Happy Fall Everyone!
It hardly seems possible two months have gone by since my first day with View the Future. I am truly impressed with the amount of passion and dedication the volunteers and Board of Directors give to this organization. It is amazing to see what can happen when you work toward the same vision. Whether you are a volunteer or not with View the Future, we share one common denominator; we love and cherish Yachats and its surrounding area. Each time I leave Yachats, whether it is to the valley or to the mountains, I always feel relief and comfort when I round that corner just south of town and can see our little village in the distance.
Recently I was able to go on a backpacking trip that required a lot of physical stamina, determination, and grit. Unlike other backpacking trips in my past, this one had one underlying person that gave me inspiration: AMANDA; the story about the Native American woman who was blind that inspired the Amanda Trail. As the story is re-told by our Co-Chair, Joanne Kittel, and local tribal members, Amanda was forced-marched into Yachats, 80+ miles along the Oregon Coast to the Alsea Sub agency just south of Yachats, along with 31 other captives in 1864. I could not stop thinking about Amanda taking her trek along the rocky shores blind, without shoes, with bloody feet, tied to a rope, being led by someone she had no choice but to trust to lead her way. Thinking of her on my hike, gave me the inspiration to keep going despite my own trivial discomforts.
When I go sit at the Amanda Grotto, and see her statue of remembrance, to me, it represents the suffering of all the Ingenious People here before us, their determination, and grit.
To me, Amanda represents our land, sea, and our forest. It is her and the Tribes’ sorrow I think about. I am so grateful to the artist Sy Meadow for creating not one, but two statues of Amanda that have rested in the Grotto as a reminder to all who walk the Amanda Trail to see. I am grateful and proud of our community retelling the Amanda story to honor the painful truth about the past lives of our Indigenous People here. I am grateful to those who will continue to tell her story. I thank all the volunteers and constituents who helped make the Grotto what it is today. The impact this beautiful space has had on so many locals and visitors allows us to learn about our history and have the Amanda Trail experience; one that stays with you for a long time, hopefully forever.
My wish is for all Yachitians, surrounding communities, visitors, and friends, to continue to retell the Amanda story, visit the grotto, and walk the trail in remembrance of who was here first, and their suffering, determination, and grit that was endured. When you round that corner to see our tiny and beautiful village in the distance, appreciate the blessing we live in, stop to visit the Amanda Trail Grotto to pay homage to our Original People, and remember the past because it is part of our future. Thank you to all the supporters of View the Future who share the Amanda story with others in honor of Yachats’ cultural past and thank you, Joanne and our Tribes for bringing this story to light.
Together, in remembrance, with one common vision, we can do so much!
Gretchen Dubie
