The Effects of Heat!

Okay, it’s summer time and the weather in Kansas does historically get a bit hot, but this reservation and the State of Kansas have endured a heat wave of epic proportions. Two days in a row, it hit 106 degrees – the hottest days on record since 1906. For the last 10 days it got over 100 degrees and we might get a break of a couple of days in the mid-90s then it suppose to get back to 100-104 degree area again. I guess it could be worse, we could be living in Texas or Oklahoma.

It’s so hot that the grass has lost it ambition to grow, gardens are burning up, the pools are getting a work-out, the a/c units are working over-time, some people find it too hot to go to work , and people are dying from heat exhaustion, which may explain why we have a gang of air-conditioning unit thieves hitting reservation churches, sometimes twice – the heat made them do it. They are a brave bunch to steal these big units, load them on trucks and drive away on our reservation roads. Brave or stupid! The people here are insulted over these blatant acts. It’s like they are saying “we’re going to come to your house and take what we want and you can’t do anything about it.”

It’s hard to say why this is happening. This gang may need to subsidize a drug, booze and/or a prescription drug habit. Originally, we thought they were after the copper in the units, but after looking at the insides of a unit there isn’t much there, so the resale value has to come into play. Thievin is one thing, but buying stolen goods is wrong too. Maybe it’s somebody who has a grudge against the Tribe! Maybe at some point they were fired or denied a service, it could be something like that because those a/c units have been here for years and nobody has bothered our churches at all before this outbreak.  But surely they can’t have a grudge against the institution of a prayer house, after all atonement does come for all. Stealing from the churches is not good for their ultimate judgement day in another life or the well-being of church members in this life. The Tribe has offered a $5,000 reward for these yahoos and there is no honor among thieves so the snitching will happen soon enough.

Who really knows what motivates a spree like this? Maybe they just want a fine air-conditioning unit to keep their impressionable kids and knowing wife cool during these hot summer months. Maybe they will catch them, maybe not, but this has to go down as hard times for the reservation churches. They have a right to feel wronged – after all they’ve been here for years and prayed for all and, and never figuring they would be targets for lowly people like this bunch.  Damn, hopefully they don't live amongst us!

Basketball on the rez

One of the best things that can happen to grandparents is to see grandchildren develop in the athletic arena, especially when sports have been so much a part of their own lives. Age and aching bones might have stopped their enjoyment and progress on the courts and softball fields, but competitive juices refuse to go away for many parents, grandparents and great grandparents. To see it carried on in grandchildren is a truly rewarding time.


In our case, we played softball for years then that slacked up in time. Our oldest daughter took up fast-pitch and she really worked at it and turned into a top pitcher. We hauled her to games all over Northeast Kansas and Missouri. She won a state championship while playing at Lake Shawnee and she went on to play for one year at Highland Junior College where she set records for wins and strikeouts.

And much later youth basketball started to gain popularity on the Potawatomi reservation and our grandchildren took up the sport although we would have sooner they played softball. But the basketball fever spread to the old folks as well. Our oldest granddaughter Tara was a starter on the Royal Valley High School team for three years. She started out slow but made tremendous progress. In one game, she had 23 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals and 4 assists. At 5'9", she was tall for a guard and had quick hands. In another game, she scored 35 points against Nemaha Valley and that’s the most points I ever witnessed from a girl or a boy at the high school level. She ended up first team all-league for her last two years.

The stands suddenly become a big social event and visiting was on the upsurge. Relatives of the players marked their calendars and load up their cars to see the basketball games. We did the same thing as with our daughter, we went to almost every game no matter where it was at. Our grandson Nyeh Waskeh played in high school and sometimes it was a challenge but we made most of his games too. Nyeh Washeh enjoyed playing basketball with his many friends and scored a high of 17 points. We watched them both develop, learning the fundamentals and they enjoyed playing the game. High school basketball is a level where fun is still there. A $4 entry fee to see your grandchildren play is more than worth it.

Our routine was similar every week. We went to work, came home, change into comfortable clothes and loaded up Maynard Potts, who at the time was 90 years old, and whoever else was riding on that particular day, and head off to Royal Valley High School games. He enjoyed watching Tara and Nyeh play basketball – a real fan. After paying the entry fee and eating the ball-game meal of hot dogs and popcorn, we sat in the stands and wait for the game to start. The only regret is that there weren’t more food choices at games. It was good times though.

Tara and Nyeh both graduated from high school. Tara went on to two years of junior college where it was no longer fun and she eventually married and moved away to California. Now we go to our youngest grandson, Pat ko shuk’s basketball games at the Whitson Elementary School on Saturday mornings. I about jumped off the bleachers when he scored his first two points. It was the same feeling I had watching my daughter and my other grandchildren play, a feeling that I can’t explain but I’m glad I was there. The whole experience is something I wouldn’t trade for anything.



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