Excavating the days away

SMU-in-Taos is my second field school, and it has served to only solidify my goal to be an archaeologist. I mean come on, we get paid for being outside and playing in the dirt. It is more organized and precise than that, but you understand what I mean. Those not in the field tend to not understand how much patience and time an excavation takes, but those are two of the most important qualifications in an archaeologist. Before I left for New Mexico one of my friends asked me if our professors buried items for us to find. He commented, "Well it's a school right?". For all of you out there new to the concept of field school, they do not bury objects in the dirt for us. This is a real excavation with real artifacts. We are trusted and trained to do an excellent job and gather as much information as possible.
One of my favorite aspects of this field school, is that it is community based. Before I arrived I did not really know what that would entail. Now, as the field school comes to a close I know that this aspect is what truly made the experience. There is so much you can learn from those in the community, for they live there and have stories that reach far into the area's past. Community based archaeology does not just entail talking and listening to members in the community, but also to actively participate in it. We were able to do this through activities like the mudding of the church. This is a focal point of the community, as every year the community comes together to redo the church. As we helped with the walls and cleaning the inside we were able to talk to the community and become close with them. Through this the community becomes even more important to the archaeologist, and more vital. Throughout the past archaeologists have come in and worked on what and where they wanted to work, regardless of what the descendant community's wishes. Times have changed and presently it has become very important to work with the community and have their permission. However, complete community based archaeology is a burgeoning concept. Through the course of this field season we had the privilege to meet and be invited to meet many members of the community. From priests to potters, community based archaeology opened many doors.
Though our focus was on the historic plaza of Taos, we were also able to explore rock art in the surrounding areas. I really enjoyed this experience, which took place the first week of the field school. We were all hiking around the hills and valley's of New Mexico. During this time we all found out just how graceful we were, and there were many days when we came home with numerous bruises. For myself, I discovered that I am a cactus magnet, but that they luckily do not hurt as much as you would think. Regardless, one of the next purchases on my archaeology list are cactus proof shoes. Anyway, hiking around with the experts, people who, just by looking at the petroglyph, can tell whether it was made thousands of years ago or a few hundred, was a truly amazing experience. It was a true hands on learning experience, and incredibly exciting.