I have had a long association with the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska. In
fact when I go there on my monthly visits, I live in a house within the
reservation.
(this is where I stay when I am visiting the UmonHon)
Indians as they are referred to place an enormous importance on
relationships and Margaret Mead one of the founders of American Cultural
Anthropology was among the first to study the kinship system and all Native
Kinship system use OMAHA KINSHIP system as a reference.
Those who contribute to the welfare of the tribe as a whole are
appreciated more than those who place importance on their individual welfare.
So it is amazing to be with a non-individualistic society surrounded by the
most individualistic society of them all, the USA. Omaha have no problem with that,
they use their cultural skills when appropriate and do not confuse the context
when it is used. They do not blame the others for holding world views which are
so totally opposed to theirs and coexist. In fact Omaha has no recorded history
of warfare with the Immigrants from Europe.
I have strong connection to France and the French language, so do
the Omaha, as French were the Europeans they encountered and to this day, the
oral history record their encounter as being very friendly. The best photographic
records of the Omaha were collected by Prince Maximillian Bonaparte and Omaha
were present at the Paris Expo of 1895 when Tour Eiffel was inaugurated!
(UmonHon delegation to Paris. Years later I stood at this very same spot)
There are many individual Omaha who have “achieved” by the standards
of the Non-Indians, such as University degrees and experience in the world of
Business and Administration, while not forgetting their cultural connection to
the Omaha polity. One such person is WS, who is currently the CEO of the tribe
and well respected for her administrative ability and problem solving, she
holds a MPH from University of Hawaii.
At the annual celebration on Full Moon Day in the month of August,
Omaha Indians begin their Pow Wow, a four day ceremonial celebration of
gratitude and thanks and joy and family unity. Dancers in full regalia dance
for the duration of the ceremonies to the songs which have very ancient
origins.
During one such Pow Wow, WS, the person described above, rose to
make an announcement. My French and Jamaican families were present. She
announced: All of us know that Dr.Y has been coming to our reservation for many
years, come rain, come snow and he holds us in high esteem and does his best to
better our health. I want everyone to know and acknowledge that from this day
on, he will be my brother and I want you to treat him as such.
(view from the house in the reservation on a winters day)
I was not prepared for what was to follow over the coming months.
People would introduce themselves to me using the Omaha Kinship system. I
became uncle, brother to a whole group of people. More importantly, the feeling
between me and members of the family changed dramatically. I realized that by
becoming a member of the family I assume the responsibility of that relationship.
Each visit to the tribe began to take on an extra dimension, I was
being integrated into their world view and that included my French and Jamaican
families. My Mezhinga in Bruxelles surprised her teachers by saying: I am a
little bit Omaha too!
(the picture taken at their out door wedding last year)
So, about a year ago, a young nursing graduate who had recently
taken over the Diabetes Programme of the Tribe, introduced herself to me, I am
you Grand Niece, our relationship had more than just the professional
relationship. With the help of my Omaha sister WS and the enthusiasm of my niece
and with help from other experienced members we quickly built a very good
Diabetes Prevention and Treatment programme for the tribe.
(A Culturally oriented medical consultation at the Omaha Indian Special Clinic.Patient is the centre of attention, his family is present. With me are the Nurse Educator, the lady who would be travelling to Cambodia and the Nutritionist. Please note that all of us are looking at the patient and not at computer screens)
Among the things we discuss while I am with the tribe is about my
travels and the state of health of various indigenous groups I work with. Of
course I talk a lot about Cuba and when it comes to Diabetes Care, I cannot
hide my admiration for the Peer to Peer Programme MoPoTsyo in Phnom Penh in
Cambodia run by my good friend Maurits van Pelt. I dreamt of implementing some
of his methods to the Indians, where the cohesion of the community would be a
foundation for such a peer to peer education programme.
The young nurse and her husband who is an EMT and soon to be a Nurse
as well, treat me with the deference accorded to me by the Omaha Kinship
system. I feel very comfortable in their presence and their genuine care for my
welfare, considering that I have to travel about 10 000 miles to be with them
each month.
