May is here, and finally (it seems) some warmer nights....the evenings are so beautiful right now: cool and clear, big moon, light breezes in the high desert.  I just got back from the Apache Mescal Roast, over near Carlsbad, where for 23 years now, the tradition of baking dozens of Agave hearts in a big pit has been shared with the public, preparing for the Mescalero Apache girls' puberty rites.  We got to see the whole process, take part in the ceremonies, dances, and blessings, and eat some of the luscious mescal, or agave when it came out of the pit after four days' baking. 
     Last weekend I went to the Tucson Folk Festival, where, with many good friends and open hearts, I played solo on the first two days, and then our band, Compas got up as the sun went down on the last night of the festival and played as the wind and the people danced.  What a good feeling.  All outdoor stages, sun and wind and good music. (see videos of me and Compas from the Festival)
     This month I'll be playing more with Compas at some private parties and weddings, looking to figure out some more summer outdoor places to play. 
      Little Graceful is now crawling all around the world, and standing up every chance she gets.  Lexa, Grace, and I are working on a move back to my family's land near Silver City, where we can be closer to my sister Maria's family, as she now has a new baby boy, Kai!  We hope to put up another wigwam/wickiup there for the warm season, and spend more time with close family. 
           Love and Spring to all

  April is upon us.  The cottonwood trees are budding out...some of the willows just about there too.  The weather in the valley is changing, though the cold still seems to be hanging on in the last few days.  Little Graceful is so close to crawling.  She gets up on her hands and knees and rocks and grunts and sits back up or eventually slowly lowers down to her belly and gets frustrated.  Heheh.  So cute. 
     It feels good to have spring peeking it's head around the corner.  The flowers are popping out: daffodils and a couple red tulips, delicate orange poppies, and those little purple cone flowers...
     We've had some new motivation lately to get the wigwam area all fixed up nice for us all to start spending more time over there, rather than the strawbale.  We'll be putting up a thatched roof on the ramada structure and working on our estufa lorena (a wood-burning, stand-up cob stove), plus I want to get one more layer of thatch on the wigwam, and we're thinking of mudding the floor to keep the dust down. 
       I don't have any music booked for this month yet....hmmm...time to get creative  
       Lexa, Grace, and I will be heading up to Rain Creek for the 14th-19th of April to support the people going up on the hill for the Lakota Hamblecya, or vision quest.  We'll be camped below, helping to check on the people above and holding prayer space for them in their 4 days and 4 nights alone with no food or water.  
        That's all for now...hope everyone is well!
                Love from the Gila Valley 

so fun and inspiring to get to hang out with like-minded people from all over the place: experts in things like flintknapping (working stone to make blades, arrowheads, etc.), basketmaking, buckskin clothing, wild foods,  and tons more...plus so many wonderful musicians that I got to play with, share songs, drum and dance around the fire.  More info available at www.backtracks.net