Wounded Knee

A morning drive took us up to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. We'd been there a couple of times before, but had not gone as far as the Wounded Knee Memorial. Forgive the gory picture, but this was in our minds as we approached the scene of the historic event. We could see the very place where, in December 1890, someone took this picture of the aftermath of the massacre.

I've read a lot about that tragic event, and watched a couple of movies about it, so it was enlightening to see the actual location. It's not tourist season, so I can't judge what it looks like then, but on this occasion we noticed how shabby everything looked. The sign telling about the massacre has grafiti and bullet holes all over it, and we could hardly read the story. Sad. If you click on the photo to enlarge it, you may be able to read a few words and see the bullet holes.

This is the memorial. For those who don't know the story, the massacre at Wounded Knee was the last battle fought by white soldiers and Native Americans, the Lakota. You can read the details on the wikipedia site.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wounded_Knee_massacre

This hill is now a burial ground, and right between the stone pillars is a plot of ground where they buried the Lakotas who died in the battle. There are other graves on the hill as well.

We get a different perspective when we live near or in "Indian Territory", such as in the Black Hills. We can see how much they lost and we can understand the bitterness they suffer. Our prayer is that forgiveness and healing will eventually take place with whomever it needs to, and the Native Americans will be able to move on and become all they can be. They are wonderful people and many are working towards that healing and the true peace that will come with that.

Come, Boss!

Hey, or, Hay! There's not much to look at out on this vast Nebraska prairie, so I take my pleasure in these small opportunities! We haven't often seen cattle out our back window in this particular field, but this morning I noticed a few big reds moving at a fast pace, then I saw the tractor up on the rise. Aha! Soon there were many cattle all coming in a hurry. My title, "Come, Boss", is not appropriate because these seemed mostly to be bulls, or steers, which means they are destined for hamburger. (When I was a kid, my father always called our lone milk cows "Boss", or "Bossy").

Here they are, chowing down, with a few late arrivals still on their way. The rancher is heading back to his next chore. I suppose this feeding line only happens when there is snow on the ground. I am pleased to have been given this photo occasion, just as pleased as these critters have been to line up for their hay!

Nebraska Landscapes

Nebraska is a state I did not ever think of visiting. We did come through a couple of years ago on our way from New Mexico back to South Dakota, and I was excited to see Chimney Rock off in the distance. I love reading about the Oregon Trail and the hardy pioneers who came west. We are here temporarily, out on the prairie, and since I believe in 'stopping to smell the roses' wherever we are, I've snapped some photos of scenes I've enjoyed here so far.

Growing up and spending most of my life in Washington, I saw lots of wildlife, but I never saw a turkey in the wild. It's been fun to see "rafters" of turkeys all over the Black Hills and here in the Nebraska panhandle as well. In the photo above there are a large number of turkeys who probably shelter in the bushes nearby. This is near Chadron.

I love this apparently abandoned homestead with one of the windmills we've seen scattered across the prairie. The backdrop is a sky threatening more snow with the remainder of the last snowfall in the foreground. It's a haunting scene, the abandonment made more poignant by the cold of winter.

This scene I snapped out the window of my 5th wheel. One benefit of being out on the prairie is that nothing gets in the way of a beautiful sunrise or sunset! There are no cows in this picture but the lonely watering trough tells me there will be when the weather warms up.

On a Snowy Nebraska Road!

This is a situation most RVers would avoid like the plague! We left our job in Deadwood on Thursday and had no choice but to travel in the snow, heading into the Nebraska panhandle, where we will stay for a month or so with good friends to rest and repair— body, soul, and RV. We will sorely miss the 130 or so animals that we tended, especially our favorite ones, a young swamp wallaby, a New Guinea Singing Dog, and a tropical miniature zebu. Caring for critters can be heartbreaking when we get so attached. We meshed well with all the animals. After our stay in Nebraska we'll be well rested and ready for our next job, in Montana, in April. Life is exciting!

I'm OLD!

Yikes! The other day I received in the mail my Medicare card and all the literature telling me what I need to do to be included in this symbol of old-age, which I reach in a few months! Keith keeps telling me I'm not old yet, but will be when I'm on Medicare. I know by posting this I'm giving away how many years I've lived, but, oh well! The government knows it. Guess it's a milestone in my life. The benefit is that now I can go get several little repairs made on my body that I've been putting off for a long time because I have no medical insurance. Kinda like taking your aging car to the garage and asking for an overhaul! Hopefully my later years will be full of rewarding experiences and wonderful people, as I've seen so far. God is good!

Getting skinny!

Our fat cat, Poquita, is a fat cat no more. For some unexplained reason she has lost 6 or 7 pounds. We've had her to the vet and he could find nothing wrong. She's 12 years old. On a similar note, Keith and I have both lost weight, 15 pounds for me and over 20 pounds for him. We can explain our weight loss. We're both doing heavy physical work in the barn and around the ranch in freezing weather. (Nice benefit to a not-so-nice experience!) But what about Poquita? She's doing nothing more physical than sleeping, meeting us at the door, jumping up on the table to beg people food, then going back to sleep. A mystery! Maybe it's a sympathy weight loss!

From Roos to Music

It's been awhile since I posted, so I got out my camera today to see what I could find. Bennett's wallabies are eating their twice weekly piece of wheat bread. They love it and get so excited when they see me starting to pass out each piece. Also partly in the picture is a big eastern grey kangaroo who loves being with the little wallabies more than with his own kind. He's standing by an albino Bennett's wallaby. These guys are from a part of Australia where there is snow, so they spend a fair amount of time outside in the Black Hills snow. The kangaroos, however, are from the desert, so they don't like to be out for long. During a blizzard, falling snow, or heavy wind, we lock them inside so they will keep warm. I'm guessing they get a little bored when they have to stay inside during bad weather.

Here we have Sunnyburst, the dominant male eastern grey. He and some of his "mob" are eating fresh hay just thrown into their pen. These ladies are wallaroos, who share his pen along with 3 female eastern greys. Sunnyburst is the only "boomer" that I don't like to get too close to. He will challenge anyone to protect his mob. When he stands up he is my height!

On a completely different "note", here is what I like to do when I'm not out feeding, watering, and cleaning up after the roos and other exotics.

I am so fortunate to have a "music room" in my 5th wheel! My Yamaha digital piano fits so neatly into one of our slideouts, with room for a couple of file cabinets for music, and also room for Keith's guitar. What a pleasure to sit there in my spare time and pour out my feelings in my music. There is snow outside, and wind, but I can forget it when my fingers are playing Chopin or some other favorite composer, my new book "Fiddler on the Roof", or some of my many fancy hymn arrangements. I think about my "real" piano, a wonderful upright Yamaha, stored in a church in my hometown, and wonder if I might ever have it again to play on. My digital Yamaha is a good substitute and I am grateful to have it.