A Call to Action from the Alameda Native History Project
OUR MISSION IS TO:
Advocate for tribal restoration,
Promote Native American representation, and,
Educate the public about Indigenous rights and perspectives,
Honoring the ancestral legacy of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, and,
Enriching our community through innovative tools, immersive experiences, and collaborative efforts.
Through initiatives like ACORNS!, the GIS Lab, and Land Lab, we bring this mission to life.
ACORNS!
ACORNS! is a year-round program, aligning with natural cycles: acorn harvests (fall), seed germination and curriculum development (winter/spring), community seedling giveaways and culinary classes (spring/summer), and ongoing tree nursery management.
GIS Lab
The GIS Lab is a core component of the Alameda Native History Project, and its founder is an Opensource Geospatial Foundation Member. We are currently in the process of pursuing accreditation as a Geo For All Lab, further solidifying our commitment to open-source geospatial education and community empowerment.
We are committed to fostering the free exchange of information, training our community members in open source software and, showing people how to use open data to both learn and advocate.
Our goal has always been to enable tribes and indigenous people to collect, analyze, and store sovereign data using a myriad of tools and methods. But it’s our immersive educational tools that we need the most support to develop.
Land Lab
Launching the Indigenous Land Lab has taught us valuable lessons, informing our approach to infrastructure development and community engagement. The natural materials available, open workspace, and potential as a restoration nursery are too much to pass up.
Once we are able to get the Land Lab going, we will be able to support the rest of our projects with the actual materials we need, by producing them ourselves, rather than having to buy them. And we would be able to model actual acorn granaries in situ.
Join us in empowering the Alameda Native History Project – your support will directly fuel these initiatives, fostering a deeper sense of community and Indigenous cultural connection through immersive experiences and events.
Acorn Granaries are traditional California Native food storage systems.
Granaries were made all over California. – The acorn was one of the single most important food items in California.
“Hanging Basket” stores acorns off the ground. – Some tribes built platforms to perch granaries atop of. But not all granaries were suspended.
Material defines shape. – Some granaries are made with twisted stems, blades, and vines to form a Coil Basket (or “Birdnest” design. ) Others are made with small bushells of wild grass and thatched into an “Inverted Basket” (or, Thatched-Cone Design.)
Holds acorns overwinter. – An Acorn Granary must be resilient enough to hold Acorns over the winter. Repaired and reused over many seasons.
Basket-in-shell design. – Every granary is created with an outer shell made from strong, natural material resistant to animals and insects.
Hands-On Learning Experience and Cultural Exchange
Learn about the different plants used to make Acorn Granaries; and how pests were managed before GMO and RoundUp.
Learn how to split willow to make reeds, experiment with creating the different kinds of Acorn Granaries. Strategize how to keep out squirrels, crows, and other hungry critters!
Each week will have a different focus, as we move through the steps of Acorn Granary Construction, and preparing for the harvest.
From splitting willow to making various cordage, and thatching wild grass: We will work with a mix of materials old and new. And also address the non-native plant and their uses in construction and pest management.
Most of the material gathering will take place at the Indigenous Land Lab, and the processing of cordage, thatching of wild grasses, and splitting willows will happen in town, during the Granary Construction.
This is meant to be a very mellow and open-ended process that frankly invites a little bit of creativity, and welcomes a contemporary breath of fresh air.
And we’re also open to this process taking longer than a month.
Here’s a ballpark timeframe for construction and harvest preparation.
June-July: Gather Materials and Build Acorn Granaries
August-September: Continue to prepare for Harvest, Monitor Oak Trees
The main goal here is to be totally ready by the time the acorns start to fall!
This is why we’re creating the granaries now: So we can harvest, sort, and pack our acorns into these granaries as efficiently as possible.
But, we also want to give ourselves the greatest chance of success by using multiple granaries of varying construction materials and methods. This will also give us some data to analyze and use to plan for next year!
Join us for an informal and informative session where we’ll introduce ourselves, share important details, and answer any questions you might have.
Whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned local historian, this event is open to everyone interested in learning more about our community. We’ll discuss our goals, upcoming activities, and how you can get involved.
Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and discover what makes our community special. Grab your favorite beverage, find a cozy spot, and come join us virtually!
People who sign up for the mailing list get advanced notice of events like this one, and others. You can, too.Sign for our mailing list to stay in the loop!
The Alameda Native History Project is the proud recipient of a Native Solidary Project grant for our work mapping the Indigenous Bay.
