"Contrast"

The day before our team departed for Pine Ridge Reservation I was in a local grocery store. The clerk engaged me in a conversation about the hot, humid weather we were having, so I mentioned that I was going to a place where it gets even hotter! As I told her about the trip, her eyes and face hardened and she shared her story of trying to help some Native people in the past only to end up feeling used. She was a bitter, angry person and warned me of the possible harm that might befall me as I visited South Dakota! I was taken by surprise, but told her that there are people in all ethnic groups who behave in the negative ways she was complaining about. I left the store all the more determined to look for positives in my visit to Pine Ridge.

It's easy to focus on the negative when so much is hopelessness and despair. In the town of Manderson, where our tutoring team and one construction team traveled most days, there were four deaths during our visit. Two of the deaths were teens, one a suicide, the other a car accident victim (a granddaughter of the family the construction team was helping). Yet Scripture says to "think about" whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). In the midst of so many contrasts, it was difficult at times to obey Paul's command.

The first contrasts that struck me were the changing landscapes. We drove through the dry Badlands on narrow winding roads into rolling hills and grasslands. Weather also changed frequently, from sunshine to rainstorm, warmth to coolness.

Most of the contrasts apparent to me as I experienced my third trip to Pine Ridge involved people: the very young and the very elderly (I think the average age on the reservation is around 15, so there are many, many children); the college educated and high school dropouts; open friendliness and those who would barely make eye contact (I've been told that's a showing of respect in Lakota culture); healthy bodies and those ravaged by poor nutrition, physical abuse, diabetes, and/or alcoholism; smiling faces and expressionless ones; Christian faithfulness and those following the old Lakota ways.

Contrasts in family values were apparent: some families respect their elders and value their children and grandchildren while others abandon and abuse them. I met a young mother who was struggling to protect herself and two babies from her abusive husband. On a "reconnecting visit" we spent time with two families who have three or four generations all living together supporting and caring for each other. I know several people on the reservation with college degrees who gave up careers to come back to care for elderly parents and/or grandchildren, enabling their own young adult children to pursue higher education or military service. Military service seems to be a key route to acquiring an education.

There were contrasts in the pride people take in their homes: some let trash stay wherever it fell, while others try to decorate their homes and yards and do their best with what little they have, trying to stay positive in the face of adversity.

My list of positives ended up being rather lengthy: Cissie's strength in leaving an abusive relationship; the mentoring by Velma and Darla at YouthBuild and their determination to get new funding so they can continue to help young adults like Cissie, Veronica, and Jackie complete their GEDs; April's sense of accomplishment upon receiving her GED; the laughter of children at Friday's celebration; ethnic pride at powwows; old relationships rekindled by warm visits (the LaMonts, the Milks, Geraldine, and others); Tanya's college graduation party; deck/ramp and outhouse projects completed; fellowship and unity among ECC people. Other team members will have varying positive memories since we each went to different sites and had different experiences during the week.

The Lakota, although a different people from most of "us", are essentially the same as us. They laugh, they cry, they become ill, they worry, and they mourn their dead. They desire a good life for their children. They sense a need to worship God and have a relationship with Him. They are strong and they are weak just like we are. They are our brothers and sisters. And, as Jasper Milk (an elder from Wanblee) says, "We have each other in our hearts." (Philippians 1:3-11).