasins from when she was a baby. They are an exact minature of an adult size pair of Osage moccasins. 

Here is a photo of an all beaded pair of baby moccasins that were her fathers, Rusty Gilliland. Perhaps you have a pair that were your father's, mothers, or your grandparents. Often times we keep these small moccasins in our trunks or perhaps on display in our homes. These tiny treasures connect us to who we are. 

As we grow, we receive moccasins to dance in at our Osage ceremonial dances called the E-lon-Schka. Here is a pair of all beaded red moccasins for a first son called an elompah. These were commissioned especially for him by his mother. These moccasins took many months to make, because the artist wanted them made perfect for this special son. The hide they are constructed from is smoked brain tan. 

As we move throughout our lives, there comes a time to prepare for the next transition. I recall when my grandmother told me "Danette it is time to get my bundle ready for when I go home."  We gathered her blanket and her moccasins, and tied them in a bundle.  The bundle was prepared and set aside, ready for the next transition from her life on this Earth on to her next journey. 

We begin our life journey on this earth with minature moccasins on our feet. We mature and grow into our lives... dancing our ceremonies in our moccasins. At the end of our lives here on Earth, our moccasins carry us-physically, spiritually, and metaphorically. So truly moccasins are the memory markers and memory makers of our lives.