Cooking squirrel on a December afternoon

I didn't get up before dawn this morning to wander around in the woods hunting rabbits (chokfi) and squirrels (fani). The men from Hopewell Baptist Church did. By noon they'd gotten four squirrels (to the best of my knowledge). The men passed on their catch to the women of the church to dress and cook.

I arrived in time to watch Mrs. Isaac working on the last squirrel, taking the skin off with a knife.

The squirrels were then prepared with salt and put into a small black pot next to the fire to cook. I was glad to be near the fire because it was a chilly afternoon! The lady in charge, Lola, made sure there was enough wood on the fire and kept raking the coals forward under the pot. She used a large slotted spoon to skim the ashes from the top of the water.


We talked around the fire for a good long while as the food cooked. Henry told me about how things used to be when he was young. It used to take a long time to prepare meals - collecting wood, waiting for the fire to be just right, waiting for the meat to cook. Things are so immediate now. He was surprised to learn I'm from Pennsylvania. (Yes, I am cold in Mississippi but I'm glad I don't have to shovel snow.)


We enjoyed a meal of meat, biscuits, pork n' beans, pineapple upside down cake, greens and (strong) coffee. I smell like campfire smoke now, the chill hasn't quite left my toes. And I am happy.

Friday Choctaw language Bible study

Friday December 9, 2011

It was cold this afternoon. I put on a pot of coffee and leaned against the counter in the office kitchen, listening to Leonard read 1 Corinthians 6 in Choctaw. After some a few verses he began to talk about the meaning of the verses and how it relates to everyday life. I understand a few words here and there, and he's good enough to provide a sort of English paraphrase. Leonard has been holding a Choctaw language Bible study at the CBTC office on a weekly basis. Tonight I joined the group for the first time. Everyone was a little sleepy after a long week at work but the coffee perked us up a bit.

Leonard talked about the need for Christians to live differently. He encouraged us to live out our faith and be a good example (even if the people around us don't understand why we are trying to live differently). A humble man, Leonard talked to us from his own experiences and testimony. He doesn't want his kids to make the same mistakes. He said that "God doesn’t give us tasks that he doesn’t equip us for." The life experiences he's had have allowed him to related to the people who attend his church.

Working on the Bible translation has given him new perspective on the Gospel. He said that as he's gotten to know the Word he's seen changes in his attitudes and behavior. Working with different Scripture resources, translating, doing community checks and then using it as a resource for preaching has allowed him to make the Bible real and applicable.

As I thought about the interactions of the evening on the way home I thanked God that He's allowed me to be here. I am blessed to be part of this work.

Yakoki Chihowa.

Bita Ikbi

The students recently completed diamond pattern headbands.

I've been working with Pam at Choctaw Central High School for about a month now. Each day is different. My activities include:
*assisting her with teaching
*helping the students complete projects
*grading, typing lesson plans
*creating worksheets
*brainstorming ideas.

After school Pam and I study language and culture together. We are working with "Choctaw Language and Culture" by Marcia Haag and Henry Willis. It's published by University of Oklahoma Press so the alphabet used is the one used by the Oklahoma Choctaw. (I'll write about the different alphabet/orthographies in a later posting).

My task this week is creating a "how to" book on making a diamond pattern headband. I'm combining English and Choctaw vocabulary with photos and illustrations of each step.

We're also doing language learning & culture discussions about beading techniques. The students are creating beautiful beaded Christmas ornaments!

Choctaw Christmas CD

Choctaw Christmas Music in the Choctaw Language!
Nittak Hollo Chito Isht Talowa CD now available!

Also:
Christmas Music song booklet!

For more information, visit our Facebook page.

Season to Give & Recieve

Since Christmas is the season of giving and receiving, I’d like to let y’all know about some of my favorite ways to give and to receive!

Give: Soldiers Angels

I read about Soldiers Angels in a Guideposts article in 2008. The article described how the organization was formed to provide care packages and support for American service personnel serving overseas. (The slogan is “May no soldier go unloved.”) I volunteered to “adopt” a solider for 1 year. The commitment meant sending 1 care package a month and 1 card/letter per week. Since then I’ve had three adopted soldiers. I joined the Letter Writing Team (sending letters of encouragement once a week to different soldiers) and most recently Cards Plus team (sending cards for special occasions to soldiers, veterans and their families).

I think that supporting our troops and their families is extremely important. I encourage you to take a look at their website and see if there’s anything you can do for soldiers this holiday season!

Give: Angel Tree

Inside WalMart stores there's a tree with small paper angels attached to it. On each angel are gift requests from children in need. Usually the items requested are clothing, shoes and toys. Consider picking up one of the angels and adding the gift to the collection there!

Receive: Goodreads

I love to read. It's easily my favorite hobby. Goodreads is a fantastic website for people like me who love books. It's very interactive - create a bookshelf with your favorite books, get recommendations, answer trivia questions, add friends and read author blogs.

The site has a giveaways section where you can enter your name to win new editions of books from the author or publisher. I won two books so far.

Receive: Amazon

Amazon is listing a free MP3 Christmas music download every day during December. They have a wide selection of free MP3 singles and albums. I already started my Christmas music playlist!