"Only a few weeks ago, the sun seemed to languish in the sky for hours. But Thursday evening, as my sister and I started out into the prairie to pick plums, the sun was there one minute and practically gone the next. We’re starting to move toward cold and harsh weather.
My goal for this trip was to pick plums for jelly and visit Edith and Gil Lee. Gil had e-mailed me and said his plum trees were full and ready to be picked.
It was one of those perfect fall days, and my mouth watered in anticipation as I drove west. When we finally reached their farm, Edith was there on the road waiting for us.
They are elders. They know the changing seasons and probably were more aware of each day’s earlier sunset than we were. Edith, who is a writer and reports for the Northwood (N.D.) Gleaner, jumped into the car with us, and we headed for the plum patch."
Get the Story:Dorreen Yellow Bird: Picking can plum tucker you out (The Grand Forks Herald 9/20)
pwpwd More Dorreen Yellow Bird:
Yellow Bird: Birds bring magic to North Dakota (9/17)
Yellow Bird: Race a poisonous role in the election (9/15)
Yellow Bird: UTTC powwow keeps getting bigger (9/10)
Yellow Bird: Interview with new president of UND (9/8)
Yellow Bird: North Dakota tribe at turning point with oil (9/3)
Yellow Bird: Committing to a lifetime of sobriety (9/1)
Yellow Bird: Veterans Memorial Wall an inspiration (8/27)
Yellow Bird: Cancer on Indian Country's doorstep (8/25)
Yellow Bird: Good friends and good chokecherries (8/20)
Yellow Bird: Olympics, a war without destruction (8/18)
Yellow Bird: Investing in college students (8/11)
Yellow Bird: Exploring healthy, traditional foods (8/6)
Yellow Bird: Eliminate smoking at all tribal casinos (8/4)
Yellow Bird: On UNITY, Amtrak and North Dakota (7/30)
Yellow Bird: Sundance offers food for the soul (7/23)
Yellow Bird: Watching the sky for hints of danger (7/14)
Yellow Bird: Humbled by Turtle Mountain tornadoes (7/10)
Yellow Bird: Sometimes the media gets carried away (7/7)
Yellow Bird: Smudging room at North Dakota hospital (7/2)
Yellow Bird: Adventures that stir the spirit (6/18)
Yellow Bird: Exhibit focuses on Arikara Scouts (6/16)
Yellow Bird: My heart belongs to the Great Plains (6/11)
Yellow Bird: White buffalo signals hope and peace (6/9)
Yellow Bird: Sen. Barack Obama for president (6/4)
Yellow Bird: There's good and bad in oil development (6/2)
Yellow Bird: Remembering all relatives a big chore (5/28)
Yellow Bird: Oil on the Fort Berthold Reservation (5/26)
Yellow Bird: Recycle and live lightly on the Earth (5/12)
Yellow Bird: Leaps in America's multiracial society (5/7)
Yellow Bird: Diversity in the United States (5/5)
Yellow Bird: Pollution a threat to North Dakota (4/30)
Yellow Bird: Program graduates Indian nurses at UND (4/21)
Yellow Bird: Recovering from brain aneurysm surgery (4/17)
Yellow Bird: A fight for oil on the reservation (03/31)
Yellow Bird: Excitement in North Dakota's weather (3/26)
Yellow Bird: Thoughts on Sen. Obama and race (3/24)
Yellow Bird: Pray for rain in western North Dakota (3/19)
Yellow Bird: Grandchildren are the greatest gift (3/17)
Yellow Bird: UND powwow survives budget woes (3/10)
Yellow Bird: Stereotypes and Hillary Clinton (3/5)
Yellow Bird: Celebrating 125 years of UND history (3/3)
Yellow Bird: High hopes for Indian health bill (2/28)
Yellow Bird: More Plains foods that are good for you (2/25)
Yellow Bird: Chokecherries, the wonder fruit (2/20)
Yellow Bird: Sadness on a trip to Standing Rock (2/18)
Yellow Bird: It's time for a change in music (2/11)
Yellow Bird: 'Sioux' drives Indian students away (2/7)
Yellow Bird: Another cold January in North Dakota (1/30)
Yellow Bird: Tribal casinos should be alcohol free (1/28)
Yellow Bird: Race and gender in presidential race (1/23)
Yellow Bird: Barack Obama is my choice for 2008 (1/16)
Yellow Bird: Artman right on off-reservation gaming (1/9)
Yellow Bird: Barack Obama's big win in Iowa (1/7)