(My grand niece acknowledging my desire for good food, organizes a lunch during my stay at the clinic and invites other workers. A Filipina married to an Omaha makes delicious Filipino cuisine)
I would tell them about Mexico where my good friend Dra Estela
Rosales run a great holistic clinic; regale them with stories about Cuba and
the high standards of health care and the free education given to thousands of
poor students from foreign countries.
One day I asked them, would you like to come with me on one of my
trips? They said YES eagerly. I asked them, where would you like to go? I
frankly was hoping that they would express an interest in Mexico, a place which
is easily accessible and not too far from home. To my surprise, she answered:
My husband would really love to go to Cambodia and see the Peer to Peer Health
care system! True to my word, I told them that I would make all the
arrangements. As it is easier to fly to Malaysia and also the fact that I am
far more familiar with Malaysia a country that I think fondly of, I decided to
play host to them in Malaysia. I told them that I will not able to pay for
their air fares (over 1000 dollars each) and hotel and sundry expenditures, but
would make sure that their first ever international trip would be a memorable
one. They agreed and within days, they had some communal activities to raise
funds for their travel, and gave me the money for the airfare.
I had planned them to meet MunChing my close friend in KL and her
husband, a Portuguese born in Mocambique, she is rather eclectic person and
interested in Native Americans through her interest in the writings of Louise
Erdrich (Ojibway). Arlene is the force behind a radio programme DURIAN ASEAN
about everything that concerns the culture, politics, and future of the region.
I wanted them to visit Malacca the historical city, meet my friends there
including an erudite Chinese lady with huge interest in history. My good friend
K, who worked for many years as FA for MH, now is at the Hilton Hotel where we
would be staying in KL and promised that my friends would have a good stay.
Everything in Malaysia fell into place. I also thought that it would be good
for them to be alone for a couple of days and organized a two days stay at Taj
Vivant in Langkawi Island. While they are away, my good friend from Bogor would
come to visit for the day and also I can spend some time at the Cuban Embassy
in KL.
In Cambodia we will spend time with Maurits and the Principal Peer
Educator and after spending intense sessions, we would leave for Siem Reap
where I plan to show them the marvelous Angkor archeological ruins.
Everything went according to the plan and just one thing tugged at
my heart.
This is their first ever international trip, they are recently wed
and looking forward to experiences which they couldn’t have without assistance
from a Grand Oncle, which happens to be me!
The flight from Dallas to Hong Kong is an incredibly long flight,
close to 16 hours in duration, one of the longest flights. Out of loyalty to
American Airlines AA I had booked them on AA flights which turned out to be
fortunate as I hold the top tier of Frequent Flier status with them.
Indians believe for something to become true, as in praying for
someone else’s health, nothing would come out of it without sacrifice. What
sacrifice could I do so that this young American Indian couple would have a
memorable journey? I have already taken care of all the possibilities on the
ground, but how about on the air.
I called this morning from Fort Cochin in India, the direct number
to American Airlines in Dallas. A very pleasant lady answered, her name was
Emma. I explained the situation, she was very touched by it and for a bit of “sacrifice”
(the nature of which no one needs to know) she will upgrade them both on their
long journey from Dallas to Hong Kong!
You cannot imagine how happy I felt, and I can imagine how they
would feel when they hear the news when they wake up in their home in Rosalie,
Nebraska!
Not only them, but most of the Omaha we know.
I was doing my best to be a good RELATIVE.
Outside the sun was beginning to show its strength, I walked quickly
to the working people café near the hotel where I am staying in Fort Cochin,
India, Niyati Boutique Hotel. As I passed the oldest Catholic Church, now a
Basilica, I turned towards it, thought of my sister and brother in Miami who
are Catholics and said to myself.
I am grateful to the Great Spirit for allowing me to help my
relatives!
(the oldest christian church in India, the Basilica in Fort Cochin)
(the sweat lodge, healing ceremonies are often held here. I plan to attend one after my return from Cambodia to offer my thanks)
