Jonathan Meyer

Last week I may have mentioned a direction for this week’s edition of Just Jonathan, but this week, we have something far more important to talk about. On Saturday, I attended the Powwow for the first time, and it’s safe to say I’ll be back.

For a long time I didn’t know much about the Meskwaki people, everything from elements of culture to history and traditions, and quite honestly, I’m still in that boat.

This fact really upsets me now looking back at my time in the STC school district. So many of my classmates and friends are Meskwaki and active in the tribe, and I don’t think enough of us were supportive of that. I can’t think of a time I ever asked one of my classmates about their culture or history.

Of course, this doesn’t always have to be a deep philosophical discussion. We were only kids and these are big topics, but I will offer a flip side to that.

We learned about American history and the impact of many old historical events in the United States, yet we have one of the most culturally significant groups of people five minutes from the high school and I don’t feel I learned much about my friends, neighbors, classmates, and community members. Not a dig at the school district by any means, I’m sure standards and other factors come into play.

With what little influence this column has I’d like to encourage you to get out of your bubble, learn about someone else, find something new that interests you. Personally I’m going to do some reading and talk to my fellow community members more. You’ll definitely find me in the bleachers at the next Powwow!