Language Matters

A meditation on work and rest

My mom ended the call with, “Don’t let yourself get too tired.” I flipped back through the calendar, cross-checked it against the travel tracker I keep for work, and found that since July 4 I’ve had only four travel-free weeks. That’s just over 100 days. I’ve been to every reservation during that time, including Northern Cheyenne which I just visited for the first time two weeks ago. IndigiPalooza MT happened. In addition, my downstairs is being remodeled and I have nowhere to sit or wash dishes, and my upstairs office is packed with conference paraphernalia. The only room in my house in any state of normalcy is my bedroom, which will be useful once I have the chance, again, to sleep.

This morning I sat outside in the darkness, trying and failing to calm my mind. Those early morning minutes are often the only peace I have during the day, despite working from home and all that entails. I write in my erasable tablet and try to clear my thoughts that way. The cats join me sometimes, though not today because of the wind factor. I went full fleece bathrobe regalia with hood and extra blanket against the breeze. I observed diaphanous blue overhead and wondered, clouds or urban light refraction? I sipped my cooling coffee and thought about the to-do list inside.

This week is the Language Matters: Class 7 Conference which Chickadee is putting on with the Billings Public Schools’ Indigenous Education Department. Who are Class 7 teachers? In Montana, these are Indigenous language and culture teachers. They do awesome and crucial work.¹ They are certified teachers, but unlike others, their certification eligibility is determined by their tribe. Each has its own requirements and processes and signatories. Because of this very specific constituency and the uniqueness of their teaching discipline, as a full group they lack a unified support system in the form of…well, anything. An organization or the teachers’ union or the state’s education office.² Math teachers have like…all the other math teachers in the state, or special education teachers have all the other SpEd teachers in the country. If you’re a Dakota teacher you might have two others to collaborate with, and they’re likely not located near you, really. This conference might help folks network and learn from each other. I hope so.

These shirts are so rad. Dre Castillo Creations for the design.

Prep leading up to the event has become intense, but I know the many spinning parts will all fall into the right slots. Upon initial planning I thought we might be lucky to have 50 attendees, a third of whom might be presenters. Yesterday we hit participant number 115. Contingents of elders from Northern Cheyenne and Rocky Boy are coming in, and we’ve set up an Elders’ Lounge for them. We’ve got tablers, vendors, t-shirts, giveaways, two days of presentations, sponsors…shit, we’ve got a selfie station! All this has been funded by sponsors. My gratitude is boundless.

I am thrilled about it. I am exhausted. I am, as usual, not listening to my mother.

Yesterday’s wintry weather came in with a robust blast of strong winds. I ventured outside and felt something pricking my cheeks. It took me a beat to recognize snow, tiny hard grains of snow scouring my skin, snow shelfing up on shingle edges, snow and leaves whipping across the still-green grass. I let the water run sideways from my eyes. Give me this season, give me a blanket in the darkness, give me the hibernation of a deep winter’s rest.

1. That link will take you to a website where you can see some of these teachers in action!

2. This isn’t entirely true - the state education office does have a Class 7 specialist, and there used to be a Class 7 Alliance which could rise from the ashes and again become an effective entity. But people don’t have the time.