Austyn Moffat at Payne County's Got Talent Contest.. where he won 4th place out of 20

Video by Phillip
Shane Moffat, Stillwater

Austyn is in .....

A new blues band formed of high school students... he being the youngest... and they will play at the Blues Festival in Stillwater in a couple of weeks..


Austyn... I am so proud of you, keep it up!! The world is your oyster!

My friend Jay Red Eagle shares this interesting note.. I think all cultures have this problem to some extent.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

The Fire at Stomp Dance only understands Cherokee Language For more years than anyone can remember, Cherokees have told the legends of their origin, of how various parts of the human and animal world developed. Today these ancient tales may be overwhelmed by technology, by the vast amounts of information available almost anywhere, around the clock. But its vital to preserve them, Hastings Shade told members of the Tahlequah Archaeological Society Thursday at the Tahlequah Public Library. Shade, former Cherokee Nation deputy principal chief and expert on Cherokee culture, dedicates himself to passing on the knowledge he learned from his grandparents and from tribal elders. He conducted his presentation speaking first in Cherokee, in many instances, then translating the phrases to English. Its natural for him, as Cherokee was his first language. He told listeners his presentation would be a little bit about this and that mostly that. For more than an hour, he talked of such traditions as clans, colors, directions. He also talked of daily life and practices that Cherokees, as well as the rest of society, have largely lost. How many remember when we used to sit out in the yard and visit? Why dont we do that any more? he asked. He spoke of traditional Cherokee practices, asking for audience input. How many have ever gone to water when the frost was about that thick [indicating about an inch with his fingers] and youd leave footprints? How many have washed your face in that water? Theyd make us jump into the water. Grandpa had us go under four times. That was part of our healing, part of our medicine. I dont remember ever getting a bad cold. Other forms of medicine may not have been pleasant, but they worked. Shade asked if anyone had heard of using skunk oil as a cure for whooping cough, a malady also largely forgotten in todays vaccinated society. One dose was enough, he recalled, smiling. Shade said Cherokees refer to the creator as the one that made it possible. He spoke of his ancestor Sequoyah, who invented the Cherokee syllabary, and the importance of preserving Cherokee language in its spoken and written forms. Sequoyahs invention made it easy for Cherokees to learn to read; however, it was more difficult to learn to write and many people could read, but not write. They always say if you want to learn to read Cherokee, read a Cherokee Bible, Shade advised. He took that step at age 13, beginning to read the language in which he spoke his first words. A lot of people who speak fluent Cherokee cannot read because they have never sat down and tried, he said. Shade has taught Cherokee language for about four decades. Were losing that part of us that, when it goes, were gone. We as Cherokee people will no longer exist when we lose our language, he said. He said anybody can make or carry a card, but the traditions must be carried on in Cherokee. The fire at the stomp dance only understands the Cherokee language, he said. Shade told of the Cherokees journey from an island surrounded by undrinkable water, which he believes is the ocean. Fire came from a mountain on the island (a volcano) and the island disappeared. The people journeyed across the water for four days, then went north, east and south before arriving in the Cherokee homeland in Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina. The Trail of Tears took them west. We have completed that four-direction journey. Were here to stay until the end, whatever happens, he said.

hummmmm....

"If you want to test your memory, try to recall what you were worrying about one year ago today." — E. Joseph Cossman

Phillip ...

Phil has new photo of Austyn on his blog.. check it out, link on the right side of this box... from Payne County's Got Talent. Plus there are many other 'cool' photos there as well.. new ones...

Great job Phil...

Learned this from the news this am..

"It's cheaper to smoke 3 packs of cigs a day, drink a fifth of booze, and die at 50, then to live a healthy life and die at 85." 

hummmmm

Lucille's Restaurant Fire reported this am... many local artists played there.....

Published: September 02, 2009 08:20 am     from Stillwater NewsPress

NEW: Fire destroys Lucille's Restaurant

Mulhall's historic Lucille's Restaurant was destroyed this morning in a fire that might have been caused an overnight storm.

"We think lightning hit it. That's what we're thinking right at the moment," Mulhall Fire Chief Roland Taylor said. "It's heavily damaged. It's basically gutted."

While the structure was still standing this morning, everything inside was destroyed, he said. The building, at Main Street and U.S. Highway 77, was built in 1894, according to the restaurant's Web site. The restaurant helped mark the resurrection of the town after Mulhall was all but wiped out by a tornado a decade ago.

The fire started about 3:40 a.m., Taylor said. Fire departments from Orlando, Guthrie, Crescent and Marshall also responded. Firefighters had contained the fire by 5 a.m., but were still on scene at 7:30 a.m. working on some hot spots. Taylor guessed they'd be there most of the morning.