Our mapping project seeks to reverse the erasure, and inaccuracies promulgated by biased archeologists and flawed anthropological analysis.
We do this by centering the indigenous knowledge and lived experiences in historical narratives about indigenous people by presenting those narratives from Indigenous People themselves.
This grant will go towards printing educational materials, and putting them in classrooms, institutions, and community centers Alameda, and the Greater Bay Area.
You can have a meaningful and direct impact in decolonizing history by supporting the printing and distribution of accurate, interesting, and educational Indigenous History materials to schools and other institutions in Alameda and the Greater Bay Area.
Since Alameda Native History Project started as a small research project in 2019, it has been run using the pocket money of its founder, Gabriel Duncan.
As the Alameda Native History Project started to become larger, and more established; being able to budget for upcoming events, meetings, classroom presentations, (and more) is becoming a vital part of operating day-to-day.
While the model of giving away stickers and maps for donations is sustainable, it does not raise the amount of funding which would allow us to do the big projects and work the Alameda Native History Project is truly devoted to.
Work like:
Correcting the inaccurate portrayals and misleading information presented by school districts, curricula, and even our local museums.
Developing and distributing Indigenous History Curriculum for Grades 3 & 4; and High Schools.
Engaging with the community to hold dialogues about our local indigenous history and strategize ways to engage everyone in the process of developing a community vision for the future which improves our present.
Empowering Youth and Elders to come together and share their stories and culture with each other in a way that begins to heal intergenerational trauma and restores the Continuum of Culture.
Recognizing that Oral Histories are a vital, integral part, of preserving our culture, elucidating our past, and helping the next generation forge their future while maintaining a connection to their ancestors, history, and culture.
Stimulate change, encourage experimentation with new and awesome ways to educate our youth about the pre-contact world, as well as the history of this place, which includes the voices and experience of those who lived it.
Provide access to, and training for next-gen equipment & software tribes can use to gather and create their own tribal data and databases, in a way that is sustainable, low-or-no-cost, and guarantees the Data Sovereignty of Tribes.
Providing funding, transportation, training and equipment for recording Oral Histories and documenting Elder Field Trips with Youth.
Give youth the guidance and knowledge they need to pursue their dreams, enhance their skills, and build the future they want to live in and leave for future generations. To let them meet and believe in themselves. And give them the space and reassurance to trust their instincts and know they are already our heroes.
This is not a wish list of stuff we want to do….
This is a list of programs/components which are already in development.
The overlapping nature and community buy-in for these projects already exists; and the community strongly believes that this work is needed, and important, to the survival of Indigenous Culture, Knowledge, and History.
The Alameda Native History Project is already beginning to plan and organize with other local organizations, educators, and change-makers to begin developing the programs and resources needed to achieve our goals.
But we still need the funding for equipment like voice recorders, tribal computers, gps devices, student/youth stipends, remote-sensing equipment, software licenses, and more.
Fiscal Sponsorship is a blessing
Because of Fiscal Sponsorship, we will be able to apply for funding for our programs under the 501(c)(3) umbrella offered by our fiscal sponsors, The Hack Foundation.
Alameda Native History Project is fiscally sponsored by The Hack Foundation (d.b.a. Hack Club), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN: 81-2908499).
We still have the same commitment to transparent financials.
The Hack Foundation allows us to be even more fiscally transparent: you can now view our current balance, and review our expenditures through our page on the Hack Club website.
We’d like to thank the Hack Foundation for this opportunity, the Native Solidarity Project for referring us, and the community–especially our elders, for believing in the work we’re doing.
Stay tuned for special events and project announcements in 2024!
There’s a new map showing the Shellmounds of Alameda.
It transposes the historic alameda shoreline onto the modern-day silohuette of the city. The map shows historic wetlands and tidal marshes, and the four Alameda Shellmounds.
Map of the Shellmounds of Huchiun, ~Muwekma Ohlone Territory~ Showing the Area Now Known As The “City of Alameda”
By: Gabriel Duncan
Description of The Map:
The base map is comprised of the present-day shoreline of the Alameda and Bay Farm area, indicated by a gray-hashed outline; with the land-mass filled in white. The overlay to this map shows the pre-1900 shoreline of Alameda as a solid black outline.
