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Date Posted: 21:00:02 09/20/01 Thu
Author: Zzoo
Subject: Miracle, the Sacred White Buffalo
I feels right to post something a bit encouraging about now, so OT or not, I'm going to tell you all about my visit to Miracle, the white buffalo. See the reply because it is lengthy.
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Miracle, the Sacred White Buffalo -- Zzoo, 21:02:04 09/20/01 Thu
Little Ishtar and I went to Janesville, WI to see Miracle, the sacred white buffalo. Janesville is a fairly small town and sits in the midst of Wisconsin dairy and farm land. As you travel along the road leaving town, the route to the Heider farm displays HUGE billboards advertising motels, restaurants, auto repair shops, etc. Four way stop lights appear at tiny intersections. They were indicators of the traffic that normally travels that country highway to see Miracle. Since it had taken longer to make the trip than we realized, we arrived in Janesville at almost 5:00 PM when the farm and gift shop were closing for the day and debated whether to check into a motel or try for the farm anyway. We went to the farm. I'm glad we did. The following day it rained buckets.
The neighbors had turned a pasture into a parking lot adjacent to the farm ($2.00) and from there I gimped halfway up the driveway until "Grandpa" saw me. He hopped into his golf cart (a gift from the local Harley Davidson dealer) and came to meet me, giving me a ride up to the pasture where Miracle and her family were lounging about, looking like --- well, kind of like buffaloes. One big girl was laying in a hay pile right against the fence and JYDB lay near a lean-to about 15 feet away. Beside him stood Miracle. JYDB is about 2 tons of male and I have a sneaking suspicion his name is an acronym for something like Just Your Dumb Buffalo, but he is a handsome brute.
Miracle is "buffalo" colored right now and has been since she had major foot surgery which required removing a bone from her foot. She turned brown during her illness and stayed in the center of her herd, partially protected by the natural buffalo coloration. She had already passed through the white, black, yellow, and red colors predicted by Native American prophecies. On the day we arrived she stood calmly watching us, her right side facing us. After a while she turned and faced us, still watching. Eventually she turned further and stood with her right side toward us, still calmly eyeing us. At last she returned to her original position beside JYDB. The audience was over. Ishtar said it reminded her of nothing so much as the Pope coming out onto the balcony and giving a papal blessing to the crowd below. There had never been any doubt in either of our minds which buffalo was Miracle. She definitely has an "aura."
We hung a gift on the fence for Miracle and then cruised the gift shop with Dave Heider and Grandpa in attendance -- courteous, charming, and informative -- despite the face that their dinner was waiting and they sometimes have hundreds of guests a day. An orange marmalade farm cat walked around on the display cases and then lay down on one, rolling tummy up for pats. The Heider's highest visitor count came soon after Miracle's birth when they topped 1500 visitors in one day. We decided they should probably get a chance to eat dinner so we left the shop, promising to return the following day at a better hour.
Grandpa carted us around the rest of the farm a bit while taking us back to our car and we finally realized we were in the middle of an exotic zoo. There were ostriches, emu, pygmy goats, miniature horses, peacocks, an amazing variety of ducks, chickens, and geese. I had never seen "fluffy" chickens or a "ruffled" goose before so I haven't a clue what their breeds were. The Heider farm has become a de facto water fowl rescue center with people frequently bringing them injured or abandoned birds. One large white goose sported bleached-out mallard duck markings and we decided not to ask about its parents' proclivities.
Ishtar dropped a quarter in a grain feeder stand to hand out food to the birds. While she was feeding a large group of them, a "wild" Canadian honker came up behind her and demanded to be fed NOW. She didn't respond quickly enough and he bit a chunk out of her calf. We nicknamed him Alpha. Although geese are sometimes used on farms as watch geese because they make so much noise when anyone appears, the ones on the Heider farm have an interesting system worked out. They stand around the driveway and quietly let you pass by them on your way into the pasture, but they don't let you LEAVE until you've fed them. If you visit, make a note: Feed Alpha first.
