melissabrowneyes

Man seeks bond to Native American culture Adams businessman says it’s about heart, not blood By ERIN JAMES For the Daily Record/Sunday News Sunday, July 24, 2005 Submitted Harry Fleming of Biglerville poses with an assortment of Native American items, including a medicine wheel, headband and shirt he handcrafted. Fleming will be traveling to the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota in two weeks to attend a Sundance Ceremony in which he will ask to be adopted as a member of the Lakota tribe. bigger version As far as he knows, not a single drop of Indian blood flows through Harry Fleming’s veins. But he’ll tell you his blood doesn’t matter. “My heart’s 200 percent Native American,” Fleming said. “That’s the way I feel. That’s the way I live.” And that’s why the Biglerville construction businessman is leaving in two weeks to visit the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and attend a Sundance Ceremony. He also has a request to be adopted as a member of the Lakota tribe and be given an Indian name. Tribe leaders don’t have to oblige, and Fleming said he’s not sure what to expect if he is adopted. Nor does he care. “I just want to feel connected,” Fleming said. Fleming, 54, said his fascination with Indian life began a decade ago when he opened his doors to a homeless woman, who in turn introduced him to Native American spirituality. Since then, Fleming can’t get enough of the culture. Today, his secluded home in the northwest corner of Adams County is filled with Native American clothing, jewelry and decorations. An authentic Native American leather wedding dress from the early 1800s hangs in one closet. A medicine wheel and dream catchers decorate his office. A buffalo skull sits on a shelf. Though he is a craftsman and a collector of Native American objects, it is the culture’s spirituality that really drives Fleming’s fascination. “It’s a feeling, it’s a way of being. It’s a way of thinking,” he said. “It’s hard to explain.” If accepted as a Lakota member, Fleming said he will also join another exclusive group: those who have been adopted into tribes. Although he has heard of others, Fleming said he does not personally know anyone else who has gone through the formality. Fleming said his “enlightened” beliefs have affected how he lives his life, from the way he hunts deer to the way he runs his log cabin and excavating business. For example, now Fleming holds a ceremony to give thanks after a successful hunt. He teaches respect of all living things to his education classes for young hunters. And he practices the Native American healing method called channeling, which Fleming said can cure ailments like headaches and back pain with energy. “I consider myself as channeling God’s love and light his energy,” he said. Fleming’s 22-hour trip to South Dakota, which he will make with a friend, begins Aug. 6. He will take only basic necessities and his peace pipe, a tobacco-smoking instrument he wants to have blessed. It is his first trip to any Indian reservation, but Fleming said he has no worries. “When you’re connected to the Great Spirit, things happen,” he said.

~pathwalker~

Yeah, interesting. It seems that people forget that native americans are people, not a religion.

__________________
90% Angel


10% Lil Devil

dancnbrd

Give me a break!!! Why do these people always need to feel connected???? If this man is "adopted", he will no doubt return home a full fledged member of the Rosebuds and I'm sure he will know more than any full blood that never left the rez!!!!! You'll have every wannabe making their adoption trip out there!!!!

*Brown Eyed Gurl*

Umm...Hmmm.

__________________

AlmostThere

Being serious now, you can get adpoted into a tribe?, and the big IF what then happens....besides attened tribal gathering ect. Just curious....!

__________________
blah blah blah....

vince_j

This guy has some ambition to first participate in the Sundance, and get his PEACE pipe blessed.... Good luck with those.

His name could be next to Kevin Costner's on the adoption roles. Spielburg next?

La + * Mom

APPLICATION TO BE ADOPTED BY THE WANTANABE TRIBE (only pipesmokin', dead animal skull owners need apply)

Clan desired: raccoon skunk shrunken head
(pick only one)

Present Name:_________________________

Name desired after adoption: ______________________

and so on....

JUST KIDDING!!! what a way to start the day!!!

__________________
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss