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Web Site Proves Miracle Still Happening
by
Linda Godfrey
News of Southeastern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois
Issue #11 March 29, 2001
http://www.cnb-scene.com
"Mostly people just want to
know that she's ok," says Stephanie Schwartz. The "she" is
Miracle, the white buffalo who captured hearts and attention worldwide when
she was born in Janesville on Aug. 20, 1994, and Schwartz is a Colorado woman
who runs Miracle's official Web site. Happily, Miracle is more than ok. She's
changed colours like a biological kaleidoscope, birthed two buffalo babies
and will soon mother a third. Schwartz is happy to be the one who makes it
possible for people to know all that.
Not that Schwartz is a professional Webmaster. Semi-retired and partially
disabled, she volunteered to set up and run the site after Miracle's owners,
Dave and Valerie Heider, found it difficult to keep up with domain fees and
other costs associated with the original site they'd started themselves. For
Schwartz, it's a labour of love and respect for what Miracle means to Native
Americans.
It became evident that a constantly updated site was needed, said Schwartz,
when another white buffalo born in 1996 was shot on the Pine Ridge Indian
Reservation in Nebraska last March, and people mistakenly thought it was
Miracle who was dead. The Heiders were simply unable to keep up with the
volume of frantic queries that came in. "They run a farm,"
explained Schwartz, "and they have a lot of other work to do."
Schwartz had made the trip from Colorado to visit Miracle in 1998, and came
out again to spend New Year's Day 2001 with the white buffalo family. "I
saw the need was really
great," she finished, "and this was something I could do."
Schwartz was already involved with a variety of Native American groups and Internet
mailing groups, and says she is part Native American herself, although she
doesn't know what tribe. She is careful not to speak for any Native
Americans, but does keep careful weekly updates on Miracle, along with
photos. The Heiders now have 68 buffalo in their herd, and still manage
thousands of visitors a year to their farm, so they were only too happy to
take Schwartz up on her Web offer. "Something rolls in new every day, it
seems," said Valerie Heider. Miracle had her 2nd calf, Lady Miracle, last
August. Like Miracle's first offspring, Millennium, Lady was born a
"strawberry blonde" colour, lighter than most buffalo calves but
not white like their mother.
Of course, Miracle is not white anymore, either. Her coat keeps changing,
going from white to black to red and now what Valerie calls a "blonde
brown." Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Sioux tradition expected that to
happen,as they see the white buffalo as fulfilment of an ancient prophecy.
That prophecy comes from their sacred story of the White Buffalo Woman, who
is said to have appeared 2000 years ago as a beautiful woman dressed in
garments made from white buffalo hide. She came to the native tribal people
of the Black Hills bearing the sacred peace pipe, and taught them 7 sacred
ceremonies. When she left, she slowly changed into a buffalo whose colour
transmuted from red to black to yellow to white, symbolising the coming
together of humanity.
As the story goes, the woman told the people that when a white buffalo calf
was born, it would be a sign of her return and the people must take it as a
warning to return to their old ways of peace and harmony.
Native Americans, particularly the Lakota, saw Miracle's birth and
subsequent colour changes as the fulfilment of The White Buffalo Woman's
words. That is why they make constant pilgrimages, bringing offerings that
range from simple bundles of sweetgrass and sage to a scarf from the Dalai
Lama. The offerings finally completely filled up the gate to the Heider's
pasture, so Dave Heider simply took the old gate off, put it inside the
shed-turned-gift shop, and put up a new gate which is now also full.
"People still want to put things on the old gate," added Valerie.
Also on display in the gift shop is the giant, mounted head of Marvin,
Miracle's father. Marvin died of bleeding ulcers10 days after Miracle was
born, almost guaranteeing there would not be another white calf since it
takes a gene from each parent to produce the white coloration. (The odds are
estimated at over 1 in 10 million.) Some Native Americans have said that was
also part of the prophecy, and that his death was a kind of protection for
Miracle.
(Floyd Hand, medicine man for the Sioux nation, had called Dave Heider
earlier that week and informed him that Marvin would lay down his life for
Miracle, saying only that he saw "a black blockage.")
Not all of Miracle's other relatives have had an idyllic life, either. Her
brother, Martin, proved to be so temperamental the Heiders were on the verge
of having him butchered. He was granted a last minute reprieve when a Florida
rancher bought him and 2 of Miracle's half-sisters. Martin was named after
the late Martin High Bear, a Lakota Medicine Man. The Heiders have had many
offers to sell Miracle and her offspring, including one from rock star Ted
Nugent. Of course, selling Miracle would be out of the question to the
Heiders, but they have decided not to sell Lady or Millennium, either.
"I'd just as soon keep them," said Valerie. The other buffalo on
the Heider ranch
are either kept for breeding, sold to other ranchers, or slaughtered for
bison meat the Heiders now sell. Even though these buffalo are kept on a
"farm," they are still all considered wild, even Miracle, and
visitors are not allowed inside the pasture with the animals for their own safety.
The last known, living white buffalo calf before Miracle was born in 1933.
But Miracle is the only one known to have made all the colour changes
required by the Lakota prophecy. Every August 20, several thousand people
come to the Heider farm to celebrate her birthday, often to perform various
ceremonies. Not all are Native Americans. People of all religions visit, some
just curious, others simply animal lovers.
Many travel great distances to see Miracle, with signatures in the farm
guestbook from Ireland, Germany and Sweden, among others. Some have asked to
camp near the buffalo pasture. The Heiders acquired a canvas tepee last year
and will make it available to campers this summer. People can read about
accommodations on the Miracle Web site.
The Web site has generated a tremendous response, says Stephanie Schwartz. It
received 1000 hits the first 24 hours it was open on Jan. 31 of this year,
and is now up to about 4000. "Her importance to the tribes has not
diminished at all," said Schwartz. "The prophecies are still there,
and the importance of her colour changes never diminishes." Even
Ripley's Believe it or Not TV show has added to Miracle's fame, featuring her
in a recent episode.
People often write to Schwartz about their experiences visiting Miracle.
"No one can really put a finger on what happens when they visit, but
every letter about it has been extremely touching," she said.
"Everyone speaks of their lives being profoundly changed, the opening of
their hearts, or the release of internal pain or anger. Sometimes there is
the healing of the body but more importantly, healing of the spirit."
Schwartz likes to quote a famous late Lakota Sioiux Holy Man and Medicine
Man," Frank Fools Crow, who said, "Not everyone can be cured but
everyone can be healed."
People also often write about the graciousness of Valerie's father, Jay, who
will escort disabled guests to the gate on a golf cart sometimes and is
generally there to lend a cheerful hand to all the company.
Schwartz wants people to know that they can keep up on Miracle's doings week
to week by logging in at her website (see end of article for link). And the
world continues to watch Miracle closely because she is supposed to be
turning white again as the final fulfilment of prophecy.
As for the Heiders, they will continue doing what they have been doing ever
since this happened so unexpectedly almost 7 years ago....going with the flow
and sharing what they consider a gift to the world. "There's a lot of
good people out there," said Valerie. "We just try to let them do
what they want to do."
To visit Miracle's Official Web site, go to:
www.homestead.com/WhiteBuffaloMiracle/index.html
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