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| Blanket Dance Woman by � Ten Guns (posted by urbanative_radio) The Native Canadian Center's Youth Pow Wow was starting to wind down when I noticed Blanket Dance Woman talking to the Arena Director from across the dance area. She was up on her toes with her breasts resting softly on his shoulder. He would nod continuously as she cupped his ear and went on about something that was obviously very important to her. I knew she wasn't requesting a travel song for all the people who had traveled great distances to be with us. I knew that because, I remembered her from the Barrie Pow Wow, she was stepping high that time behind a blanket with her hands placed nicely at her waist. She was an excellent dancer no question about that and I could tell then by the way she whirled that she was likely one of the final contestants every time a champion was sought for the women's fancy dance. I remembered her face from Walpole Island as well when they held they're annual gathering a few years earlier. She was stepping lightly that time with a solemn look on her face. She was absolutely beautiful as she followed four of the cutest little blanket carriers I have ever seen in my life. I remembered the solemn look would disappear for brief spells when she noticed a bill falling into her star adorned blanket. She would pick up the pace and make her way over to the side of the blanket and eye the bill's denomination while stepping like a champion to Pascaulie and the Baby Mud Singer's breath taking drum that had come all the way from the Buzzard Creek First Nation in Montana. An Elder once told me that blanket dances were suppose to be granted on rare occasions only when someone in the community found themselves in a desperate situation. He told me that most people within the native community long ago would never consider taking anything from anyone without first offering something of equal value in return and that is why the events were so rare. A death in the family or the loss of a provider were usually legitimate reasons to call for such an event and when it was called for it was usually with a great deal of humility. She didn't give a rat's bum hole about traditions and it wasn't hard for me to catch on to Blanket Dance Woman's game. I could see it was all part of her plan, she knew when to seize the moment and just when to strike. Blanket Dance Woman had found a way to gain some extra pocket money without having to stand at a corner with her palm raised to passing citizens. Blanket Dance Woman requested blanket dances at just about every Pow Wow she attended across Southern Ontario and rumor had it as far away as British Columbia and some say into the United States as well. I over heard Dene Screaming Eagle joking about what she had requested. "She wanted the drum to do a warrior song ten times through." I guess he caught on to the fact that she could have reaped a sizeable windfall circling the dance area numerous times in the amount of time it took to complete such a lengthy song and denied the request. I knew what she was up to and cleared the area until she was finished with her business. The next time I saw her she was lugging her blanket away from four startled blanket bearers like it was an unruly child causing a disturbance at a pipe ceremony. She was a sly one and knew that it was not such a wise idea to count the money right there in the arena. She preferred instead to seek a private place where she could gloat without offending anyone with her easy score. I was observing her as she started to slide Twoonies and Loonies about like bank tellers do when skids cash in after a day of panhandling. She looked like a little weaseling card mechanic dealing aces with a cigarette hanging out the side of her mouth. She rolled her eyes to the sky and paused as if to sigh. Then she shrugged her shoulder and stuffed the bills into her pocket. I guess the count had not been what she had been expecting. She was obviously a woman who had no time to be counting small change and I started to snicker a bit when she swept the dimes, nickels and pennies off the table with a sudden swoop of her left hand. A little guy with a Grassy Narrows First Nations ball cap and crooked teeth had been monitoring her as well and meandered over to the coins landing sight and starting picking around in the tall grass even before Blanket Dance Woman had a chance to clear the area. She was in such a hurry to get the money into her pocket that she forgot to shake out the blanket. A ten-dollar bill had fallen out when I gave it a shake before I folded it for an old woman who suddenly showed up looking for her blanket. I put the ten dollars into my pocket before anyone noticed. I was curious about her and followed her with my eyes as she headed off into the distance toward a nice looking half- ton truck where her boyfriend was propped up waiting with his arms folded. He had a cigarette as well hanging out the side of his mouth and drew in one last time before he flicked it away with a index finger and thumb toss that sent it into the bushes about fifteen feet away. I watched in disgust as they split the money right down the middle right there on top of their trucks gleaming hood. I went back to see how the little guy from Grassy Narrows was making out. When I got back to the area where she had been counting he was still there digging around for any remaining coins. "How much did you find?" I asked him as pleasant as I could. He stood up and showed me a bulging pocket that sat heavy with coins. "Don't know." He said whilst wiping his nose with his wrist. "I think I have bout eight bucks." His eyes were still scanning the grassy area, but he used his foot now to halfheartedly inspect the area when he replied to me. Blanket Dance Woman was in such a hurry to get the money into her pocket that she missed the ten-dollar bill and discarded seven maybe eight dollars in petty change. |
