We have had quite the adventure here in Montana this year. A two year hiatus and limited immersion groups have given DLSBS a bit of different vibe. Usually in May when we visit there is a lot of end of year fun activities and shorter class days. This year there is a stark contrast due to the need to get the students caught up in their school work. School has gone from 8:15 am - 4:30 pm each day with out fail and the CBC students have been worked to the bone.
It is not all bad though. The connections made in school are going great and the relationship piece between our students theirs is going as expected. We also have been able to take two trips up to Glacier so far. On Sunday we drove up to the Two Medicine Area of Glacier and managed to see some Moose. The boys have found all the spots to get Cell service on the Holy Family Mission or nearby. They are all getting along and there hasn't been any dust ups. Tuesday we had a guest speaker who talked to us about the Blackfeet Spirituality. The parallels to Christianity have allowed the Blackfeet to keep many of their own traditions while also being practicing Christians.
The excitement Tuesday was driving up to the Many Glacier area of Glacier National Park. Many Glacier is one of the best wildlife viewing areas in the entire park and it did not disappoint. We saw a Grizzly and a Cub from about 200 yards and another park visitor had viewing scope set up who allowed our boys to look through and get a close up of the Sow and her cub. We managed to see a Moose swim across the narrows of Sherburn Lake, we saw Mountain goats up along the side of one of the peaks. We also saw 3 other bears with the highlight being a Black Bear Sow and a Cub. The Cub is Blond and the Sow is Jet Black. This was close to the road and we got to view them for a while as the meandered through the brush.
We start our 3rd day here with an eye on the new experiences but also with an eye on the end of the trip. They boys all know when they return home their lives await them along with Summer Vacation. Hopefully they can continue to work hard and stay focused on the task at hand.
