Siletz news /, December 01, 2009, Page 9, Image 9

TAFT CULTURE NIGHT - A young girl (above) paints her pumpkin as part of the
decorating process as Molo Whitebear (left) helps his son, Niko, with another pump­
kin at Culture Night at Taft High 7-12. Members of Wy east (below) drummed and
sang during the evening and shared that the word “Wy’east” is what the Wasco people
call Mt. Hood. They described the drum as “the heartbeat of our people, of Mother
Earth" as they taught drumming skills to some of the younger ones (above left).
Culture Night, con’t from page 1
community and it is everyone’s responsi­
bility to take care of our community.”
The pumpkins painted in October rep­
resented the fall harvest and felt like Hal­
loween. Activities change each month.
“We are always looking for people
to come share their gifts of knowledge,
whether it be beading, making drums,
telling a story, sewing, singing a song or
making a dish of food,” said Whitebear.
She relates the story of a Siletz Tribal
member who got his first elk last year. He
came to Culture Night with a large pot of
elk stew he had cooked. He did the same
at the Indian Education Parent Committee
meeting that same month.
It was so beautiful and rewarding
inside to have witnessed this because he
listened to what he was being taught,” she
said. “We’ve had small children who never
danced and learned here at Culture Night.
They don’t have regalia yet, but they do go
out there with spirit and honor and dance
at our events and pow-wows.”
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These evenings are sponsored by
the Lincoln County School District’s
Indian Education Program, Taft Native
Student Association and the Siletz Tribal
Charitable Contribution Fund. For more
information on Culture Night or the
monthly Literacy Night program, contact
Whitebear at 541-996-2115, ext. 185, or
juanita_whitebear@lincoln.k 12.or.us.
Whitebear sees these gatherings as a
way for Native people to heal and be part
of their community.
“I have to take this moment and
recognize and put my hands up to the
Native students of Taft 7-12 and their
dedication to their culture, all the former
Native students who come back and help
and for their dedication to their traditions,
and the love and support from the Lincoln
City community with keeping that fire
going,” she said. “It couldn’t have hap­
pened without you. I also want to thank
all the families that are now coming.
Welcome home.”
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Holiday Stress Survival Tips to Help Get You Through the Season
According to the American Institute
of Stress, more than 110 million Ameri­
cans take medication for stress-related
causes each week. When the holidays
come along, people already predisposed
to stress can find themselves feeling blue
and more stressed out than usual. For
those who don’t ordinarily feel stressed
under the pressure of events, the holidays
can still play havoc with our lives.
With all of the cooking, entertain­
ing, shopping, wrapping, holiday cards,
house cleaning and family visits, a
responsibility-packed schedule paired
with our own seasonally high expecta­
tions can easily transform joyous times
into stressful ones.
So what can we do? Plan for stress,
say the experts, just like you plan ahead
for any calamity you want to avoid.
Quick Tips for Stress Reduction
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Have a positive attitude. It all starts
with you.
Be patient with others - not all people
only have warm and fuzzy feelings
related to events that might have hap­
pened to them around the holidays but
on the same token, don’t let others
bring down your positive attitude.
Plan ahead and have reasonable ex­
pectations. Make a list of what you
want to get done. Then take a couple
of things off until the next day be­
cause you will inevitably deal with
crowds and other unforeseen events
that will throw your schedule off.
Try not to worry about things out of
your control. This ends up draining
your precious resources.
Exercise. A few extra minutes of
exercise each day can benefit your
overall health and immune system,
making you less susceptible to illness
and stress.
Eat nutritional food. Decrease the
amount of fat and sugar you eat. In
the winter, we tend to crave fats and
sweets, but ironically these can drain
us of our energy, running us down and
making us more susceptible to stress.
Rest. Try to get eight hours of sleep
each day or the amount you know
makes you able to tackle your next
day’s challenges the best.
Get (or give) a massage. A massage
can be beneficial for the mind and
body and also makes a great gift for
others stressed out by holidays.
Don’t forget to breathe, nice and
slowly - you can do this.
Smile - even if you don’t feel like it.
Scientists have shown that chemicals
normally released when we are happy
are released even when our smile
muscles move, so grin and bear it!
December 2009
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Siletz News
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