The Areas shaded in green comprise historical wetlands in the Alameda and Oakland Area. Alameda and Oakland were once connected. Alameda used to be a lush oak tree forest (Coast Live Oak), with verdant wetlands, and a thriving ecosystem. Alameda was also called la Bolsa de Encinal, or Encinal de San Antonio (a land grant reference.) First Peoples called this place Huchiun.
The green dots (or markers) indicate the approximate positions of historic Ohlone shellmounds present around 1908, and before. The shellmound locations indicated in this map were compiled from three different sources:
N.C. Nelson’s “Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region” [1909, University Press.]
Imelda Merlin’s “Alameda: a Geological History”, [1977, Friends of the Alameda Free Library]
Shellmounds are the resting place of the First Peoples of this area, Ohlone people. Ohlone people built these ancient structures over thousands of years. There are so many mussel shells in a shellmound they have a bluish tinge. Shells were deposited on land by birds, as well as humans, and the natural course of the circle of coastal life.
In the 1800’s until around 1980, Archaeologists and Historians thought that Ohlone people were extinct; and that these shellmounds were “trash heaps”. And they treated the mounds accordingly.
Americans used the shells and bones inside the mounds to make aggregate for concrete; landfill for levees; overspread to grade train tracks; and even fertilize plants. Grave robbers stole things from the Ohlone people buried inside the mound, and sold them to museums or collectors. The famous shellmound that Mound Street is named after (the “Sather Mound”) was used to pave Bay Farm Road on multiple occasions.
Shellmounds today are one of the most endangered historical sites in the Bay Area. But they still exist as a sacred resting place of the Ohlone ancestors. Alameda is the tribal homeland of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, survivors of the Missions Fremont, Santa Clara, and Delores, and the Verona Band of Alameda County. For at least 10,000 years, Ohlone people have called this place home.
Historic Shoreline (1851-1877) Datasets produced by NOAA National Ocean Service
Present-day Shoreline; City of San Francisco Department of Telecommunications and Information Services
Tribal Regions; A Time of Little Choice: The Disintegration of Tribal Culture in the San Francisco Bay Area 1769-1810, Randall Milliken, Malki-Ballena Press, 1995
Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region, N.C. Nelson, University Press, 1909
Alameda: A Geographical History, Imelda Merlin, Friends of the Alameda Free Library, 1977
Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, Personal Interviews with Tribal Chairwoman Charlene Nijmeh, Vice Chairwoman Monica Arellano, Tribal Member Joey Torres
Muwekma History Presentation to Alameda City Council, Alan Leventhal, Dec. 5 2022
Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area Website, http://muwekma.org, Accessed Aug. 10, 2023
“Road Paved with Bones Grewsome [sic] Covering On Bay Island Thoroughfare”, Alameda Daily Argus, Apr. 23, 1901
“Fixing the Streets”, Alameda Daily Star, Aug. 13 1908
“Mayor Has Idea on Roadbuilding: Takes Exception to Old Mound Being Used for Dressing on New Road”, Oakland Tribune, Oct. 9 1908
“Routine Ruled the Meeting”, Alameda Daily Times, Sep. 29 1908
“End Hauling Dirt to Island From Mound”, Oakland Tribune, Nov. 22 1908
About the Cartographer
Gabriel Duncan is the founder and principal researcher of the Alameda Native History Project. He is a recognized descendant of the Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute Tribe. Gabriel was adopted at birth, and born and raised in the city of Alameda, California. ANHP is devoted to researching and documenting the Indigenous History of Alameda, fostering indigenous representation and awareness in Alameda, and educating Alamedans about their local (living) history in a modern, nuanced way.
NOTE: This map was updated on 08/17/2023 to show the “Pre-1900 Shoreline”, Historic Wetlands, and Present-Day Land-mass; which are layers 1-3 on the list of references, above. Subsequently, those references have also been updated to reflect this change.
Since we’re not supposed to change anything on the server, our Merch/Giveaway page is still offering Limited Editions of the Indigenous Bay Maps and T-Shirts!
As always: we’d like to remind you that Alameda is Ohlone Land; the ancestral homeland of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.
The present-day Muwekma Ohlone Tribe is comprised of all of the known surviving American Indian lineages aboriginal to the San Francisco Bay region who trace their ancestry through the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose; and who were also members of the historic Federally Recognized Verona Band of Alameda County.
Created using derivatives of open-source data, including (but not limited to) USGS, NOAA, USCG, NASA, Google Earth. Analyzed, processed, and produced by the Alameda Native History Project, using open-source software available to anyone with a smart phone, and the most basic computer.
