Alone in the Catclaw

Me as a TrailWalker at ANASAZI Foundation in Arizona. January 2007.

I recently read this journal entry from December 2008, written one of the many times I was working at ANASAZI Foundation (www.anasazi.org). I sometimes still need to remember the Awakening I had during that winter on the Trail.

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I had spent the week WindWalking, passing quietly and sometimes not so quietly through the different bands on the Trail. I spent a few hours of my second-to-last day on the Trail in one of the boys bands at Final-D (their final destination of the week). It was the week before Christmas and we were out in the Arizona wilderness. The sun went down and I realized that I had to work my way back to the other boys band, where my shelter was set up for the night. I said good night and climbed several feet up a steep rocky incline to the path—in the dark. To see, I felt with my hands. The rocks were wet from rain drizzling down all day and the temperature was dropping fast. When I finally reached the top of the incline to where the path lay, I headed upstream—feeling with my feet.

A few minutes into the journey, I tried to move forward and only got an armful of catclaw branches laden with thorns clinging to my clothes and skin. (Catclaw is desert plant covered with thousands of spiny thorns to protect itself.) I reversed but could not find my way out. I was stuck. So I prayed, calling out (half whining) to the Creator. I asked for help, not wanting to disturb the group of young men within yelling distance ahead of me. I promised the Creator that I would keep working at it and pushing on if He helped me to find my way through—even if it were tricky.

(A close-up of the catclaw thorns)

At that point, I had no idea which direction the path was. But I knew the general direction of the band upstream—their voices echoed off the canyon walls. I began again, climbing up and through the branches of a juniper and kept moving on—feeling with my hands and feet because I could not see my hand in front of my face. I kept inching “forward” like this for a good while until I got to another point where I was not sure what to do. I could see the glow of the fire up ahead. Determined not to quit, I decided to climb uphill, thinking that the trail might be a little higher. While climbing I grabbed a cholla cactus and put my other hand into a barrel cactus. I probably ran into five cactus plants before collapsing to the ground and crying out in despair. I felt so alone and frustrated—and stuck. I almost wanted to sleep right there. Breathing in the cold night air, I knew I needed to call out for help.

I hooted and yelled for my friend in the band to come help me. After a couple of minutes past—he came. I could see where he was because he had a flashlight. My friend called up to me in a perplexed tone, asking me how I got up there. I sheepishly responded that I had crawled. As he tried to spot me, he informed me that all he could see was solid catclaw. I slid down under the bushes toward the light, my friend, and the path. What a relief! I must have spent close to an hour traveling from one camp to the other when it would have taken me only five minutes in the daylight.

The next night, on my way home from the Trail, anxiety hit me. As I headed back into the city, I felt overwhelmed by all the realities of my everyday life that I put on hold while out on the Trail. I wanted to get married and to find a job in international education, but was making no progress, and felt like God wasn’t listening…and my life was stuck. I was stuck. Yet, I was trying to do everything possible and laying it all out before the Father. However, my raw emotions did not pour from me until I got home and into the shower. I stood there, water running over me. And just cried.

All of my worries hit me—I felt alone and despair, like I felt when I got caught in the catclaw and cactus on the side of the canyon. I knew I needed to ask for help from—not just the Creator—but from loved ones, as I was forced to do while sitting in the cold, wet darkness just the day before. I had the need for control and to do things on my own. And I realized that I needed to let go and be willing to let others share my burden. I got dressed and went into the other part of the house. As I emptied out the hurts of my heart and my worries, my loved ones listened and held me. I was not alone and I did not have to face my journey by myself. Nor did the Creator want me to.

Pottery!

8 inch tall canister (I'm guessing the height)

It has been quite a while since I last posted on here. And it's not because I haven't had anything exciting to share. Although, I do have lots of NOT exciting things in my life...like cleaning the house, and commuting 35 minutes to and back from work each day. But there has been a lot of interesting, challenging and exciting stuff, which I may get around to sharing sometime. One particular subject that has occupied quite a bit of my time this year is pottery. I've been teaching pottery for almost two years now at the high school where I work. And this semester I decided to take a pottery class at the community college where Jed is taking prerequisites to become a physician's assistant (will have to explain how this came to be in a different post). As far as the pottery class is concerned--I've LOVED it!! Learned a lot. And am getting better! This post is so I can share some of the pots I've made over the last year. Let me know what you think!

