Luci Tapahonso's Blue Horses Rush In
A Woman's View of Navajo Culture
"This thing called memory is like nothing else. Once you remember something, it never leaves you. It’s how we know we have lived" (64). This quote by Luci Tapahonso’s grandfather embodies the spirit of the prose and poetry written in Blue Horses Rush In. The collection is like a journey through Tapahonso’s life as she weaves a tapestry that stitches the past, the present and the future together. She structures prose and poetry that are mixtures of family stories, Navajo culture and legendary tales. Tapahonso utilizes many of the same storytelling techniques used by many Native-American writers. She highlights aspects of her life that are important to her and has shaped the woman she is today.
Tapahonso’s Blue Horses juxtaposes prose and poetry writers to tell her stories. The use of prose or poetry usually sets the pace in which the story is being told. Poetic works, for the most part, are used when the story illustrate shorter events that are better told in a lyrical, musical manner. Tapahonso uses poetry when telling readers about happier events in her life. For example, "Shisoi," a poem about the birth of her granddaughter, is perfect for retelling such a momentous event(5). Readers can almost hear the sound of drum beats as the story is being told. The poetry is used for stories that would be told at a one-time occasion, similar to bedtime stories or campfire tales.
Tapahonso’s prose is often fast-paced, intense events that take place over an extended period of time. "I Remember This One in Tucson " is a good example of use of prose for an intense event. The narrative chronicles Tapahonso’s college days, when she balanced motherhood and her education, and her bond with Nita, a woman who shares a similar experience to hers. The narrative talks about a car Nita bought that broke down constantly and couldn’t be stopped once it was started (57-9). The other prose works are of a similar nature. The story of the death of her granddaughter and the story of her runaway daughter are just a fast-paced and intense. A reader can almost imagine Tapahonso telling these stories over a period of a few days while sitting on the porch of one of her family members’ houses.
Women play an important part of Indian culture as teachers and purveyor of wisdom. Tapahonso tells the story of a legendary Navajo women, Spider Woman. Spider Woman possess mythical powers. In "Above the Canyon Floor," Spider Woman appears as a young woman to a young man. At the end of the poem, she appears to the young man as an older woman who imparts wisdom to this young man for him to use when he actually meets the woman he is to marry (43-8). She serves as a mother figure who teaches the young man’s daughters the traditional art of weaving. It is almost as if women hold all the secrets of the community.
Similarly, family plays an important role in the life of many Indian writers. Nevertheless, Tapahonso’s stories are extremely family centered. The introduction of the book basically prepares readers for a book that will focus on family. She does not place one family member in a more prominent position than other family members or reminisces about the uplifting areas of her life but glosses over painful events. She writes about the pleasures of being a parent and grandparent and the pain of a child’s rebellion and a grandchild’s death. A few quotes in the book epitomize the meaning of family to Tapahonso. Of her family she writes, "My childhood is intertwined with the memories of various relatives ‘talking’ to me and sharing by implication the value of silence, listening and observations" (100).This sentiment is apparent in the stories about the elders of her family, people who have shaped her life.
Furthermore, she credits her ancestors for giving her the memories needed to effectively convey share these stories with others. She feels the window into the past is a way of looking at the present and the future. She says of the stories of her relatives
"This is a part of where my writing begins…These old stories allow me to imagine shimasani, my maternal grandmother, and shicheii, my maternal grandfather, both of whom died several decades before I was born. This is, for me, a "way of looking," both at the present and at what is yet to come" (102).
Tapahonso’s realizes that stories of her mother, grandmother and other elders have shaped her life. They also help her to give this gift of words to enrich the lives of her family and others who wish to read her works.
Source:
Tapahonso, Luci. Blue Horses Rush In . 2nd. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1998.
