Language eLearning: Choctaw Nation language program

The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma has an excellent language website! 

I've been taking Choctaw I online since August.  The textbook we are using is "Choctaw Language and Culture" by Marcia Haag and Henry Willis.  Three mornings a week I log on to the class website.  After practicing vocabulary by entering the date and the daily weather (see below), we review a section of the book via webcam.  Our teacher is Ms. Lillie Roberts.  She is very knowledgeable and emphasizes the importance of reading out loud, listening  and understanding fundamentals.

What I'm finding particularly challenging is the use of a different alphabet than the alphabet used at CBTC.  I find myself having to double check my spelling!

I like having a steady, consistent time to do language learning.  As anyone who's learned a new language knows, you have to be intentional

Himak nittak vt Mvnti Aktoba awah tahlapi.
Himak nittak kucha yA libisha. 

For clarification:
The Mississippi Band of the Choctaw Indians is the tribal entity that CBTC serves.  The MCBI website also has information about language and culture.

Abby Farmer - in my office

We've all been learning a lot over the past two weeks.   A team of seven from the Choctaw Bible Translation Committee is traveling to Canada for a week long workshop called Healing the Wounds of Trauma. The workshop was originally designed to assist people from Africa to recover from tragedies they encountered as a result of civil unrest.  The book "Healing the Wounds of Trauma" can be found on Amazon. 

While I was taking classes at the Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics, we covered the contents of the book during one of my classes.  The purpose of the workshop is adapting the concepts in the book to a Native American context.  

We are in the process of fund raising to send our team to the workshop. 

More beaded medallions

 Some new beading projects! I've gotten a lot better with more practice!  Above is a part of my bead set.

 Three medallions that will make-up the necklace portion of my bead set.  Choctaw dress (usually) includes a necklace, two beaded bibs, earrings, and two pins that are attached to the dress. 

 A first attempt at earrings. 

 Earrings completed for Michelle in the Red Water (Oka Homma) colors - red and yellow. 

 Bolo tie that I made for Gary.  I attached an elastic loop on the back for the leather straps. 

 Cobalt blue, white and maroon special order earrings with rhinestones.

 Red and white special order earrings.

Consultant Check

This has been a busy week for the CBTC translators.  A consultant from the American Bible Society, Steve, came to the office for a few days of intense checking!  The translators and board members spent the week painstakingly going through the Gospel of John.  One of the translators read the Choctaw language draft.  Another translator or board member would do a back translation in English.  Then, Steve and our own exegetical consultant, Laura, checked the meaning against the Greek and Hebrew text.

Soon, we'll have the gospel of John ready for publication! This weekend, we're all going to take a much needed break.

Stickball (Kabotcha) Season has officially started.  Around the Reservation, you can see teams practicing in fields.  Today at work, it became apparent that rivalries have started in earnest.  In our office we have representatives from Red Water (me), Conehatta (Lillie), and Pearl River (Elijah).  My housemates (Jason and Josh) are playing with Bogue Chitto. 

We practice 3 nights a week.  We do drills like shooting on the goal, passing, and sprints.  And we run - a lot!  Last night we had practice and I got roughed up pretty bad -  elbow to the gut, fell backwards and hit my head and stopped ball with finger. 


Leonard commented this morning, "Welcome to Choctaw stickball."  Obviously I'm not going to get any sympathy. 

We have a scrimmage game May 6th in Standing Pine.  

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.