Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2001 8:25 AM
Subject: Fwd: Just thinking
hi Mom,
just another of AS reflections! I'm back in my office today after a long day travel yesterday--and coming home . ..flat tire & water in basement. All fixed now...
Lvoe Roger
Arthur Sanford <arthaiie@;webtinet wrote:
Subject: Just thinking
have been just thinking of our days in Northern Arizona and our friendship and fellowship among the American Indians. and how I felt sometimes when white people came just to SEE the Indian and maybe go away feeling so much better or greater than they are. and not knowing anything worthwhile about the people who to us are among God's truly great people. one day a man came from our Mission headquarters and when he met Leonard Tootsie (one of my very best friends ever) he started talking like one reads in those old story books about the American Indian --you know "me come see you. me glad to be here" and that sort of way -- well after he had talked a bit Leonard answered in perfect English.. sure made that fellow feel embarrassed. I asked Leonard why he didn't answer and he said "Now Art, a Christian is always nice to people so I want to always just be myself' The Hopi people are truly great people. friendly, happy, always funloving and can tell some truly great stories on themselves and laugh. I like one from the folk up on First Mesa—that Mesa is a narrow strip of high hill on which there are three Hopi villages. and the ground is
p 2
mostly rock so digging in it is not easy SO for toilets they just build a little scaffold out over the edge of the cliff and put maybe a two holer on that scaffold. sure saved a lot of hard digging and the cliff sometimes drops down 50 feet or more. but the story: seems one day one of the boys heard about the white man's habit of tipping toilets over on Halloween so he did. well his grandfather soon came to him very angry and was going to whip him so the boysaid he must tell the truth and yes he did it, then he said 'Grandfather when George Washington chopped down his grandfather's cherry tree he told the truth and his grandfather was not angry so why are you?" the answer George Washington's grandfather was not in cherry tree" and how they laugh at that. to go to one of their family gatherings is like a three ringed circus and be sure if you are a friend be ready to be a part of their jokes. and be ready as a white person to be the but of some of them. Not malicious but funny. oh one more word about the Indian as a friend., we had a young lady in our church who was a terrific cook and her specialty was banana Cream pie -- yum yum yum.. one night at a pot luck dinner she had one of her pies and when I got to the table it was gone so I sort of groaned to her and she came up, put her arm around me and led me to the fig and there way back behind everything was a full pie with my name on it. I knew then we were friends BUT if I don't sign off now you won't class me as a friend So God bless and be with you all and have great day tomorrow because it will be another day He will have made for you to rejoice and be glad in. Love to all from us both here. 7/27/2001