Heartnotes

     Heading to Six Nations Rez in Canada, I was stuffed in the middle between two Mexica brothers in the backseat of my friend’s SUV. There were seven of us, and it was going to be a long, cramped drive, but I didn’t care. We were heading to Sundance, and Chief Arvol Looking Horse was running it. It was going to be my first time, and I was really excited to be doing the first of the four-year commitment there instead of baking in the hot sun in the Arizona desert.        It was late in the evening by the time we arrived, and it was a cold night to be sleeping in a tent with no fire to keep warm, but somehow we all managed.      Morning came early as other dancers milled around the campgrounds, preparing themselves for the days ahead. It was four days of dancing from sun-up to sundown in the sweltering heat with no water, wearing moccasins and a red calico print dress. I was ready.      The drum groups were warming up, practicing their timing skills and vocals. I was looking a