A Suprise Blessing: SIHANG RHEA MORA

"I extend a warm welcome to all who want to get in on some serenity and peace of mind...love and light."
--Sihang Rhea Mora aka Tate' Tanka

FAMILY IN LAKOTALAND
A week ago Monday night, as I was packing for the weeklong capoeira event on Pine Ridge, I received an email on my Blackberry (you know I LOVE my Blackberry) from a long time member of our kung fu / capoeira family in northern California. She tracked me down after she saw our capoeira flyer at the SuAnne Boys & Girls Club. This is SiHang Rhea Mora, a blackbelt of Sifu Bill Owens, my grandfather in kung fu.

SiHang Rhea relocated to the Pine Ridge Reservation in 2000 and has been living on her family's land at their ranch raising horses and German shepards. She teaches martial arts in South Dakota and she brought a gaggle of youngsters to our first capoeira classes at the SuAnne Boys & Girls Club. That a member of our family was already up in South Dakota doing the kind of work I had intended to was the sweetest of divine nods to our intentions of contributing and impacting the lives of the Lakota kids...I also had to laugh that of course, Sifu Bill had an invisible hand in this project; he has always been a very magical presence in my life, always ahead of his time and a true sage.

We got out to her ranch about 4 times during our trip and soaked up her wonderful energy, the loving pack of dogs' antics, and even did some horse riding in the goregeous rolling hills of Slim Buttes. As I write this I am catching the scent of the fresh sage we picked on her land that is drying in my apartment and now that I am back in LA with its helicopters, car horns, and smog, that gentle scent transports me.

SiHang Rhea is a wonderful spirit. She has the practical common sense, no fuss adaptibility and ingenious creativity that is the hallmark of a Sifu Bill Owens' blackbelt/instructor. And a wild sense of humor! Being around her is like being back on the training floor of Cascos Martial Arts Academy in East Oakland, California with Sifu Bill. It warms my heart so. She also has an incredible gift for holistic healing and communication. As a Lakota she was the perfect ambassador to us on this trip. Spending time with her was a blessing and there was clearly a divine hand in this trip happening. In our efforts to share capoeira with the Lakota children it is clearly apparent that these kids need consistent help and SiHang Rhea became a necessary anchor on Lakotaland to keep us active and prevalent. It is my intention to return often to give the kids the best I can offer of myself and now that will be so much more available and easy.

A MAGICAL MARTIAL ARTS ACADEMY
SiHang is working on opening an academy of martial arts on her ranch and she has had a building donated to her to act as the facility. It will include a training floor and other rooms for massage therapy, healing and business. She needs financial backing to carry out her vision and to bring her expertise as a martial arts instructor and community leader to fruition. I will soon be receiving her business plan and Sifu Paula and I have already begun to help her bring this much needed school into existence. If you are interested in being a part of this visionary development for the Lakota people let me know.

BED & BREAKFAST...LAKOTA STYLE
What I also want to share with you is that SiHang also has a vision of using some of her ranch as a bed & breakfast for people wanting to visit South Dakota and enjoy the rural magic of the Slim Buttes area. She envisions atleast three authentic tipi dwellings, outdoor showers, horseback riding, scenic hikes with loyal German shepard companions, picking fresh sage and sleeping under some of the most breath taking stellar night skys you have ever seen. This bed & breakfast will also be the site of a spiritual / martial arts retreat during the Summer season. The Mora ranch will be open for bed & breakfast and retreats during the Spring through Fall seasons. Learn and experience the deep humanitarian, healing, and spiritual insights of the Lakota as you relax in South Dakota...IT'S THE BOMB!!!

Many of you are asking me about how the capoeira junket went and are offering and excited to be a part of the next trip. It will amaze you, I promise and our connection now with the Lakota people is strongly hooked in. I know the next time I go up I may just be kickin it in a tipi, playing berimbau while I watch a hawk circle above and romping with an awesome German shepard...you should too!!

Axe' Axe' Axe'

P.S. Pictures of Sihang, the ranch, horses and pups coming soon...

The Return

Sifu Paula, Anne and I returned to Los Angeles last night. It was an amazing trip and I must thank you all again for your curiousity, your generosity, and your love and support.

It was very hard to leave the kids and Maretta's family of new capoeiristas after the last classes on Monday. The kids have real talent and it is a strong desire and intention of mine to help them flourish in their incredibly challenging environment on the reservation.

I believe it is our duty as Americans, whether our ancestors participated in taking these lands from the Native peoples or in any of the mass genocides that occured and may still be occuring here in America, to help preserve the Native cultures and see them flourish. We are living on Indian land; like it or not, care to believe it or not. I urge you to do your part however great or common to help our American ancestors. That is patriotism.

IMAGES COMING SOON

Hey All,

It was difficult to import images to the Boys & Girls Club computers with our digital cameras so I'm going to do that after the fact.

Stay tuned in as I will post images to previous blogs to further fill them out.

Thanks for logging on and being a part of this!!

