Preparing for a Vision Quest
/“ There are ancient secrets and lessons hidden in nature. If you seek for guidance, you will discover truth.”
Tobacco is an important part of the Lakota ceremonies and was offered to us, wrapped in red cloth tied with string, in thanks by Brad & Catrina for our commitment to providing ‘support’.
We were up early, broke camp and then made a run to Rapid City to suss out the local Walmart. We were preparing for a week camping with our youngest son, Brad, and his wife, Catrina. Brad had asked David months ago for his 'support' in his fourth and final year of his vision quest and that's why we were here. Catrina's mom had planned to support her, but at the last minute, medical issues prevented her from participating. In what I could only term as an emotional moment of bonding, the kids met us that evening in our hotel room and formally asked both of us to support them in their upcoming quest. We were honored, but not quite sure of our roles. The kids retired early to their room. They had lots to do in preparation for the days ahead. We pondered our upcoming roles.
Before I go any further... what is a vision quest and why are we participating?
In advance of our trip, I'd done as much reading and research as I could to prepare us for what was to come and what we might expect. I consulted AncientPages.com and according to its author, Ellen Lloyd, “Among Native Americans, a vision quest is a rite of passage, the most important event in one’s life. It means a person leaves one group to enter another and involves a significant change of status in society. Before a vision quest can take place, the young boy must first visit a medicine man and ask if he is allowed to enter on the spiritual path and find the answers to his questions. If the medicine man agrees, they both go into the village sweat lodge so that the boy can purify his soul so he can meet his spirit animal. […] What is important to Native Americans is that once you get a vision quest, you understand your purpose in life and can help the world. A vision quest is not about having fun and playing games. The ultimate goal is to get strength for life.”
We had only basic guidelines to go by as far as our support roles in the process. Women traditionally did not do vision quests, but they do them nowadays. Women and men have different 'rules' (traditions), but basically the quest is the same. As far as 'support' goes, Brad had told us “Eat because I cannot eat; drink because I cannot drink.” Day(s) long fasting from both food and water are part of the ritual, as is isolation.
There are also different rules for camp life which Catrina had outlined before we left. Women, for instance, must always dress modestly which includes wearing long skirts and shirts which cover shoulders and chests. No tank tops, no cleavage, no shorts nor slacks. No jewelry and electronic devices of any kind were discouraged. I don't own long skirts anymore, so I scouted out thrift shops before I left Las Vegas to find what I needed. David, on the other hand, had to wear long pants except for the sweat lodge where bare chests and shorts were required. There was much to learn, but we were assured, it was a 'gentle' group and they'd guide us along the way. We were advised that schedules and hurrying were not in the vocabulary... all things happen when it's time. They refer to this as “Indian time”. Something we clearly needed to get used to.
Early the next morning, we met up with Brad and Catrina. There were errands to do before we headed to the reservation: Walmart in Rapid City for supplies and freshies for the upcoming week, then a stop at Prairie Edge & Sioux Trading Post.
Prairie Edge is an amazing store that specializes in Native American fine arts and crafts as well as souvenirs, but most importantly vision quest and Lakota ceremonial supplies like sweetgrass bundles, abalone buttons, fine wool blankets and even buffalo robes. We wandered and looked while Brad and Catrina were on a mission, reminding me of a scavenger hunt, finding supplies and necessities for their upcoming quest. A separate stop was made at a shop to acquire tobacco, another ceremonial necessity.
We sped east along I90 following our children in the car ahead. Wall Drug signs spaced about 1/10 of a mile apart (or sometimes closer) caught our attention for miles, but didn't deter us from our plan. They are entertaining though. We were in the Badlands now and finally turned south towards our destination on the tribal lands near White River, arriving around 4pm. We had entered another world.
We were in the Badlands now.
We found places to camp in an unmown field under a cottonwood tree. We tamped down the long grass, set up tents and slowly immersed ourselves into Lakota time and culture. Our kids met up with old friends and other participants. All were welcoming to us. We shared a communal dinner with about 15 people. We had contributed little in the way of food, prep or clean-up, but we'd make up for that in the days ahead. We met Harold, the Lakota holy man and spiritual leader of the group. It was he and his wife who lived on this land and allowed us to use it.
Our campsite for the next five days. The kids pitched their tent nearby.
As the night wore on and the cold set in, we bade our good nights to the group and made our way up the a grassy farm road to our tent. The rest gathered around a fire and we heard drums and singing for awhile, then the coyotes howled and we slept.
So ended Day 1 of my vision quest journal. Join us next time as we learn more about our support roles and get more involved in the community.