The following day we went out to the farm at a more respectable hour, but when we arrived rain was pouring down and it looked deserted. It was Sunday, but farms are never truly deserted -- they are a full time job in the truest sense of the word, 24 X 7. We pulled up in the driveway and parked in front of the gift shop since we would apparently not be causing a problem that day by doing so. Needless to say, the geese, ducks, chickens, and peacocks parted like the Red Sea to allow us entry and then formed a solid barricade behind us in the vicinity of the feeding station. Ishtar walked back to the house and returned to say that Dave was in town but would be back shortly with the shop key. On her way she had been accosted again by Alpha who pecked at her hand so insistently that she couldn't get the feeding station to work. Corey, the Heider's son, came running from the house and scooped the goose up on the toe of his boot and flipped him into the pond. Alpha bounced off the water and back to the feeding station so quickly he barely dampened his little webbed toes but she had time to get two handfuls of grain from the station in time and tossed him an entire handful so she could make her escape. She walked on toward the pasture to greet Miracle, tromping happily through the mud puddles. Eventually I felt silly sitting in the car alone and followed, mentally shaking a paw and hissing at every step. A black and white cat stared out the gift shop window from her nice dry counter and considered the foolishness of humans.
Miracle stood in the rain, perhaps contented that the rain had temporarily driven away the flies which are ever present on a farm. A small fox sat in the barn door, eyeing the passing peacock chicks and drooling, but ran back into the barn to hide when it saw us. When Dave returned we mentioned the fox to him and were advised that the farm had a resident fox, "the one in the big pen in the barn, right?" Dave asked. "No. The one sitting in the barn door," we told him. "Oops. Better check that out," he responded.
We hung our soaking jackets over the drying rack, aka the end of the counter in front of a fan, and finally took the time to really look over the shop and museum. We didn't quite clean out their stock, but at least we tried. The farm charges no admission fees and the Heiders care for Miracle and her immediate family as a trust for those in the world who believe in her (including the $6,000 surgery on her foot which the Heiders paid for). Donations are accepted for a trust fund established at the local bank for Miracle's upkeep and the shop sells a nice variety of souvenirs including some very fine Native American artwork. Photographs are not allowed, but I bought a nice selection of cards which I will try to scan and put onto the net for everyone to see (with appropriate credit, of course.) Since I have a mask collection I found I simply could not leave without the magnificent formed deerskin, feather, horsehair and bead mask nor the striking color sketch on Oregon maple burl of Miracle as a young white calf with her mother. The black and white cat followed us and screamed when we quit petting her so it finally proved easier to simply carry her while in the shop. She didn't object.
Finally we packed the cooler with buffalo steaks (No, not from any of Miracle's relatives) from the farms "intended" business for our Chicago relatives. Phil is a big meat eater but has now had 3 heart attacks and a bypass so we wanted him to try switching to buffalo. If you've never had buffalo, please try it. It is much higher in protein and lower in fat and cholesterol than beef. It tastes similar to beef, but in my opinion, better. People suffering from IBS or Crone's sometimes find they can handle buffalo who cannot handle beef.
Finally we moved to the rear of the shop building and into the small museum set up to contain all the tributes left on the gate and fence for Miracle. The original farm gate became so loaded with them that the gate refused to open and close so the Heiders simply removed it, gifts and all, to begin the museum and installed a new gate. Now all the tributes left for her are removed every couple of weeks and placed in the museum. They are never discarded. The assortment and quantity of gifts is overwhelming. They are literally from all over the world, from every age group, from every race, from every religion and/or lack of one. A film crew from Finland left tributes behind as did one from Japan; a school child from India drew a picture; a Canadian artist autographed some of her work; military patches from veterans; letters from many religious leaders; and gifts filling 3 large display cases, one wall, and part of the floor. The ones which seemed to impress Ishtar the most was a pyramid formed of AA tokens left by AA members. The tokens are given to celebrate periods of sobriety and must have carried great meaning to the donors. I stood before one case staring at a white silk scarf left by the Dalai Lama from his visit to Miracle. He had stayed for three days to meditate. I said to Dave, "So let me see if I have this right. You were making a quiet simple living in the country, away from all the bustle, and then one day the Dalai Lama knocked on your front door." He laughed and said that described the situation pretty well. Life for the Heiders will never be the same. He claimed to be an agnostic but conceded that he felt "something" around Miracle but wasn't sure if it was from her or from the beliefs and hopes that everyone else had poured into her. Before we left he said that when he stands at the Pearly Gates, he has one question he wants answered: "Why, oh why, did you send me a white buffalo?" It was a strange comment from an agnostic at what seemed a strange place situated just outside of linear reality.
