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Dear Early Head Start and Head Start Friends and Community,
Summer is underway and I wonder how is the summer going for you?
What are you looking forward to doing or what have you enjoyed in the
past few weeks? Have you started a new hobby? What is growing in
your garden, which author are you reading to relax, and with whom are
you visiting?
I recently read about the birth of a white bison calf – with black eyes, a
black nose and black hooves - at Yellowstone National Park.
Chief Arvol Looking Horse noted, “The thing is, we all know that it was
born and it’s like a miracle to us.” He is the spiritual leader of the
Lakota, Dakota and the Nakota Oyate in South Dakota, and the 19th
keeper of the sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman Pipe and Bundle. For
many Native American tribes the birth of the white bison is a sacred
blessing and fulfills a Lakota prophecy that predicts better times. A
naming ceremony took place for the calf at the end of June.
I have learned that the birth of a white buffalo holds deep spiritual
significance for many Native American tribes including the Lakota,
Sioux, Cherokee, Comanche, and Navajo peoples. There is a Lakota
legend that speaks of a woman who appeared during a period of food
scarcity. She shared the sacred gifts of a pipe and a bundle, “promising
to return and restore harmony to a troubled world.” She transformed
into a white buffalo upon leaving. The birth of the white calf is
prophecy for Chief Arvol Looking Horse and, are both, “a blessing and a
warning.”
We face many troubles in Head Start. You are welcome to fill in the
blank with the one uppermost in your mind at the moment,
______________. We also have sacred blessings. We have dedicated
staff. We have supportive legislators. We have families registering their
children, choosing the 2 generation model of Head Start services. We
have tens of thousands of alumni over 59 years. And so many more.
Let’s use time this summer to “bestow a name” on a sacred blessing.
Tell and share a Head Start story from within your community about
yourself, a staff member, family, child, volunteer, Policy Council, Board
Director, community partner or alumni. Head Start is a sacred blessing
for all of us.
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