ndigenous Peoples’ Day celebrates, recognizes, and honors the beautiful traditions and cultures of the Indigenous People, not just in America, but around the world. Their way of life and culture carries wisdom and valuable insights into how we can live life more sustainably.
Full discloser, this photograph was not taken today, it's from my vast Machiasport photo archives. These incredible Native American Petroglyphs are from ledges on the shore of Machias Bay, Clark's Point, Machiasport Maine. My great grandmother and her son, my maternal grandfather, were born in Cape style houses from the early1800s built by my sea captain ancestors. Their homes were built on the sacred homelands of the Passamaquoddy Tribe. The petroglyphs, know locally as the "Picture Rocks" were part of a sacred Native American site. I, (and generations of my family) played on these ledges on summer vacations here. I have found flint points on the beach washed for thousands of years by the tides, still sharp. To visit the area now, one must contact a local Tribal Leader for permission.
The Passamaquoddy Tribe has a long history in eastern Maine and western New Brunswick Canada, some say over 12,000 years. Machiasport is a very unique place, a place where the coast soothes the spirit and the land heals the soul. This petroglyph site is in an area of the largest concentration of rock carvings on the east coast. After 400 years, the rock carvings return back to the ancestors of the people who created them, what a strong story of endurance and survival. For more information, visit www.wabanaki.com.
For the Record,
This day came in cloudy and cool. Frost warnings tonight. I'm a bit stiff from my flying over and on the beach rocks yesterday. I'm very lucky, this I know, to have just one sore scraped knee.
I retired from public school teaching after happily spending twenty eight years playing in Kindergarten. Now I fill my days watching cat antics, taking endless...