E

Lakota Girl Lost

EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT!
Anne Selby is lost in South Dakota. She took our rental car to Mt. Rushmore while Sifu Paula and I went to spend the day with SiHang Rhea out here in Slim Buttes...and now, hours later, Anne and Amy wound up in Wyoming!!!

We patiently await their return and wish them the best...

132nd Annual Rose Bud Pow Wow

Today we headed out to the Rose Bud Reservation where Anne has family, to attend the big annual pow wow and fair. The dancing was amazing. The colors and individual creativity of the dancers' dress were incredible. To see several generations of Lakota, from toddler to elder dancing traditional dances together was moving and I was jealous admittedly that we in "western" culture have so little communal pride and ritual. Perhaps that's why we flock to arts like capoeira where these types of gathering and display are available for us.

At the Lakota pow wow the dancers usually dance with light footsteps and I can see how it has influenced the kids' ginga. I keep telling them to ginga deeper but that's not what they want to do. I think I might be starting to see the beginnings of the "gingalakota". The first thing a capoeirista learns of capoeria is the ginga; as she/he progresses the ginga becomes less mechanical and becomes their own and ultimately a signature of movement. The Lakota have their own footwork that is rooted, perhaps, in their traditional dancing. The hybrid of ginga and Lakota dance is going to be a sight to behold. I saw a glimpse of it in our first class with the kids when a little girl was doing ginga with the light on-the-toes footwork of a traditional dancer. It was sooooooo awesome!

You must if you ever have the chance attend a pow wow and delight in the beauty and strength of our true American heritage. Plus the fry bread and Indian tacos are slamming!!!

Maybe in the future we can show capoeira at one of these gatherings...

Adult Class

We have been blessed to have a devout following of a family of new capoeiristas. They are Mareta, her two daughters Jesse and Angel, and her 8 year old grandson. A late addition to our adult class is an administrative volunteer, all the way from Washington D.C., Amy...she reluctantly took one class after I badgered her for a few days and now she's hooked!

They are all very dedicated and faithful to training and showing up on time. They bring humor in where frustration might get the better of a person and there is a beautiful family competition in the air when they train together.

During rodas they are very interested and active in the music. Mareta seized a berimbau when it was offered during the beginning of a roda and that is true love for capoeira...berimbau is one of the most challenging parts of this art.

I'm stoked to have a multi-generational family interested in capoeira here. It is a beautiful thing to watch a mother and daughter jogo and practice drills, laughing at eachother, and bringing warmth into the training space. This is what Brincadeira Viva Academy has always provided for its students and instructors and it is rewarding in very profound way for us to find it far from home.

GingaLakota

The classes are going very very well. We have atleast two classes per day. The kids come in from afterschool at 3pm. The adults at 6pm. We have about twenty kids. About 5 adults--all female. Today was the kid's third day and they are starting to get it.

The very first class was challenging. With about 50 kids spread across the basketball gym floor you can imagine the diversity in personalities. There was almost a 50/50 mix between kids that were genuinely interested and others that were acting out.

By the second class things settled down a lot. Some of the ringleaders that were testing me our first day were now really trying to get it. We had our first roda and they were able to see it add up to something.

Our third today was great. The kids know the names of the movements, are focused and sincerely trying to get it. The roda was fun. Sifu Paula and I got in there and played the kids--which amused them all when we showed them how unpredictable and adaptable capoeira can be.

Some of the kids have taken to staying after the hour long class ends and working their movements. That is rewarding to us because we know something is sticking. It is also developing bonds that allow for future and more frequent trips/workshops.

For all our females out there: as usual the girls are more focused, more skilled and more willing to try new things than the boys. We even had one boy catch a bencao from a girl...he dropped in embarassment and all the kids laughed...PURE CAPOEIRA.

WOUNDED KNEE

This morning we visited the Wounded Knee Monument. This is where hundreds of Lakota, mostly women and children were massacred by U.S. Calvary in 1890. You might remember this from films such as Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee and Thunderheart.

It is a place that is very humble, with modest earthen graves surrounding a mass grave where many Lakota rest.

We have to remember that the power we have must empower everyone. When power becomes perverted it destroys. It is humbling to know I am sharing capoeira with the descendants of souls that may rest at Wounded Knee. That I am surrounded by ancestors from capoeira and Lakota and our own families.

Axe.

THANK YOU ALL!!! THIS IS AMAZING!!!

Dear Beloveds,

I was unable to post yesterday as there was so much going on with travel, adjusting to Pine Ridge, meeting everyone here at SuAnne Big Crow, and teaching.

First and foremost I have to say Leatrice "Chick" Big Crow is an incredible and outstanding person. That she chose to stay on the reservation and work towards realizing her daughter's dream and running this Boys & Girls Club is a blessing to behold.

It is truly amazing to experience this. We are teaching child and adult classes each day and the Lakota take to capoeira so fast it's incredible. They are a very talented and proud people. Some of our capoeira kids here are dancers, drummers, and singers of traditional Lakota styles and are getting ready for an upcoming pow wow. Leatrice "Chick" Big Crow, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club here, told us the Lakota are very light on their feet. She said if you watch the dancing you will see it. This weekend we are planning on attending a Pow Wow on the Rose Bud Reservation so we can check that out.

