A Snake Incident, Painting Day

Thursday, 09 June, 2005 by Cheryl W. Colan

I started the day by walking to the Colored Sands again at dawn. This time Teri and Nizhoni came along, and with Gemma as our guide we had another magical time in this sacred area. I asked Gemma to retell the story of the place and many ideas were exchanged about women’s spirituality in both Native American and Aboriginal cultures. It was a privilege to be there. PupPup followed us down the beach again and was very playful with me at the entry to the sands. She ran way up onto the sands and buried her nose in a crack, then went tearing down the beach back toward camp. Gail and Maria joined us a little later, having encountered a very lively PupPup on their way.

After breakfast, we painted all morning. Students worked to transfer their designs to the mural. Gemma, Wil and Pi began painting aboriginal designs for the creation story of K’Gari, and Roger continued to paint he design for the island. Ever immensely supportive, Gail and Charles prepared lunch for us while we worked. We were scheduled to go to Allom Lake and to the knifeblade sand blow after lunch. Some of the aboriginal community members were interested in going with our group, so Linda, Donna and I stayed behind and continued to paint. It was a quiet, peaceful afternoon working easily together. Linda and Donna started our evening meal around 4:00 while I continued painting. The experience really reminded me of how much fun I had scene painting during and just after college. It makes good therapy. I am going to have to make a real effort to continue with soul-feeding activities like these when I get home.

When everyone returned, we had our evening meal. At some point in the night Joe spotted a snake. Will or Pi thought at first that it was a red belly black, but it went under the rotunda before we could tell for sure. Many of the snakes on K’Gari are poisonous, so we began to be vigilant about watching where we stepped. We had just started eating when the snake reappeared. One of the aboriginal fellows spotted it near the picnic table where it was very close to Charles. Gail later said she had never seen her husband move so fast. He jumped up from the table quickly, which upset the balance and nearly threw Teri to the ground, but she recovered quickly. Joe came running over and removed the snake, and later called a park ranger to relocate it away from the campground. I love that he did not kill the snake outright as many people probably would have done. The treatment underscored two things to me: first how dedicated the Aboriginies are to the ecosystem around them, and second, how dedicated they are in looking after us as guests in their lands. It is a reminder that they treat us well in ways of which we may not always be aware.

Many of the students were tired after traveling around the island. Gemma, Linda, Roger, Gail and I stayed up and continued to paint with the aid of a generator to power a small flood light. Teri could not get to sleep after the snake incident, so she came out around 10:30 to help with the painting. I got really tired and went to bed around 11:00 p.m. Everyone else quit around midnight. I slept content with the wound of the waves around me.