Day 5...Blogs, Blizzards and Blackouts...adam

Where do I begin today? A day of firsts, a day of high winds, a day of high snow, a day of high flying planets...(I'll come back to that last one) We arrived last night to Howard,SD and our accommodations at the local 4H complete with horse stables for our some now 40 horses. After taking the horses from the trailers and into the stables a fe of us huddled around a laptop to look at the weather for the next day. The forecast, snow, wind, rough conditions. The group then proceeded to circle up. This was the first time we had done this. We'd circled up for ceremony's outside but mainly during these ceremony's there was only one or two people speaking and we were outside with logistical concerns about keeping ahead of the weather and making certain mileage markers during the day. Last nights circle was different. We made it to Howard after a long day of riding. As we passed the microphone around to hear peoples comments, concerns, feelings about the ride/day, you could tell the riders legs were sore and they were tired from the journey but they stood. Upwards of 50 people shared their stories, their history, their personal journey and they stood. We were hungry, tired, and knew that there were challenges ahead tomorrow...We all stood. We wanted to share, we needed to share, and I could feel the Utopian words of "We're all family" grow simply from language and thoughts to hugs, helping saddle a horse, pushing a car out of the snow, cooking for 50 people, sharing a blanket, making tea for a friend. Thoughts are things.

7am came very quickly this morning. We plugged in the coffee and awoke to a blizzard. Horrific riding/driving conditions and the waiting game began. Some wanted to ride, others wanted to wait until the afternoon. Visibility was zero, the snowy wind was blowing sideways, and after deliberation and communication within the group the decision was made to wait until at least 12noon to see if the storm would pass. We were back to the laptop now and continued to check in with local weather sites to see what the forecast was for the upcoming hours to see if we could ride today. It's 22 miles to our next stop Madison, and you could tell there was a itch within the group to get moving regardless of the conditions. As the day wore on, it became more and more evident that the weather was not going to break. The final decision was made. Although the passion and spirit of the riders was strong, the best decision for the group was to remain here in Howard for the day/night and ride tomorrow. We moved swiftly into action. Our host here at the 4H Jim Krantz made his indoor stable available for our some 40 horses and our job now lay in getting enough bales of hay indoors and then get the horses out of the cold and into the warm shelter for the night. I have to say. I've traveled all over the world and I feel have had a lot of truly amazing experiences. Today's experience of running horses out of a stable through snowy conditions and snow drifts that came up to my knee into an indoor shelter is one of the most memorable and amazing experiences I've ever had. Rolling out the hay, ushering these beautiful animals inside is something I'll never forget and am thankful to all of the men and women who trusted me with their horses enough to handle them. Quick real time update, there's some sort of amazing drumming going on right now with some sort of hat game going on. I can't completely tell what's happening but I'm enjoying the community feel and it's nice to see people circling up and laughing, playing games. Ok, back to today. After the horses were placed in the barn, the hay was placed all around the fenced in area, I stuck around to just watch.
I watched these horses for over an hour. Just watching, leaning against them, rubbing them, brushing ice off their backs. I melted. It was pure love. Pure emotion and pure stillness. The fact that these animals who during the ride display such power, grace and strength can all of a sudden become so still that they begin to look like statues was mind blowing. I've never been this intimate with a horse. Never been able to look this closely at them, attempt to read their body language and as Sarah would say "tell without telling"... That's the part of today that I truly loved. To see all of the strength, passion, power, love and energy that these animals posses frozen in a moment. I breathed deeper than I had in a very long time. I hung on them like I was a 5 year old. Just leaning on them, letting them feel my weight, feeling their strength. It was so relaxing. If not for needing to do other things around the center, I would have laid with my chest on that horse for the rest of the day. Laying on the beach in a tropical paradise has nothing on a snowy afternoon break with my new 4 legged friends in Howard, SD. Speechless.

Back to real time. We've just screened a 3 minute cut of the footage so far. It's amazing to see this film begin to come together and I'm loving the process of involving everyone in the shooting, feedback and sharing sessions. I have Silas and his commitment to empowering others to thank for making this a special experience for me and I know for the rest of the community. Emotions ran high after the screening and through my tears, I listened to other riders/supporters share their thanks for "the film crew", (FILM MAKER!!!, I'll return to this:)) their fellow riders, the communities that we are riding through and most importantly the native ancestors who were hung, displaced, and a people who have been oppressed for way too long. It's time for a change and it's empowering to see so many individuals "Be that change" here on the ride. It's happening now, here, all over. Can you hear this drum? Can you feel it? Carl and Kevin are pounding on this drum as this game is being played. People are smiling, eating, watching others, talking...close your eyes, turn off the television, the radio, turn your phone off, go outside if you have to...Listen, can you hear the drums? The sound of change, the sound of revolution and the cries of a people who are fighting for their culture and their lives...To me it sounds like a heartbeat. One heartbeat, One people, One breath, One moment. That's how change comes. It may look like it happens over long periods of time but it happens in one moment. It could be now, could have just happened or it could be coming. We just have to listen for it. Find your horse, find your peace and find yourself. Ask questions, smile at children, maybe learn the drums:)

We leave tomorrow morning and we'll decide as a group how we travel. I'm off to eat some food. Oh and yes, I promised you the Pancho "Astronomy" story. Basically Pancho is an Astrophysicist who after the film screening, gave an amazing presentation about the universe, our place in it and it's oneness. I want to thank him for the presentation, inspiring tonights blog, and truly inspiring everyone he comes in contact with. I'm honored to be here with him...Si se puede!

I understand blog and blizzards Adam but what about the blackout part? For about 10 minutes tonight we were without lights. That's it. It was a "B" though and I thought would fit nicely with the first two "B's"...that's my creation today...ha...