Cocopahs preserve ages-old tradition of beading

Modern ways are threatening one of the Cocopah Tribe's most beautiful and ancient art forms. That's why tribe leaders are looking for hope in the creative hands of a few young women willing to earn a place in their people's history by standing up to save it.

Nimble fingers slip tiny, colorful beads onto strings turned slick with beeswax, making the amazing almost seem possible for mere, everyday hands.

"If nobody learns this, there goes our tradition," says Serena Thomas as she adds more blue beads to the beginnings of a traditional cape. "This is something we have to preserve."

Thomas, 36, and 17 other women have spent recent mornings sitting around a classroom table and learning the tribe's beloved art of beading from elder artists whose dwindling numbers have alarmed the tribal community. The workshop marked the Cocopah Museum and Cultural Center's historic first attempt at teaching beading through classes, the first time the art has even been officially taught outside of the family home.

The students involved admit that tackling the almost daunting task of learning such a complicated art intimidated many of them at first. But they continued knowing that this was more than just a workshop; it was a call to become human archives of something needing to be remembered - and passed on again.

"There is a lot of pressure, but somebody has to do it," Thomas said. "If I am going to be one of them to be teaching this to our children and the rest of the people, then I'm glad to do it."

Then Thomas stops, smiles and forgets the future just long enough to remember her very first project still waiting in her hand.

"But let me finish this first."

The tribe's museum offered the beading class in conjunction with similar events aimed at teaching the Cocopah language, another aspect of their culture that tribe leaders are working to preserve.

Beading student Meridth Barley, 26, said she shares the same sense of urgency as Thomas. Barley, too, thought beading classes would be fun, but she felt inspired by their importance, too.

"A lot of our young people haven't picked this up and a lot of us won't be able to do it. It's kind of sad," she said. "It just feels good to be doing this."

Beading had been calling to Barley's curiosity for years, but the stay-at-home mom said she's always been too busy - until now.

"I saw the beading in the (museum) exhibits and I thought it looked interesting. Plus, I've seen some of my aunts bead, who are all elders now."

Barley's work shows that beading is a good fit for her, too. Like Thomas, she is beading a cape. The red beads she's brought together form an intricate and lovely pattern, a level of beauty that bellies the fact that Barley has been beading for a mere two weeks.

"I was pretty nervous at first. When the teacher brought her pieces out, I thought 'Oh, my goodness.' I thought it was going to be hard, but once she showed us, it really became interesting and I just couldn't stop."

Barley now toys with the thought of committing herself to becoming a full-fledged beading artist someday.

"It makes me feel good inside, knowing that I can do this. Everything is fun about beading. It's time to yourself and it's just interesting."

This first project will be a gift for her mother. "Maybe she can wear it during our celebrations."

For herself, Barley said, she plans to make a beaded outfit that she can wear while enjoying another passion: singing and performing traditional bird songs.

"That might be my next project," Barley said, adding that she hasn't shown the beading to her aunts yet. "Oh no, not yet. I just want to see if I can finish this, then I'll show them. I just hope they'll be happy."

Thomas dedicates her beading work to her late mother, who shared a little bit about the art when Thomas was a little girl.

"I was about 10 and started out doing key chains and daisy chains," the beading student said. "But since she's been gone, I don't have anybody to learn from. I regret not learning more from her."

Thomas isn't about to let the same thing happen to her children. Although she's still learning, the mother of five is already teaching the art at home. She and her kids gather around the kitchen table for lessons almost every night.

"If their favorite TV show isn't on, we bead for at least an hour," she said, explaining that "Hell's Kitchen" has proven a bit distracting. Her youngest two love making long seed-bead necklaces, which they recently gave as year-end gifts to their teachers.

"My kids really like it, though. They're always asking 'Can we make another one?' It's just nice family time for us," Thomas said, smiling. "I think my mom would be proud of me."