Desert Messenger

6 www.DesertMessenger.com May 20, 2020 DESERT MESSENGER Quartzsite's FREE Community Paper Proud to be a Quartzsite Licensed Business 928-916-4235 O� T��� - E���� T���! Founded by Walt Akin October 1, 2004 P�������� �� P���� R��� P��������� C�. P.O. Box 3185 Quartzsite, AZ 85359 P�������� ����� � ����� 1st & 3rd Wednesday Sept. thru May with Special Summer Editions June, July & August EDITOR/PUBLISHER Shanana "Rain" Golden-Bear CONTRIBUTING JOURNALIST Jackie Deal GUEST COLUMNIST Gypsy Jane Finley CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Starr BearCat NAME PLATE LETTERING Paul Winer www.DesertMessenger.com www.MyQuartzsite.com E-mail: Editor@DesertMessenger.com 2018 © Copyright All Rights Reserved Copyright 2013 Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Desert Messenger. LIKE US on Facebook.com/ DesertMessengerNews FOLLOW US on Twitter @QuartzsiteRain By Shanana "Rain" Golden-Bear LETTERS TO EDITOR POLICY Desert Messenger encourages letters from its readers. Letters should be no longer than 300 words, and may be edited for grammar, content and length. OPINIONS EXPRESSED HEREIN DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THOSE OF THE DESERT MESSENGER. We invite you to not only see a problem, but search for the solution to share with the com- munity, keeping the benefit of all in mind. Letters considered libelous, in poor taste, on a personal issue, mean spirited or dominated by Scripture quotes will not be published. Third party letters will not be accepted. To avoid confusion over people with common or similar names, writers must provide a full name and indicate the name they are known by. Writers must provide a full street address and phone number. Rvers can provide the loca- tion of park/BLM land, etc. Street addresses will not be published. Phone numbers are for verification only and will not be printed. Mail letters to: Desert Messenger, P.O. Box 3185, Quartzsite, AZ 85359 or E-mail to Editor@DesertMessenger.com 928-916-4235 DEADLINE : WED. JUNE 10 TH for the June 17 TH edition Desert Messenger News Email: editor@DesertMessenger.com 928-916-4235 www.DesertMessenger.com Five New Positive Cases of Coronavirus for the Colo- rado River Indian Tribes Monday, May 18, 2020 Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) an- nounced they were notifi ed of fi ve new positive cases of coronavirus resulting from individuals who were tested at the Parker Indian Health Center. These individuals are resi- dents of the Colorado River Indian Reservation. This brings the total to 19 positive cases for the Colorado River Indian Tribes out of 43 cases for La Paz County. CRIT is strongly urging all mem- bers to limit contact outside your im- mediate household as much as pos- sible and to wear a face mask when you must be outside of your home. The Department of Health and Social Services will work in con- junction with Parker Indian Health Center to identify and notify any contacts the individuals may have had recently. While the State of Arizona has been allowing certain businesses to re-open all residents are reminded to follow the CRIT Stay at Home Or- der, Resolution No. 54-20 to protect themselves and their households. Everyone needs to stay home except for essential tasks and limit contact with anyone who is not a member of your immediate household. The best ways to protect yourself are to take certain precautions including: Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water is unavailable, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. Wear a face mask when you must leave your home to conduct essen- tial tasks. Avoid close contact with anyone outside of your immediate house- hold. Stay home when you are sick. CRIT COVID-19 cases Life is an improvisation. You have no idea what's going to happen next and you are mostly making things up as you go along. ~Stephen Colbert I found the above quote while re- searching quotes for our graduating seniors. Wow! It really seems to fi t today as we all seem to improvising life right now, right? We all are con- stantly adjusting our sails each day to adapt to the changing environ- ment of living with a pandemic. Writing these editorials have turned into periods of re-adjusting, adapting, not making decisions until right before press time, etc. All the while without losing my serenity. We can look at the changes oc- curing around us with the attitude of what "OMG! Look at everything we're losing!" ...Or we can choose to have an attitude of gratitude, enjoy- ing the simple things. We can cave into failure/victim mentality. We can choose to dig deep, searching for solutions. I have to admit I did pan- ic when advertisers started to close and quit supporting this paper. I al- lowed myself to feel all those emo- tions and then worked hard to "get over it!" There's a solution out there somewhere is one of my motos, so I had to use it on myself. Sometimes we just need to be still and listen. I have been blessed to learn about solitude through many vision quest experiences guided by my elders. Four days alone without food or water can teach a person alot about themselves, for sure. Even a single night in the wilderness without the distractions of society can bring out the best or worst in a human being. During this pandemic, folks are are being forced to learning more about themselves, their family and friends, their insecurities, their hopes and their fears. What a bless- ing! Shift Happens all the time, so why not now? How we choose to react to these changes is up to each of us. It's impossible to predict what life will look like tomorrow, let alone next week or next month. So give yourself some time to adjust your sails, be gentle with yourself, and fi nd some gratitude, even if it's in the fact you woke up this morning. Seek gratitude and you will fi nd it!

• Cover