Choctaw Spirit

National Museum of the American Indian Artist Leadership Program Part 1: Choctaws in Washington, D.C.


Lynda Kay and Sarah Elisabeth at the National Archives Research Entrance

There is no proper way to summarize our research trip to D.C. in a mere blog post. Two weeks’ worth of excursions at the National Museum of the American Indian, NMAI Cultural Resource Center, Smithsonian Museum Support Center (Anthropology and National Anthropological Archives), Library of Congress, National Archives, American Art Museum, Congressional Cemetery, numerous receptions at NMAI, three PowerPoint presentations and a panel discussion, two storytelling concerts, article interviews (where I was the one being interviewed this time), and a bit of tourism at Mount Vernon and the National Botanic Gardens.

NMAI Artist Leadership Program, and Life

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

There are not many ways to describe this season in life. One of the worst summers of my life, and it ended with my dad’s passing. Then I got a phone call.

June 2012

In May, 2012, I had applied for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian’s Artist Leadership Program. Amid the disasters of the summer, I still checked the mailbox every day in August, catching myself going out there on Sundays too. Waiting, waiting for a letter that would either accept me or a say a polite try again.

Chief Gregory Pyle and Snakes on Robuck Lake

A few years ago, after the Choctaw Labor Day festival Monday morning ceremonies, my mom, Lynda Kay, and I got to chat with Chief Pyle for a few minutes. It turned into a time of swapping stories.

Lynda Kay with Chief Pyle

When we told him our ancestors were the Robucks who had owned Robuck Lake in Grant, Oklahoma, Chief Pyle started in on a story from his youth.

He and his buddies often fished and swam in the lake. The water moccasins were aggressive there. One night, they took a boat out to fish and a handgun for protection against the snakes.

Sure enough, a water moccasin slithered right into their boat and in a panic, his friend shot off several rounds. Though it was enough to scare off the snake, the friend missed actually hitting it.

The bullets did go to some use though. They punctured enough holes in the boat to begin sinking it. The boys half paddled, half swam it—and themselves—back to shore.

One of the boys’ dads wasn’t happy with them. It was his boat that sat on the shore, full of holes.

Chief Pyle didn’t say what happened to them after that, but I imagine it topped the ordeal itself.

Why don’t you share a story from your youth with someone today?

Choctaw Dance

At the Dallas Chamber of Commerce Native American Expo (December 2011), we watched a special demonstration of traditional Choctaw dances.

The Raccoon Dance - Oklahoma State Capitol (Choctaw Nation Photo)

From powwows to on stage, I’ve seen many cultural dances of the Americas. They all have their unique flare, a story they tell.

Not to sound prejudice, but few had the qualities of traditional Choctaw dance.

As the traditionally dressed Choctaw men and women interacted in the dance, all their movements and steps could be described as sweet, innocent, fun. It was a social affair kept in the boundaries of pure enjoyment.