Our composting container...10 inches tall?

Mugs!

The lighting doesn't do this glaze justice...I love the yellow ochre mixed with greens and blues (4 inches?)

Medium/Large serving bowl...12 inch diameter?

Bottle Vase...8-9 inches tall

My first lidded casserole dish (about 11 inches by 8 inches)

I gave this to my sister, it turned out quite large...she baked a cheesecake in it! (seen as wet clay)

First teapot ever! (unfired wet clay in photo)

I loved the way the two glazes interacted here (abt 6 inch diameter, 3 inches deep)

7 inch diameter/4 inches deep?

Loved the glazes on the inside of the bowl!

Serving bowl...10 inch diameter/5 inches deep

Hand-built Vase...I had a ton of fun w/ the texture...12 inches tall?

I have two of these bowls (large/medium stackable serving bowls)

Very large serving bowl...13-14 inch diameter & 6-7 inches deep?

The glazes remind me a of a patchwork quilt.

Large platter...14+ inch diameter

These glazes looked like layered mountains against a starry night.

Large platter...14+ inch diameter

Medium--sized serving bowl...8-9 inch diameter

I made a set of 4 small tea cups...4 inches tall?

Small-lidded canister...6+ inches tall?

My signature and stamp

Small serving dish/bowl with handles...5 inches tall

Small bowl...5 inch diameter, 3 inches deep

Set of small bowls...6 inch diameter & 3.5 inches deep

Container for counter storage...about 10+ inches tall?

In love with Africa!!

Jet-lag. Pot-hole-riddled roads. Loud, scary noises at night (just a mysterious animal in the ceiling).

Generous smiles & laughter. Little hands to hold. Nighttime lullabies.

This summer, I returned to The Forever Young International School in Twifu-Hemang, Ghana. A huge part of my heart belongs to the students of this remote community. Every moment with them, they inspire me with their determination to do what it takes, and sacrifice, in order to get an education. They wake up early in the morning (4am for some) to do their homework, chores, and get ready before school. The boarders study into the evening, well after classes have ended. The older students take care of the younger ones--acting as surrogate parents.

One young man, Nick, started high school this year, at the age of 25! His parents didn't have the money to send him 10 years earlier, so he worked and saved money. A young girl comes faithfully to school, everyday. She appears sadder than when I first met her two years ago. I find out that her mother died and a family friend now watches over her, but doesn't love her like her mother did. The young man has dreams of becoming a businessman. The girl--a famous actress. :)

Jenn, doing what she does best--loving children!

The school (FYIS) is located in a rural community in the Central Region of Ghana, West Africa. Most of the students wouldn't be able to have access to such a quality school if The Forever Young Foundation (FYF) had not partnered with a Ghanaian man who had a dream to provide a state-of-the-art school to their community. The foundation (FYF) continues to help with the construction of facilities, support in materials and supplies, and by sending experienced educators--led by my dear friend Jenn--to work with the administration and staff at the school. This year, we were able to take over 30 laptops and set up a computer lab, teaching and school supplies to supplement what they already have, medical supplies to replenish their first aid/malaria clinic, and hundreds of books to increase the school library book count to over 2,000, and provide training. While there, we also carried out an in-depth evaluation for the school to help them to identify their strengths and weaknesses so that they can continue to improve their performance.

The school's library after we inventoried and added the donated books.

I want to love the students (which I do) and take care of them all (a little more challenging to do). I want to guarantee that they all have the opportunity to receive a quality education. I am working at doing my part to help more students have access to a continuous education.

If anyone who reads this is interested in funding a partial or full scholarship for one of the students in financial need at FYIS, let me know and I'll help you figure out what to do.

Making fufu while visiting a student's house.

 

 

An outdoor kitchen at one of the students' homes.

Window looking out at Cape Coast Slave Castle.

Senior high school students working in the computer lab.

Love this girl. She was only 2 when I first met her.

During an advanced art class I taught while there.

A school excursion to Elmina Slave Castle.

 

The first aid/malaria clinic...this boy didn't feel well that day.

The Muslim market in Accra, Ghana.