Lessons from the Drum
THUMP THATHUMP THUMP THATHUMP.
The methodical beat of the drum can be heard all over the arena. In front of me, over two dozen indigenous people enter the circle wearing intricate regalia. There are jingle dress, fancy shawl, buckskin, northern traditional and grass dancers. The smell of sage and tobacco follows their footsteps as they prepare to dance in rhythm with the Earth. There are Navajos, Utes, Cherokees and Seneca, yet all are joined together in the welcoming arms of the circle. They dance and pray, many in their native languages. They walk barefooted on the coarseness of the Earth with a natural grace. It is still early in the morning, and already I can feel the beads of sweat forming on my forehead.
Today is supposed to reach near 100 degrees. As the dancing begins, my eyes are drawn to an elder who is helped up on both sides by two younger native people. He must be at least 85 or 90 and he has a well-worn face of wisdom. He taps his feet on the Earth gently as he dances forward. When the drum stops, he is ready and he stops in place. The heartbeat of the drum is alive within him. I am on the Pine Ridge Reservation, one of the poorest regions in the United States. 90% live below the poverty line. Half do not have running water or electricity. All are within an hour’s drive of Mount Rushmore, South Dakota; one of the most prominent tourist spots in the US. But here, it is a different world. As the morning sun crosses over the arena, the invocation is read in the Lakota language. The invocation speaker welcomes us all to the powwow and thanks us all for coming from such far distances to be here today.
He reminds us that today is a day of celebration and renewal. The drum beats again and we are all now of the same mind. Imagine a world where everyone started our day honoring the Creator and all He has done for us. If we began each day with a simple prayer, thanking God for all we have been given and all we have learned, we undoubtedly would be happier and more content with our lives. We all face hardships and sometimes the world seems to crash down very quickly. Yet, we are all given daily gifts; our health, our family, good friends and community. We need to celebrate and be grateful on a daily basis. The richness of the drum needs to be heard in our lives.
I imagine for moment what it is like to play the handmade drums under the canopy. Reading through the guide pamphlet for the day, I learn that this particular drum circle is relatively new. In fact, before the drumming had begun, I noticed several of the members meet each other and engage in small talk about where they were from and which powwow’s they had been too recently. It soon became clear that they had never drummed together. Yet as they played, they echoed a perfect beat in unison while singing several warmup songs. By the third song, two of the members interchange and allow two younger members; perhaps no older than seven or eight years old, to enter the drum circle and play. Not long after, both children are recognized for their first participation in a drum circle.
How could they play so well their first time? Had they heard the drum play before? Was providing the drumstick enough? Perhaps the drum is much like time; it provides opportunities at just the right moment. The drum is in effect much like life. As the day comes to a close and I drive the two hours back to my cabin, I can still hear the echo of the drum beat in my head. The soft prairie grass sways with the evening wind. The sweet smell of sage and cedar permeate my clothes. The next morning, I wake up early and take a sunrise walk along Legion Lake in Custer State Park, breathing in the fresh smell of Ponderosa Pine. I take a deep breath and my thoughts are not wandering like they usually are. I still hear echoes of the drum. The circle of cleansing is now complete.
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