Memorial Sign

The Thin Milk Ride was a very special event which our group was invited to attend.  It is hosted by the Swallow and Two Bulls families, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and we were invited by Sandy Swallow Morgan.  Sandy and her husband Wayne, showed us how to find it and kindly introduced us to many people.  This event  is to honor a fallen Ghost Dance participant, by the name of Thin Milk,  whose body was found years after his death, unburied, as he had been shot.  The family identified and then buried the remains and for the past 8 years, have had a memorial ride in which to acknowledge him.  This is a family as well as community gathering, and our group was extremely honored to be invited to experience it.

Dave Dutton helping raise the flag

Upon our arrival, we were greeted by the host, Vic Swallow, and invited to join the riders and participants for breakfast.  We had very nice visits with  many of the people there, and they were very welcoming to our group.  They invited my husband, Dave Dutton, to help raise the flag, in honor of his service in Iraq and his career with the army.  Warriors have always been honored in this society, and it is extremely touching and fitting.  A tribal flag was also raised at this time.  There was a singer who played the drum, and prayers were said and sang.  This all took place in an outdoor circular structure, called a picnic ground.

This was followed by the gathering up on the horses and riders, and they were ceremonial smudged, with smoke from a fragrant sage.  Observers were given a sprig of sage, to take to the ride destination site.  Smudging is an act of purification and blessing, and this was very interesting to me.    The solemn nature of the experience showed the seriousness in which all took this event. Pictured is the smudging ceremony, and the riders following their 5 mile ride.  This was all in the basin of a valley in the Badlands region.

Riders at a distance

The riders rode for 5 miles, from the picnic grounds, to the cite in which Thin Milk was found.  Prayers were said, both at the site, and on the bluff above, where the observers gathered.  At this moment, an eagle rose in the air and  flew over the crowd… it was an amazing sign!  A blanket was awarded to the carrier of the staff, and this, too was in ceremonial fashion.  Following the arrival of the riders, the entire group went back to the picnic grounds, and were fed an traditional Native American meal.  An amazing and very touching day!

Smudging of the horses and riders

Riders at the conclusion

Badlands Landscape