Why did the Alameda Native History Project create these maps?
Necessity
The first map created by the Alameda Native History Project was the geographicaly-conformed (or “geo-conformed”) version of N.C. Nelson’s historic 1909 Map of the San Francisco Bay Region Showing Distribution of Shell Heaps. This 20th Century version of Nelson’s map was painstakingly converted, and conformed, to 21st century Geographic Coordinate Systems.
Geo-conforming Nelson’s map made it possible to accurately plot the coordinates marked on Nelson’s map; and perform Present Day Observations of the Bay Area Shellmounds.
The San Francisco Bay Area Shellmound Map now has over 300 confirmed locations. The accuracy of this map has improved considerably over time; and the research version is now accurate to within 100 feet.
This was because maps like those featured by the Stanford University’s Spatial History Lab were little more than photocopies of the original coastal surveys, with graphic overlays.
While this might be impressive to some, the lack of any real functionality or new information derived from this kind of exercise was underscored when I tried to find/use this information in the context of the Shellmounds of Alameda.
Stanford University, Spatial History Project1909 N.C. Nelson Map of the San Francisco Bay Region Showing Distribution of Shellheaps
This made it necessary to recreate a map of the historic shoreline of the San Francisco Bay Region, and hand-plot more than 300 shellmounds, just so I could view these maps and take screenshots of them to share with you. All in an effort to show you where the Shellmounds of Alameda are.
Clarity
Reproduction of Whitcher’s Survey.
The same geo-conformance process was applied to an historic map of Alameda, which has become the Alameda Museum’s sole reference concerning the shellmounds of Alameda: Imelda Merlin’s “Alameda: A Geographical History”. This book is a Geology Master’s Thesis, by Imelda Merlin, who lived and died in Alameda, California.
The fact that Merlin was an Alameda resident; and that Alameda Museum owns the copyright to the book should be immaterial to the generally dubious nature of a photo-copied map, with hand-drawn notations.
In spite of the fact that Imelda Merlin was a student at the University of California, Berkeley, it appears that the most relevant information created by N.C. Nelson–for the archaeology department of the same university–was avoided altogether by Imelda Merlin in her work.
For the aforementioned reasons, it was determined that Imelda Merlin’s work merited careful scrutiny and interrogation.
Because, at this point, I already had two other sources of location information compiled for the Alameda Native History Project:
1. Public Records Aggregate
Any mention of Alameda Shellmounds in the following archives/libraries/collections:
All references to the Alameda Shellmounds at the Alameda Free Library:
this includes references in the Historic Alameda Newspaper Archives, and the “Alameda Historic Reels”;
as well as Clipping Files, Alameda Historical Society Card Catalog [Defunct];
Library Catalog, and Special Collections.
Online Newspaper Archives, Indexes
Online Finding Aids
Genealogy Websites, National Archive, and More.
References were logged, and copies of the documents were saved. Then the documents were analyzed, information was extracted, and processed to produce an aggregated list of locations of the Alameda Shellmounds–according to explicit references in these sources.
Then the locations were geocoded, and plotted to create a map that … I don’t even know what to call. “Shellmounds Mentioned in the News”?“Historic Shellmounds”?
“Public Records” is not a very attractive label; but it might be the best label for that layer on the Alameda Shellmounds Map. [So, in case you ask “What is the Public Records Layer on the Alameda Shellmounds Map”, now you know.]
2. Nelson’s Map of the SF Bay Region Shellmounds
Like I said, this was the first map I painstakingly recreated. So, therefore, I had the locations Nelson marked within Alameda.
When I analyzed the base map printed in Imelda Merlin’s book, I was able to use these sources to help conform Merlin’s base map with current Geographical Coordinate Systems, so I could plot the positions marked in the Imelda Merlin layer in the Alameda Shellmounds Map.
I used innumerable copies of maps, surveys, photographs, and other visual representations of Alameda, from 1880 to 1910 to help conform the “Whitcher Survey” referenced in Merlin’s Map. I was never able to find a true copy of the “Whitcher Survey”. The survey is not at City Hall–as Merlin’s book states–or in the Alameda Free Library. The Museum did not have it, at last check.
I also looked to see if any map copy provided by the official website of a University, or Government Institution, or the publisher itself, or a credible archive, actually included similar shellmound positions during the time Merlin’s map was created.
