Reflection: Squash Blossom 2016

Each year, as our garden grows, I love to see the emergence of the squash blossom opening its petals in the early morning glistening and greeting the sun. My ancestors, and many other Algonquian speaking peoples have woven squash blossoms and vines into artwork for centuries. These large open flowers fill my heart with joy each summer as I spend time around our small garden. Almost every year, I take time to pause and admire these flowers. I attempt to take time to write a brief reflection.

The squash blossoms are large, beautiful, and frail, and they point to the arrival of summer and fall foods. They are also a source of nourishment for our body themselves, and if we are willing to pause, I believe they are a source of nourishment for our souls. I often wonder if this is why my ancestors had such a deep love for squash blossoms and included them in so much art. They are a small gift that reminds us, if we are willing to listen and witness, that life is fragile and beautiful—all of it, and that we should step delicately on the earth, and savor each passing moment. These flowers only emerge for a small season, and in the sweltering heat of summer they invite us to refreshment for our spirits, and to look forward to a satisfying harvest in the weeks ahead.

Even as I write this, these blossoms are giving way to squash and zucchini around the garden, and we are beginning to be able to enjoy the harvest. May we each take time to enjoy the simple beauty that God blesses us with each day, and may we learn to walk the earth in this beauty as well.  In addition, may we each look forward to the wonderful future gifts that these flowers point us toward, but not so far forward that we fail to enjoy the wonder of the present moment.

Battle of Bushy Run

Among the stops made with Dad and Jamie this weekend was the 247th anniversary of the Battle of Bushy Run. This particular battle is believed to mark the turning point of the French and Indian War and resulted in a treaty being signed at Fort Pitt just a few months afterward. The Native confederacy was led by a man named Pontiac who was an Ottawa. He and his intertribal group had started their uprising in detroit, and had pushed settlements as far east as Bedford, PA. He is considered one of the great Native leaders in history, and his idea of an Indian confederacy was revisited a few years later by a leader from my own tribe, Tecumseh.

I found out about the event through following the twitter account of Pittsburgh City Council member, Bill Peduto, and I had hoped that the event would afford me a bit of a walk down memory lane. Usually these events have a large array of primitive artisans and craftspeople, and I thought it could be a cool way to share a little bit of my own culture with Jamie as well as remember other occasions where I would share old tribal songs with re-enactors and others at similar events.

By the time we arrived, the events of the day were mostly over, but we were still able to see a plethora of people dressed in the period attire of eighteenth century british, colonial, or native people. There's a really unique community that surrounds these living history events, and it can be like a large reunion for the participants. While I did not personally reunite with any of my kinsmen or any re-enactors, I enjoyed seeing and hearing the passion this community had for preserving the nuances of the early history of the United States as they gathered on the site of the Bushy Run Battlefield.

I wonder what these passionate people will conspire to organize for the 250th anniversary of the battle?