The Native Americans believe that the white buffalo calf appears to mankind in a dark period to promise the coming unity of all races and that this is why she goes through her color changes. Certainly, this is a dark period and obviously there have been many people of many races and religions who hope the prophecy is true. A question that came up during a conversation with my very Catholic step-daughter was: "If Christ wanted to do it, he could appear as a white buffalo for his second coming, couldn't he?" I don't know the answer. I don't know if Miracle does indeed fulfill the prophecy. I don't know if unity among the races and religions is possible. But I do know that I left the Heider farm with a sense of hope, and at this time, that alone seems like a miracle.
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Zzoo, thank you for this! A few questions.... -- Lorraine, 22:57:07 09/20/01 Thu
I have heard that the prophecies surrounding the appearance of the white buffalo calf say that there will be five years of chaos (?) after her appearance, then a reign of peace. Is that correct? What year was Miracle born? (ARE WE THERE YET???? LOL) I, too, am praying for the day when there will peace among all peoples. Please let me know if my memory on this completely off.
Another question: I hate to be so out of the loop, but what has happened to you that makes walking difficult? If you were injured somehow, I am so sorry.
Hugs,
Lorraine
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Re: Zzoo, thank you for this! A few questions.... -- Zzoo, 23:28:37 09/20/01 Thu
Miracle just turned 7 in late August. There are several variations on the legend depending on the tribe. Your version is one of them. The general gist of all of them is similar though they vary in the details. Some of the eastern religions carry some strangely similar legends, though not about the American bison, of course.
I have arthritis (from Lyme's disease) and have had several spinal fractures due to osteoporosis so walking any distance is rather difficult. Just around the house, etc. is fine, but after about a 1/2 block I run into some problems. I try not to let it keep me from experiencing things and my daughter is very helpful when I travel, as have been my buddies when I travel with them. Hopefully, it isn't noticeable, at least not on short acquaintance.
Hugs.
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Re: Zzoo, thank you for this! A few questions.... -- lorraine, 21:36:26 09/22/01 Sat
Thanks for the reply, Zzoo! Jesus, "several spinal fractures" sounds painful beyond belief. I think you are to be commended for just keeping on.... {{{{zzoo}}}}}
We need some good news during this time. I'm stressed, thinking of all we have lost, and worried about the losses to come. It's rough seeing the soldier boys gear up for war. I'm so glad my husband is out of the army THIS TIME! My heart isn't in all the flag-waving- I know what it means...
I'd like to think we have gotten beyond nationalism to something better, like a global village/community, something YOU helped to create on this (previous incarnation of) message board. But perhaps we haven't... If this is a crossroads, perhaps MIRACLE is something we need right now...
Blessings,
Lorraine
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Zzoo, thank you again for this! It was a nice thing to read in a quiet time. -- Petra, 11:43:53 09/23/01 Sun
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Thank you for sharing this story, Zzoo. I remember reading about Miracle, and it's nice to know that she is living in a caring environment and that many people have been able to see her. Let's hope that the Native American prophcies are true. As a side note, my school mascot (Colorado) is a buffalo, and I grew really fond of the beasts during my time out west. -- Susan W, 21:39:02 09/23/01 Sun
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Re: Miracle, the Sacred White Buffalo -- Sign me, 17:09:25 10/01/01 Mon
Your article on Miracle was very interesting to me. We
stopped to see her when she was only a few months old, but
they wouldn't let us in that day as it was a day for only
indian visitors. I really wanted to see her but that's
the way it goes, went back the next day, but they were
closed. They didn't have a museum or gift shop at that
time. Thanks for the info and glad you got to see Miracle.
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Wow... Zzoo, Thanks for this. What an adventure... A sacred, white buffalo and a man eating goose... Wish I could have been there with you, but now I almost feel like I was! :-) -- Shirleym, 12:46:14 09/29/01 Sat
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