TL;DR: they do not. Not even the Land Grant Case Maps, or the legit Combined, Drafted, or Official Coastal Surveys of that time, have even a hint of a shellmound anywhere. (I even tried to find a copy of the coastal survey used in a well-known documentary about the Shellmounds of West Berkeley, but was unable to track down the file before publication.)
However, even though Merlin’s map diverges from the Official Historical Record, she did capture something in her hand-drawn sketch: all of the dots on her map correspond to places where Ohlone graves have been found.
In spite of the fact Merlin calls the First Alamedans “Miwok”–instead of Ohlone. In spite of the fact that Merlin doesn’t even mention the map in the actual narrative (or “text”) of her book. In spite of the fact that the map was published in her thesis (which was then published a few years later, in a book) without any references, or citations–aside from the coast survey base map.
Somehow, she manages to highlight the same places I have located using mentions of Ohlone graves and Native American remains found in historic Alameda newspapers. Many of these discoveries happened decades after the publication of Merlin’s work. …Which could indicate that these discoveries are coincidences, rather than correlations.
It makes sense that the discovery of human remains would be carefully guarded; only mentioned in whispers between Alameda insiders, and related professionals. Certainly, the newspaper would be encourage to leave anything like that out. … At least until the houses were sold.
It’s not hard to have editorial control when real estate companies were the primary revenue sources for local Alameda newspapers. Furthermore, the Redline wars in Alameda were brewing long before residents voted to approve Measure A, in 1973.
In a “closed”, racist, housing economy, where BIPOC are excluded, and declining property values could be caused by even a whisper of non-white interest in a neighborhood: the prevalence of bones underfoot could undermine the appeal of an entire city.
Historic Redline Map showing Oakland, Berkeley, and Alameda
Alameda was probably a place where the surrounding Indigenous communities would come to bury their dead.
When you take into account historic newspaper articles like the one below (from 1893;) and the preponderance of subsequent articles concerning Native American Graves and Remains found, and then plot those locations into their own map, you get a layer of “Remains & Relics Found”.
While it is the Euro-Centric imperative to determine a single point; and explicit boundaries: the size and nature of the shellmounds was as much a mystery to these colonizers as it is to us today. For different reasons though.
Early anthropologists, archaeologists, and ethnologists lacked the imagination necessary to make the logical leaps necessary to recognize the purposefully obscure nature of our infrastructure, or decode the metaphors we left in notes and drawings for our friends.
Because of this, and because white people destroyed as much of our stuff that they possibly could (on purpose [I don’t know why]), we are now–in many cases–left with the remnants of remnants.
Because the records concerning these events, and the mere existence of the massive burial grounds under the City of Alameda, and the cities of the rest of the San Francisco Bay Region have been actively concealed, and suppressed, this story has remained untold.
“Alameda’s Indian Mounds“, published in The San Francisco Examiner, on Sunday, March 26, 1893:
“When the progressive Alamedan decides to build a home of his own on a section of the encinal that have been allotted to him by his favorite real estate dealer…
“He does not order work suspended when the excavators, who have undertaken the task of building his prospective basement, run across a well preserved skeleton or turn up a hideous looking skull.
“He has become used to such things and he knows…
“in all Alameda there is scarcely a square yard of ground that does not harbor the crumbling remains…”
The pieces of the puzzle can still be found.
And so, Nelson’s Map, Merlin’s Map, and the Public Records map were offered as three separate layers of the Alameda Shellmounds Map; so that you may also discover and analyze the similarities and differences between the locations, yourself.
The other layers mentioned, such as “Remains & Relics Found”, and more are also available to view using the layers panel of the Alameda Shellmounds Map.
As our records continue to grow, and new information found, the map and this site continue to grow as well.
Aesthetic & Availability
Let’s face it: no one wants to look at nth generation copies of copies.
I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of trying to squint, and adjust brightness, contrast, and gamma until I can barely almost read the most important part of this chapter….
I want to look at a webmap of the San Francisco Bay Area Shellmounds. I need my experiences to be more interactive, and offer more than an empty citation to a book I can’t even find anymore. I want to see a scan of the book. And read the citation myself.
But even that’s not enough. I find myself getting triggered by the language of these old, dead, white men that I just want to fight.
Most of these narratives are written from an all-white perspective, often using racial slurs, and offensive descriptions. For the past 74 years, the Alameda Museum has furthered the “gentle savage” myth that permeated Victorian Era culture in America. And continues to push the idea that Ohlone people just disappeared from Alameda, and the Bay Area, entirely.
