POWIP Piece of Work In Progress – Former Abode of Dan Collins

The Sweat

Last night I attended a sweat lodge.

There were seven of us and the lodge--named "Unity Lodge"--was in a big field about thirty miles from my house.  The lady who owned the land/put on the lodge said she was trained in the Lakota fashion, not that I would know the difference between a Lakota lodge or any other. A fire pit had been going all day, heating the stones that would be placed in the lodge. There were some other things, a small ceremonial mound, etc. but the significance of these things wasn't explained.

We were smudged with sage before we went in, one at a time. The way to enter the lodge was on the knees, saying a phrase, and always moving clockwise once you were in the lodge. Once we were in and in our "spots" one of the guys brought in the hot rocks from outside and placed them in a pit in the middle of the lodge. The rocks--"the grandfathers"--were then blessed one at a time with some herbs and sweetgrass. The flap was closed and it was totally dark.

The theme for the meeting that night was "integrity." Leading by example. Being honest. I could agree with that. So began our prayers.

The first round focused on our "theme." After each person said their general prayer, a cupful of water was put on the stones. After that round was completed, more stones were brought in from outside and we were sealed in again. (After each round, the flap was opened to let in some fresh air and water was passed around.) The second round of prayers were "for the children." I have to admit, I had to work to come up with something civil and not sarcastic. (I think I'm just too contrary for all the seriousness and ceremony.) This time, two cupfuls were poured on the rocks after each prayer. After this second round, my mom left the lodge because she didn't want to get overheated. The third round were prayers for healing and, as you've likely guessed, three cupfuls of water were poured on after each prayer. Another person excused himself after this round. The final round were prayers of gratitude, pouring four cupfuls after each prayer. It was very hot. The first two rounds didn't seem that hot so the intensity of the third and especially fourth rounds caught me by surprise.

So why did I go? To check it out. To network (almost everyone was from out of town, though, so not a lot of business leads there). To say I did it and made it through.

And for Enoch.

I know that may not be anything he wants to hear, but his loss has always made me feel...guilty, I guess. I felt in some messed up way this was my atonement for those of us who do these crazy things; like somehow this proved we may be "wackos" but we aren't dangerous, that what happened in Sedona was wrong. I thought of Enoch while sitting in the lodge, waiting for the others to pick their places. I wondered what he would think of something like this; like many of these things, the lodge had that contradicting quality of being simultaneously hokey and authentic. There was no money involved; just a group of silly people praying for healing.

After the sweat, I didn't feel all that cleansed or renewed. Mostly I felt soaked with sweat and stinky. But now that I've written this, I realize I got more out of the experience than I originally thought.

Falahime

Falahime Blah blah blah, Wyoming, blah blah, massage therapist, details cars, used to sell beer, blah blah, hunts big game. That’s about all there is to me; I’m pretty simple.

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