We arrived back at the firing pit late in the afternoon and gathered together at the newly constructed (and still under construction) Sanchez family home. The weather had changed some more...the rain had stopped but it had gotten quite chilly and windy. After unloading tools and supplies, we headed inside and found a roaring fire and a long table being set for dinner.
Gilbert and Waylan were gathering some more wood and Kathy, Evelyn and Vanessa were getting the food ready. After we were all seated, Gilbert Sr. gave a Tewa blessing while feeding the spirits with burning sage and kernels of corn.
After the blessing, Kathy gave an introduction to her daughter who earned an associates degree in construction and specializes in environmentally-friendly adobe construction. She gave a quick talk about her experiences in the Tewa villages, how buildings are renovated and restored and what building codes vary from pueblo to pueblo. She showed us samples of her work and photos in several large binders.
Gilbert Sr. spoke next. He was a former governor of San Ildefonso and has served as an advisor to several administrations in Washington. He talked about environmental issues on the reservation and issues regarding Los Alamos and nuclear proliferation.
Gilbert Jr. and Waylan then set out some more of the family pottery and earthen art and Ramos Sanchez, an accomplished painter in traditional native watercolor, set some of his work around the fire and the near the windows of the room. We were invited to talk after dinner about how the works were created.
Then we were all asked to serve ourselves in the kitchen and bring our food back to the long table.
Barbequed pork ribs and chicken, chili, beans and corn and salad were on the menu, all wonderfully tasty. The Sanchez family made us feel very much a part of their family and we all had a good time sharing about our time together. For dessert, we had chocolate cake and cheesecake (Gilbert's favorite).
Dick introduced Betty again to the Sanchez family and she presented gifts to Kathy...a recording of the First Church choir and a new CD of the Alexander Chapel Organ which had been constructed and dedicated to her late husband Rees. She was very grateful and all were touched by the thoughtful gesture.
Kathy closed our time together and her husband spoke a bit about maintaining our connections. We said the family and the community are aways welcome in New York and it was agreed that we are all now related as family and friends.
We stayed for a while longer, taking photos of the kids and our group, acquiring some special and beautiful artwork and pottery and saying goodbyes.
It was a satisfying dinner in many ways and we left Poh-Woh-Geh with full stomachs and hearts.
1 comment:
A satisfying dinner could mean the company and the food. I work at a drug rehab
and we actually live at the facility. We eat in a cafeteria serving 250 and we have cliques of people like you would see anywhere so it's always a joy to meet up with my crew of about 3 or 4 people and have meals with them.
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