Pine Ridge is a Native American Reservation (“the Rez”) with an interesting history. I’m told I need to watch the movie “Thunderheart” in order to better understand the history of discrimination that affects the Lakota Indians of Pine Ridge.
As for the 7th Generation Prophecy: from what I understand, the Native Americans of old have passed down a prophecy that sees the 7th generation (us) as the generation of people who will bring life full-circle by reconnecting the human race with mother earth or the Great Spirit. I heard that they predicted that people of all color would come together in a mission to help restore the balance between human life and this planet. This concept is still fuzzy because I have not heard it from anyone who knows the real history, but it is worth investigating.
The Fearless Facilitators for the Project
Some fellows in Fairfield Iowa, Temba and Mahesh, have an ongoing project at “the Rez”. The two afore mentioned characters are naturally concerned about the well-being of a combined family (3 adults and 7 kids) living in a 3-bedroom mobile home. Black mold and limited access to appropriate heating methods place this combined family in a world of trouble each winter. People on the reservation are freezing to death each year.
Temba and Mahesh have teamed up with a non-profit organization called Nature’s Compassion that hopes to serve the families living in poverty in Pine Ridge and beyond by building earth-bag dome homes with the families in need.
The Trip
For Mother’s Day weekend Jeff and I packed up our tent and the puppy and headed to Iowa to meet Temba. From there, Temba, Mahesh, Jeff, and I traveled the 12 hours to Pine Ridge for a whirl-wind 2-day stay in the “Badlands” of South Dakota (though, we have taken to the name “Goodlands” for the sake of our psyches). We were greeted by the friendly Lakota family and a habitat that was less than conducive to living in long-term.
The trailer inhabited by the large family had a small TV, a shabby couch, running refridgerator, electricity, no running water, no shower system, and a few small bedrooms that I did not look into. The family had one running, two-door car. There was a water source outside tapping into an aquifer. The water was cold and incredibly clean, but only accessible outside through a pump.
The land was open and fairly barren of any trees. Highly evolved prairie grass grows all over the rolling hills and smaller cactuses thrive amidst the grass. Lots of cattle and coyotes were around with the occasional domesticated cat. Down the road from the trailer is a westernized convenience store complete with cappuccino dispensers, overpriced junk food, water bottles, a tiny little produce fridge (in the far back corner of course), canned goods, and any type of candy you can dream of. The prices were usually double that of a usual convenience store, and healthy eating wasn’t really an option.
From what we saw while we were there, the whole family lives on processed foods like crackers, potato chips, candy and various other sources of sugar. One day when we were hanging out with the children outdoors, they had suckers in the morning, chips in the afternoon, lunchables for dinner, and ice cream cones covered in chocolate and nuts after dark. The kids were moody, whiny, crying and miserable as a result of this neglectful diet. At least one adult has been diagnosed as diabetic. I’m really concerned with the kids’ education about nutrition.
By the time we left the site, the group had built a composting toilet, planted some deciduous and coniferous trees, picked a spot to build the dome, and started filling up earthbags with rice hull. Rice hull is the shell of rice that is viewed as a waste product in the mass production of rice. It does not burn easily and is an excellent insulator for the type of build that will take place.
Continuation
About the second week of June we will head back up to South Dakota to start building the house. The design is based on the basic experimental design provided by CalEarth. There will be two larger domes and about 6 “niches” or smaller domes around the sides. Temba wants the walls to be extra-insulated, so he is proposing a double wall—one wall of earthbags (filled with sand and dirt found on-site) on the outside and one wall of rice hull bags on the inside. Both walls will be encased in earthen plaster.
Jeff and Mia testing the soil for clay content
Paper bags full of rice hulls—80,000 lbs. of ‘em.
Consuela is probably asking a question in this picture. She’s good at that.
Everyone is planting trees! Deciduous Black Locusts for the South side of the house. They lose their leaves in the winter to allow the most sunlight through to the house.
Mahesh meditates on the composting toilet’s dimensions.
Current residents entering their current residence. Lucy, Consuela, Martha, Cassy, and another girl whose name eludes me.
Temba chasing one of the younger ones in order to retrieve a sucker. We were strong advocates for better diets.
Temba and Mahesh cleaning up the last of the trash piles.
Complete composting toilet—Toothbrush and all… The sawdust is for sprinkling atop the pile after every use. It aids the decomposition.
