In one of Jackie’s dreams, she received instructions to be an example to Indian youth.  Many times, she said, it is the youth who come to see her and listen to her.  One time she was asked to perform on the Rosebud Reservation, so she drove all night to get there, even though she had to meet the needs of her small children too.  Despite being tired from the long drive, she performed for the children.  When she finished she felt completely drained until she was given some very special gifts.  An elder gave her an eagle feather, a Pendleton blanket, and some tobacco.  “As soon as I received the eagle feather and tobacco, I felt revived, and my energy was restored,” she said.  To Jackie these rewards are more valuable than the standard gifts of money and recognition.

When she performs for children and youth, she sees a reflection of what is inside her on their faces-love, energy, and joy.  Once after Jackie had performed at a school, she received a letter from one of the teachers.  In it the teacher shared with her what the children said about her performance, that “she left a trail of joy.”  Those observations and comments are memorable to her because they help her to know that the performance had an effect on the audience.  She knows she is here on earth to do something and helping children experience joy is part of that.

Jackie has the gift of bringing joy and comfort to others, too.  Once she was traveling through Crow Country in Montana when one of the tribal members saw her perform and admired her and what she did, so he gave her a traditional name.  The name he gave her was in the Crow language and is interpreted as “One Who Makes The People Smile.”  In 1997 when Jackie was among the Blackfeet people, she was given a name by them too.  They told her that in their tradition the sparrow can lift souls and they believed she lifted up their community and their children, so Jackie was named “Blue Sparrow Woman.”  Her Mandan/Hidatsa name is “Corn Woman.”  It was passed down to her from her grandmother Pansy Parshall whose mother had the same name.  It must be very special to Jackie that her grandmother favored her with her name and her great-grandmother’s name.  She has some beautiful memories of her grandmother and has begun to write about some of those things.  Jackie is an enrolled Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux tribal member, but the experiences that had a lasting effect on her were when she was with her Mandan/Hidatsa grandmother.

When I first called Jackie to see if she would agree to be on the cover of the magazine, her reply was, “I’d be honored, I’ve never been on the cover of a magazine.”  I am the one who was honored to have been allowed to see into this young woman’s life and to be able to share it with others.  Jackie has gained spiritual wisdom and maturity from the Indian elders she reveres and spends time with.  Perhaps that is why her walk on earth is graceful and beautiful.

Florestine Renville German (you can email her by clicking her name)
visit the website:  IKCE WICASTA
The Common People Journal

Email Jackie Bird