otter lake was a beauty in the land of a thousand lakes. the entire area for miles was untouched forest being perched next to the wisconsin national forest. it had a potent infusion of magic in it's aura, perhaps having been the home of creatures now extinct or nearly so. the first humans were of course Indians. they knew how to listen to the winds, brave the subzero winters, hunt, fish, make clothing from hides, homes from skin and weaving.
nana told us stories about going into the "modernized" kitchen in the log cabin to cook breakfast on the wood burning, cast iron stove to find a seated group of Chippewa and Wabeno tribe's members wanting to trade beaded moccasins and tobacco pouches for ground flour, cornmeal and lard. nana acquired many "toys" from them: miniature birch tee pees and canoes; a ceremonial drum painted blue with images of leaping deer, the parameter of which was rimmed with white spotted red fawn fur (we sang our little girl songs to the beat of this exquisite drum); a buck skin dress for a young woman; a thick birch skin basket or purse with dangling acorns. someone said these things were donated to the Neville Public Museum.
these gifts from a different century held a tactile memory, a gentle power of nature and seeped into one's being. i cannot imagine this coming from someone's cell phone or computer. maybe i'm just sentimental...but even the smallest patch of moss reflected the Mystery...what we call fractal intelligence.
i had a dream of otter lake after it had been sold. the dream showed me where the new cottages were built and how the otter was disturbed. later i told our father this dream and was shocked to hear how exact my night vision was. he brought out the blue print where all the lots had been sold. yup...heartbreakingly true. this is only a small inkling of what the Indians must have felt.
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The tribe in Wabeno is the Potawatomi, which were part of a confederation of tribes with the Chippewa and Ottawa tribes, called the Council of the Three Fires. They have a reservation in Forest county and are the largest employer in the county. So if you want to know how they feel about development, they can probably tell you!
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