The Boys & Girls Club here is beautiful; there is a competition size swimming pool, a weight/fitness room, skate park, 50s style cafe, and full sized multi-purpose basketball gym--that's where we are training. It reminds me of training with Mestre Beicola at UC Village in Albany.

The Pine Ridge reservation is just as it is described on the SuAnne Big Crow Boys & Girls Club website; mired in poverty and socio-economic challenges. What SuAnne envisioned for her people has taken root and is blossoming here...and it is incredibly inspiring. To think that this was all created not because SuAnne has money or influence, but because she has vision and attitude...that this is all here and working because of the way she lived her life. THE WAY SHE LIVED HER LIFE.

Please allow me post other experiences and images in a bit. I have to get ready for classes.

Thank you all soooooooooooooooo much for sending us up here!!! You are all angels for giving.

Meet Our SD Crew: Anne

ANNE MARIE SELBY
Anne Marie Selby is excited to be returning to her Lakota roots in South Dakota where her DeSersa family currently live on the Rose Bud and Pine Ridge Reservations. She is originally from Honolulu, Hawaii now residing in Los Angeles, California. Anne has been studying dance, music and drama since she was 7, starting with hula and ukulele. Her love for teaching began at age 12, tutoring first graders and Anne continues to work in children’s creative education to this day. A professional actor and dancer she is currently working in the development of children’s museums in the greater Los Angeles area.

Meet Our SD Crew: Paula

SIFU PAULA VAN DER ZANDEN (Manha de Natal)
Paula Van Der Zanden has over 20 years of martial arts experience and black belts in two arts. She specializes in forms (katas), self defense, teaching and inspiring women and children, and broad sword. She has also trained in the African-Brazilian martial art of capoeira for the past year. Paula has taught women and children self defense classes at schools, recreation centers, and churches since 1989. She has also performed in live show appearances, most notably as a Power Ranger.

Meet Our SD Crew: Eric

ERIC DIXO ATEN (Cangaceiro)
Eric Dixo Aten began training martial arts in 1994 learning capoeira and kung fu from Zensay Carlos Hill at Brincadeira Viva Academy of Martial and Performing arts in Berkeley, California. He holds a formado (graduate) cord in capoeira and is working towards his black belt in kung fu. He currently lives in Los Angeles, California, building an acting career and day dreaming of surfing the golden shores of Hawai'i, his second home.

What is Capoeira?

Capoeira is a dynamic African-Brazilian art form that combines music, dance, gymnastics and martial arts movement. Excellent for increasing strength, flexibility, focus, and rhythm, it was developed as a self-defense system by Africans enslaved in Brazil as early as the 16th century.

Eric's Open Letter to Dynamic Donors

Dear Friends,

In two weeks I am traveling to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota to volunteer a week’s worth of capoeira lessons at the SuAnne Big Crow Boys & Girls Club. I am taking along two of my students and I am writing you to ask for the blessing of your support.

The travel expenses for our trip are $2,500. That covers air tickets, rental car, gasoline and meals for our weeklong offering August 19 – 26. I am reaching out to you that you may grace us with your generosity in a donation of $10, $20, $50 or whatever your budget will allow, so together we may serve these kids to the fullest of our potentials.

As you know I have been active in the African-Brazilian martial art capoeira since 1994. Through capoeira I was able to develop confidence, individuality, rhythm, cultural awareness, flow, mental/physical/spiritual strength and adaptability, perseverance and achievement. And beyond that the magic of empowering others where I am empowered.

“It is very important for the kids here to be exposed to as much of the outside world as possible.”– Leatrice “Chick” Big Crow, Executive Director, SuAnne Big Crow Boys & Girls Club

The Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota is the home to the Oglala Lakota Nation, the people of Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, and Olympic gold medal winner Billy Mills. It is a place with widespread material poverty, but with great spiritual wealth, natural beauty and hope for the future. The proud and beautiful Lakota people struggle every day to overcome the problems of unemployment, poverty, disease, grossly inadequate housing, alcoholism and drug abuse which have arisen as a result of their ignoble treatment over the past 150 years. (from www.suannebigcrow.org)

I first learned about The SuAnne Big Crow Boys & Girls Club in Denzel Washington’s book A Hand to Guide Me. Upon reading her story I immediately felt the urge to support SuAnne’s dream of improving life on the reservation. We intend to do that with the power of capoeira; a martial art born of and growing in adaptability, community, resistance, love and vision.

Please help us make the week of August 19 – 26 one of the most impactful and beneficial experiences in these Lakota kids' young lives. No matter how modest or gracious the gift of your donation, what the children will receive from it will truly be immeasurable.

Thanks for your time and consideration. And above all, thank you for being in my life!!

Donations can be sent to: Eric Aten P.O. Box 861203 Los Angeles, CA 90086
Feel free to contact me at: ankh9er@hotmail.com