whitewave

Hey everybody, this is my second pow wow season and I am doing it alone. I dont have any friends that are native at this point (not any that live anywhere near me anyhow) and most of my friends are not really excited about the idea. I am Cherokee, Irish, and a little bit Lakhota, but I am super white and my family is not in touch with their native roots at all. They don't wish to either. Which makes me feel very much like an outsider. I feel drawn to Native cultures and spirituality. I think that the ancient ways are honestly the ways we are meant to follow, they make the most sense to me in so many ways. I want to meet more people, but I am very shy and I tend to get uncomfortable in situations where I don't know anybody so then I'm not very good at meeting people. I am so determined to go to every one I can possibly make it to (after all its not all year they go on) that even though I dont have a car right now I am doing whatever I can to make it. I did con my family into going once and they said it wasn't nearly as exciting to them as it was for me but it was not bad. I got a friend to take me to the Reno pow wow but I get sick of people asking me "so how long are you gonna want to stay?" or "are you ready to go yet?" so I am trying to take the bus and camp and do whatever I need to do to get there. I do feel very uncomfortable at times there by myself though. Can anyone offer me advice on how to learn more, meet more people, etc. So I dont have to go it alone anymore?

NorthofAda

I would say you've taken a good first step in introducing yourself here. You'll find a lot of very nice people on this site. Don't be afraid to ask questions, most of us don't bite, LOL. My Dad is white, and my mom didn't really expose us to our native heritage, either. There are many people with similar circumstances, so you're not alone... I think you'll find good friendships open up here - I certainly have!

hobbs49

I agree! The more you go, the more that people will recognize you and before you know it, you will have a lot of friends at the powwow. Ya just gotta show up, have a good time, be friendly.