By Harvey Winje
In Native American folklore, the intelligence of crows is usually portrayed as the most important characteristic of crows. Seeing a crow was and is still considered good luck by many Native American tribes.
“As the crow flies” refers to the shortest distance between two points because the common belief is that crows fly a straight course. Actually, crows are excellent flyers that do not usually fly in a straight line but zigzag and perform aerial acrobatics seemingly for the joy of it. Crows can often be seen circling above their nests on a winter”'s afternoon. Scientists say crows, like humans, pay close attention to people”'s faces and are able to remember threatening or caring faces and react to them differently.
Words and phrases may be misused, be inaccurate or concepts can be oversimplified. The same thing can occur when using a single story to describe a person, culture, or community. Phillips Community and its people are often labeled and defined by a single occurrence or story, observed or reported by people outside of the community. The Alley Newspaper instead tries to lift up the many, many stories and illuminate the history of the people of this geographic area with the goal of inspiring resilience. Come and learn one or two more fascinating facts of our community”'s vibrant history on Wednesday, December 13, 5-8 pm at the American Swedish Institute”'s Annual Neighborhood Open House.
