Blooming With New Gifts

The Indian Paintbrush

The story of the Indian Paintbrush flowers is a story of a young boy’s search for his place in the world. Little Gopher wasn’t as big, strong, or fast as the other boys of his tribe. He yearned for a way to serve his tribe since he was not destined to be a warrior. The answer came to him in a dream vision. He was directed to find the whitest deer hide and paint a picture of the beautiful sunset in his dream.

Little Gopher’s people did not paint, so he was unsure how he would fulfill his vision. His dreams directed him to experiment with creating the colors of the sunset by using plants, minerals, and even the shells of insects. He mixed these ingredients with animal fats to produce vibrant colors.

In his vision, Little Gopher saw these colors applied to the deer hide with some kind of strange stick with fur on one end. He tried attaching the fur of squirrels and rabbits to sticks that fitted his hand comfortably until he had an array of paintbrushes to create his visionary sunset.

Little Gopher worked long and hard to create the image he saw in his dream. He presented the finished painting to his village. His people were awed at the beauty he had captured. There was much discussion of the benefits of this talent; great hunts could be commemorated, as could special celebrations and rituals.

In all the excitement, Little Gopher forgot to collect his painting supplies. The next morning the prairie where he had worked was covered in the beautiful flowers that we call Indian Paintbrushes.

As we see these flowers each spring, we are reminded that we each have something special to offer to the world. We don’t all have the same talent, but we all have something important to share.

Let April invite you to explore your own dream vision to discover your unseen talent and learn how you, too, can offer something valuable to your community.

A few special events to be on the lookout for!
•             Spring Community Outing. April 27 at Muleshoe
•             Drum Making Workshop. Dates and location TBD.

The Leadership Team for the Shamanic Community of Austin