Cedar (Juniper) Trees

There are two kinds of trees that are native to the area, the pinyon pine and what is called cedar trees but technically are probably juniper. The cedar tree has played an important roll in the life of the Navajo people. They grow on the hills around Pinon.
It is used and has been used for many purposes. One of the Navajo favorites is Blue Mush. The cedar is burned and the ash mixed with ground up Navajo corn and cooked. We see it advertised at the flea market but we have not tasted it.
In years gone by the branches were heated and put on the stomach to sooth tummy aches..

Once upon a time it provided the material for their homes but now the hogans are built of 2x4's and OSB board.

The berries on the tree were used as a food source.  They were pounded into strips of meat along with other berries. They were also boiled and poured over the squash.

The dried seeds are used for beads to make ghost necklaces. They keep the evil spirits away. If you need to go to the outhouse after dark put on your necklace and you won't get scared.

When someone passes (here people don't die they pass) cedar is burned and when coming from the gravesite everyone walks through the smoke to be protected from the spirits. The cedar bough is used to brush the footprints from around the grave.

Cedar fence posts are also one of the necessary uses. Notice how they are not cut to a certain length but left however long the tree is. The posts are also used to build shades.

Several times when people visit us they ask where our stove is. We say we have a propane furnace that heats the house. They tell us that is very expensive. Here every home has a wood stove. The teacher housing does have electric heater as an alternative.
These days we are often told that "Its cold in the morning. We need to go make some woods." Above are truck loads of woods people are trying to sell anywhere from $60.00 to $150.00 a load. A young lady cut and hauled the woods in the truck in upper center and wanted $60.00 but no luck. Too close to the end of the month and everyones out of money.

Cedar trees and mistletoe. The orange colored spots are the mistletoe.

Here is a close up of the mistletoe. In the winter the mistletoe is gathered by hitting it off with sticks and it is fed to the sheep. Mistletoe is used as a medicine and also to dye wool for rug making.

Here the mistletoe is being used for the purpose that is familiar to our culture and taken advantage of by the men. This young lady doesn't seem to mind.

This week we have been kept quite busy. We had a delightful experience visiting with one of our elderly members. Her health has been deteriorating for several months. Her granddaughter from Flagstaff took a year off from her college to take care of her grandmother and her herd of sheep. What a delightful young lady, so sweet and caring. To leave all the comforts to come live in a one room cabin with electricity being the only convenience and no water except to haul it over five miles from town must be a sacrifice.  There are some wonderful people here.

Love to all,
Elder and Sister Lybbert

Signs of Fall

                                                            FLOWER OF THE WEEK
This nasty  little bush, the Russian Thistle, grows most everywhere here. It is very thorny and dries up in the winter and tumbles spreading its seeds. We spent last winter racking and burning it.  It is a pretty plant now although just a few of them turn this magenta color.

The only colored leaves we have seen so far are these vines which may be Porcelain berry. Several people have them growing on their fences. In the summer they are bright green and have blue berries with bright red stems which make them very attractive. There are no berries left on them now so probably the birds had a good feed. As you can see the trees in the background are still green. I don't know if they will turn yellow or if the leaves are just going to dry up and fall off.

We stopped in here this past week and Ruth was spinning yarn getting it ready for weaving. It is bought in skeins but to have a finely woven rug it needs to be spun tighter. They still use the same method that has been used to spin yarn for centuries.

Another beautiful rug in the making.  We asked how much an hour she would make and she said about 50 cents.  This will be 9' x 12' when finished.

We had our Zone Conference this week with the Senior and young missionaries which was exciting. Elder and Sister Paul V. Johnson of the first quorum of seventy were visiting our mission. He is the Commissioner of the Church Educational System. They talked to us and we had some missionary training.  Pres. and Sister Batt (mission pres.), who are wonderful people, also gave us encouragement  and good advice.  They are such down to earth humble people who are striving hard to serve the Lord. It was good to visit with the other Seniors and share experiences.  Our testimonies of the gospel continues to grow.

Love to all,
Elder and Sister Lybbert

Blue Bird Flour

                                                           FLOWER OF THE WEEK
Coming back from Chinle we saw these Blanketflowers in the ditch. They are late bloomers.

The Rez would not be complete without Blue Bird flour. They are synonymous with each other. You couldn't have one without the other. This is at our local Bashes Food store. There are four different areas for Blue Bird flour and as you can see the shelves empty fast. Blue Bird flour is considered the best flour for making fry bread.

Several weeks ago we were going to Cortez to see Mesa Verde so I wanted to also go and see  the Cortez Milling Company where they make Blue Bird flour. I was a bit disappointed when all we saw was an old building with no Blue Bird Flower logo on it.
The stories here say that the owners of the mill are descendants of John Tanner who, in our Mormon history, gave Joseph Smith necessary funds to continue the work. John Tanner was promised his posterity would never go hungry. The Tanner family own many of the trading posts here also and are very successful businessmen.

The Blue Bird Brand was started in the 1930's but was bought by Halworth Tanner in 1965 and is run today by his grandsons. Most of the grinders are original dating back to the 1800's. They produce about 600,000 25 pound bags of flour each year.

Blue Bird flower bags serve many purposes. I use them to make aprons for the missionaries leaving the area as a memento of the Rez. This is Elder Wise who left last week to go home.
The flour bags are used for everything from dish towels to sacks to hold the pinyon nuts. Elder Lybbert used one for ties to tie up the irrigation hose in the garden.

One of our star gardeners. Vicky wanted a garden very much so she attended the meetings and learned all she could. She had a stroke so is handicapped. We helped her get the garden started and her husband reluctantly helped. As the summer progressed he got more and more excited about what they were growing. A few days ago he brought in this huge Navajo squash he had been hiding from Vicky in the corn patch.  She is very proud of her squash.

This afternoon a couple stopped by. She had lived here in the late fifties when her husband, a Tanner worked at the trading post. At the time she said she told her husband when she married him she would be willing to go to the end of the world with him. When they arrived in Pinon she thought she had. He past away a few years ago and she remarried  and came here to see Pinon once again. She still owns a trading post in Gallop.
We have had a good week doing what we do.
Love to all,
Elder and Sister Lybbert

Navajo Rugs

                                                              FLOWER OF THE WEEK
The flower season is about over but these little purple asters are still doing their best to brighten up the world.

We stopped by this home one day and the Grandmother was sitting on the porch carding wool so she could spin it for weaving. We had forgot the camera so we used the cell phone which isn't a very good picture. There are some Navajos that shear the sheep, dye the wool with plants, spin the wool and then weave their rugs much the same as they have for centuries.

Rug weaving is still very common and a way to make a few extra dollars.  This lady works as a CNA but does rug weaving also. She hopes to sell her rugs from $350 to $450. She does  beautiful work.

                                        This is a completed storm pattern rug.

These are some rugs we bought which are also the storm pattern.

                                            New investigators but a little late for the meeting.

We were with the young missionaries  a few days ago and they wanted us to show them where the Low Mountain Chapter house was since they had some referrals over there. Instead of going around on the road they took us over the top. I have never had a desire to go 'four wheeling' in this terrain but we did. This is at the top of the mesa and its a long way down.  The first half was rocks and the last half deep sand. Can you see why trucks are worn out after 60,000 miles here.

Conference week-end and for the first time (thanks to Elder Lybbert) we have conference by satellite to our building. It is broadcast in Navajo and English. We now wish we could get more people to attend. The Saturday sessions have been so interesting and uplifting. What a blessing our membership in the church has been. Having a general authority who is Native American speak in conference was exciting.

Love to all,
Elder and Sister Lybbert