Warm Springs Indian Reservation

This land was known, loved, cared for and protected for centuries by the Paiute people, the Wasco people, and the Sahaptin people. Other people lived all over this vast continent. Some migrated seasonally; some stayed in place for hundreds, even thousands of years. Native peoples spoke many languages, and their cultures, arts and sciences were highly-developed. They were stewards of the land on which they lived.

It’s a well-known story: when European settlers arrived, they took the land violently. They massacred the people. They separated children from their families and their cultures; they prohibited people from speaking their own languages; they used what they wanted and eradicated what they didn’t want. The road Sue and I traveled to get to Sisters, Oregon, where she is now enjoying the second half of her painting workshop, was an Indian road before it was paved by European people who now call themselves “American.”

On the way to Sisters, we stopped at the Warm Springs Indian Reservation to have lunch, and then we spent some time in The Museum at Warm Springs. Much of the history and culture of native people has been lost, but the museum includes some beautiful exhibits (see Extra).