On Saturday morning of February 2, just after having breakfast in the large lobby, everyone was greeting each other by shaking hands and complimenting their Cherokee designed clothes. They were also making sure that we were all ready to make our adventurous trip for this morning.

As we were mingling, I met a lady who made the trip from Kansas; her name was Kreglyn (Wolf Mother) Mason. She whispered into my ear and told me that she wanted to cry, because the people she had met the day before were truly lost brothers and sisters that had been lost for over a century and a half, and were being united with each other as tribe descendants for more than one-hundred-sixty years.

Emotions were on a high plain. Everyone seemed to become more acquainted with their fellow tribe members and a mutual bond was developing as the women all gathered around and in the Cherokee language began to sing the beautiful Cherokee Morning Song. They sang the song without any musical instruments and the men gathered behind the Cherokee women as they faced the east.

We then boarded the tour buses at the motel in Eagle Pass and received our instructions from the Texas and Mexican Chiefs and from Epi Rodriquez. Epi saw to it that every one was comfortable and ready to go across the big river into Mexico.

Epi is a more than six foot tall Mexican Cherokee and is an eloquent speaker in the Spanish language, and generally always has his English speaking translator by his side, just in case there is a misunderstanding of any instructions.

Epi is a very congenial and understanding person – truly a God-sent man, and has a large welcome mat out as the Texas Cherokees go into and visit with the lost brothers and sisters of the Native American tribe that is located just about an hour’s drive from the border.

The buses stopped about a mile outside of Zaragoza. We all got off the buses, the smokers smoked and the remainder visited with the English speaking Mexican people that had stopped to talk with a family that were visiting their home in Mexico for a couple of months vacation.

One of the English speaking Mexican Cherokees from Mexico told us that he was a truck driver in the United States and that he was going back in a couple of weeks to Iowa where his family was living. He had made the visit back to Mexico for the season of Candelario.

Chief Hicks announces that we are all to board the buses; we are going downtown to stop and allow everyone to go around and do their shopping. I never did see anything that was purchased; however, I got to talking to a street photographer and his father, and I was able to purchase a few of the photos of the Cherokees that he had so expertly finished and was selling for $4 a piece.

Most all of the Cherokees were buying hamburgers and cokes and other food items that was being sold in the booths. All of this activity was beginning to remind me of the Peanut Festival that we have in Aubrey on the first Saturday of October each year.

After our thirty or forty-five minute shopping spree, we all boarded the tour buses and went back to the south side of the city of Zaragoza. There were thousands of cowboys and horses lining up to take their places in the five or six mile long parade which was made up of only cowboys on horseback and the Cherokee Indians.

One Cowboy that spoke good English rode up and asked me if I had lost my feathers – almost all of the Cherokee men were dressed in the customary regalia with feathers of different colors. My immediate response to the cowboy was that I would have it on before I took my place in the parade.

Epi Rodriquez had a very attractive John Deere green wagon with a yellow tongue that was pulled by horses. The wagon seated about ten of the Cherokees and pulled by the team. His wagon led the Cherokee section of the parade. The Cherokee section was fairly long and was made up of wagons and trailers.

As we entered into town, we had already viewed about a half a mile of bystanders. They were all dressed in rather attractive cowboy clothes and jeans. The crowd was lined up by families. It was obvious that they are a very family oriented group, and stood in little groups of families as they watched the parade.

The Cherokee on the trailer that we rode on were sitting in chairs that were lined up. We all waved and yelled, "O si-yo" (Hello). The trailer was about twenty feet long and chairs were lined up on the trailer.

The Cherokee women continued their morning song and sang it four times without pausing, rested and would start singing again as the parade made it was down the streets.

There were thousands of Mexican people. This is an annual event that they celebrate each year on the 2^nd day of February.

The people were well dressed, smiling and waving at us as we made our way down the streets.

At one point, I asked a fellow Cherokee friend from Gainesville that was on this historical trip, if I was hearing an echo. When the Cherokee women on the wagon ceased singing, we could hear the Mexican women on the streets singing the same song in Cherokee.

This event is an annual fiesta. This year’s festival was the one-hundred-fifty-second year that the festival has taken place. Some of the Cherokees stated that this is an event that will allow the long lost Cherokees of Mexico to become a part of the Texas Cherokees that were scattered when they faced the removal from their habitations and possessions along with the loss of the lives during the 1920's.

The removal of the Cherokees from their homes was forced and many lost their lives due to disease and other disasters Their homes were filled with fruit tree products that were grown on their own farms; however, someone else in higher powers decided that they wanted the fruit trees for selfish reasons.

The parade was estimated to be more than five miles long before it reached the arena and stadium where another several thousand bystanders were gathered to see a presentation of the Texas Cherokees with the help of the Mexican Cherokees.

Next week I will conclude this series of columns on our trip to Mexico as some of our local Cherokees have stated during the last meeting of the Texas Northern town district that they were all looking forward to another trip and they are already making plans to improve their dresses and clothes.

The photo this week shows some of the covered wagons that were in the parade. The wagons were occupied with cowboys in their later years. This photo was made as the wagons made their way through the arena and on out into the grounds of the nearby ranch.