When I visited Bluff I got a brief history of its settlement by the pioneers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints through the eyes one of the ladies who worked at the twin rocks cafe's grandmother.
She told me that her grandmother remembered the day the pioneers came into the valley. Some with handcarts others with wagons. They were peaceful and had loads of hardships with the land and agriculture. She told me that the Native Americans sought to help the pioneers and that in turn the pioneers did everything they could to reciprocate that help. There wasn't much they could do to help the natives, but they did their best anyway.
She said that when the pioneers first settled the area there was a lot more collaboration between the two communities and that collaboration has continued but isn't as strong as it once was.
She told me stories about how the pioneers set up wells and that the Navajo people would cross a bridge to get water for their families each day. She told me about how Navajo and pioneers planted the waiting tree and how it became the waiting tree. It was apparently along the trail into Bluff and a great place for both communities to stand and wait for work as employers entered the area.
She told me how the waiting tree slowly lost its prominence in the town as times change. She also told me about how the Navajo Nation received their own wells and didn't have to cross the bridge into town anymore for water. That was the time/day when the two communities didn't seem so dependent on each other anymore.
She told me about the day when the reservation received electricity (actually only a few years earlier.) Her kids would ask about what it was like before electricity and she would reply that she didn't know. It was just different, things would take longer, but we stayed entertained and life was good.
These are just a few of the rich stories that the residents of Bluff and the Navajo Nation have to offer.
Wednesday, October 5, 2016
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