SLEEPING IN A TEEPEE

I remember the first time I slept in a teepee. It was a cool summer evening a few years ago. My life partner's father, Dean, told me for years he would sleep in his teepee in the evenings. He invited me and a couple of other people in our group if we were interested. When I was younger I studied and learned about indigenous First Nations culture and about their homes, but never slept in one. I told him I'd never done that before and was definitely interested in the experience. We packed some food and blankets and headed down to the teepee, which is located about 1/4 mile away from his home near a freshwater creek. We casually walked and talked down into the vast green valley directly behind his home. Following what seemed like a never ending meandering well traversed path, we approached the towering teepee made of incredibly long smoothly shaven wood intertwined in a special network, wrapped in white canvas. Front flaps open to the world, inviting us in. We entered the tall structure to find 4 beds with pillows around the inside perimeter. In the center was a small brownish/black stove that you can tell has been used and used over and over again. We picked beds and got situated. Dean said, "ok, let's get some wood." We embarked on a short walk to gather dried tinder and larger logs to split for firewood. Came back to our evening home and split the logs. The sun was setting slowly. We opened the top vent of the teepee to allow smoke to egress. We started the fire and if I remember correctly we had some smores. What ensued after was a life changing experience. He told us about the reasons why the teepee was used in their culture and how they would follow the buffalo. He said, you always follow the food. It never occurred to me to think in this capacity, growing up in the suburbs and constantly in NYC for most of my life. We were all taking in the information watching the fire burn and burn and burn. After everyone was sleeping, I woke up to keep the fire going and became present to the words you're reading as a poem. They came to me as if I heard the whispers of his people. A powerful experience that I will never forget.