It’s been the same narrative since “time immemorial”. (Even that phrase is from a white-washed narrative meant to pander to a White Gaze that isn’t even a majority anymore.)
California History, when it comes to Indigenous People, is broad, at best. Very little space or effort is given to properly naming, or describing Native Americans, how they looked, where they lived, what they ate….
Most textbooks will even allude to American Indian relationships with White People as something symbiotic; and leave this chapter of history conveniently blank, to make room for the concept of Manifest Destiny.
The history that we are being taught has specifically avoided the policy of indigenous extermination enacted by a California Governor in the late 1800’s; California’s military support of Indian Wars in Oregon in the early 1900’s; or, how Los Angeles stole water rights from Tribal Nations in the Central Valley and has helped to destabilize the California ecosystem, with devastating effects.
We are not taught about this.
We have instead been dazzled by trains, bridges, and pretty houses with gardens, like babies with a ring of keys.
California is the most diverse state in terms of Tribal Nations, with over 300 Indigenous Languages Spoken in California, alone. We are astronomers, conservationists, artists, engineers, doctors, and so much more. Our stories and contributions matter.
Ohlone people still live in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area could use your help in fighting for federal recognition.
The Native American, Indigenous People that you speak of like they went extinct in the 1800’s; those people are my great-grandparents.
The first step in justice for Indigenous Californians is recognizing us.
This is why it’s important to update the aesthetic of Historical Curation, and Exhibition Design, to utilize the tools we have in the 21st Century to reach learners everywhere, using the interactive multimedia methods they use and engage everyday.
I can’t believe we’re nearing the end of the second year of Alameda Native Art, and the Alameda Native History Project, already. I feel like I’ve been sleeping on this site. Now there’s a whole bunch of stuff to add, and update.
ANHP Wiki
The ANHP Wiki reached it’s functional limit on Tuesday; when it broke for the last time. Hopefully, DokuWiki, or MediaWiki will upgrade their code a little in the next update. (Fingers crossed.)
Merch Section
I opened a Merchandise section to see if I could offer more prints and stickers for cheaper than RedBubble does. (It’s expensive.) But… I need the storefront and everything to be fully automatic, because I can’t be bothered with processing orders, payments, and shipping. And, I’m also not gonna buy 1,000 stickers, and just hope I can sell them all.
I have considered buying a bunch of slaps to give away or send to friends. That’s always an option.
New Content Coming
Lemme just list the things I’ve done in the past couple of months:
Visual Art, Maps, Graphic Design
San Francisco Bay Area Tribal Language Groups Map
San Francisco Bay Area Tribal Groups Map
And combinations of the above, sometimes with the San Francisco Bay Region Shellmounds Map
Verona Area Maps
Cover Art of various Historical Newspaper Articles, and for Books
Social Justice Art
Other collages.
Articles/Pages
I have a number of write-ups to start. I’ve got some drafts to re-visit, and finish; as well as new topics. And, lots of pages to update, and redesign, with all this content.
Writing, Stories, Serials
I’ve been having difficulty deciding whether or not I want to start talking about ghosts, and spirits, and stuff. I know it’s close to Halloween now, and everything….
And I’m concurrently devoting a lot of time to a project that is rooted in fact, and basically exalts the kinds of documentary evidence that does not exist, and cannot be found, when it comes to ghosts, and spirits, (and stuff.)
But I desperately need to address the spiritual intersectionality of being Native American–and having a spirituality that is deeply connected with the earth and the celestial bodies–and doing something which is supposed to be “administered”, or carried on dispassionately.
I can’t argue with my feelings as if they’re facts. I can’t use a hunch; a hummingbird; or the faint sound of singing on the wind as evidence.
I want to tell you that these things led me to the shellmounds; showed me to the evidence; helped me out without any real information to go off of. That I seemed to arrive there by magic, or Luck (with a capital “L”.)
Common Sense isn’t scientific, either. But this is investigative journalism, if you really put me in a corner. I’m just answering all of the questions I had as kid; I’m trying to accumulate all the information I need to form a model of “what it looked like” in my head. Somehow continuing an inquiry-based education.
But this journey is based on a deep-seeded wound that I have held on to for too long. Something I still can’t really define, yet. (But I’m working on it.) It has to do with my adoption. And my search for myself, and my birth family.
It’s almost the end of second year of this project (“Season 2′).
It’s time for some deeper reflection. And some story-telling.