We came together yesterday as a clan seeking a primitive life. And we found it in the canyon-like park near my house. The kids spent the day doing meaningful work in our new home. Thank you so much to Danny and Wendy for making the day fun and creative for all of us!
Village
We came upon an existing structure made of limps and branches. Together we added to it and enlarged it to fit our whole tribe. The girls enjoyed embellishing the structure by weaving long pieces of straw into beautiful designs. They secured the area from animals by making booby traps, and they even set up an area for making weapons. I was impressed with their ingenuity and ability to make beautiful, functional art. They created a kitchen like space where they were making mud soups. They worked hard to make a real fire by rubbing sticks together. Some kids swore it was really getting hot. They spent a long time at this (with our supervision of course). But, no sparks in the fire sense. The kids were sparked by all that they could do to make our village thrive. In the end, they didn't want to leave, and they even asked if they could stay overnight.
Hunters
Chief Danny held a competition for the lead hunter. The kids raced each other, jumped over spears and even found and and speared grapes (would-be rabbits) hiding in the grass. The boys really got into this. With sticks as spears, it was time to hunt buffalo. Some kids were hunters, and some buffalo. Both enjoyed the chase, and everyone was respectful of the animals they caught. We talked about how we could use all parts of the animals. With many vegetarians in the tribe, we talked about how to get the resources we would need while staying in line with our convictions. There was lots of exploration to see the lay of the land, and the kids seemed to enjoy their freedom.
Art
I wanted this day to be free and flexible and to give kids a lot of open-ended time to explore and create. We were successful in this. We did some artful things such as applying facial markings, making leather cuffs and bands, beading jewelry. Danny brought in some beautiful books of primitive art for the kids to look at. We also had the kids guess the function of some primitive art pieces. The kids had a lot of energy and interest in their work. They had the time to think creatively.They came up with great ideas.
Wendy took a lot of pictures of the day. I can't wait for you all to see.
Take care,
Joan
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