The Story of Snowy River

My digusdi (cousins in Cherokee) on Etsy have long admired the wonderful bracelet named Snowy River created by our dear friend and talented artist, Cloudburst. This bracelet has been featured in many Etsy Treasuries and has been coveted by many members of the Native American Forum Team….Walking The Red Road.  Here is the Story of Snowy River:


Last week my son, Patrick, and I left Omaha for a trip to New Mexico.  We had the privilege of attending Indian Market in Santa Fe where Cloudburst was vending.  When we arrived at the Santa Fe Plaza for the event, we phoned Cloudburst to find out where she was set up. There were over a thousand booths set up and finding her without assistance would have been a daunting task. As it turned out, her location was easy to find and we were very close to it when we made the call.

Left to Right:  Patrick, Customer, Nora Hasty, Anita

As I approached the booth, Cloudburst was holding Snowy River in her hands and making a sales pitch regarding it. On impulse, I took this shot of her in action.

When I arrived at the booth, Cloudburst, her potential buyer and I discussed the bracelet. The customer was Nora Hasty from Rocky Face, Georgia.   Mrs. Hasty said, “I have looked all around and so far if I could have only one piece from this event, it would be this bracelet.”

But there were still many booths for her to check out and she was not ready to purchase. She said she would sleep on it and might be back the next day for it.  I cautioned her that it might be gone.  She determined that if it was meant for her to have it, it would be there.

Well, Mrs. Hasty’s daughter and granddaughters were lingering in the background. They recognized how much she liked the bracelet and when Mrs. Hasty left the booth area, they slipped to the back of Cloud's booth and purchased it from Daniel for her.

One of the granddaughter’s kept the bracelet in a sack hidden behind her back as they joined their Grandmother and walked away.

Cloudburst, her husband, Daniel, my son, Patrick and I all watched them in hopes that we would get to see her being presented with this wonderful gift. After a while, we decided that they planned to do the gifting at a later time. With some disappointment, we resumed our visiting.

But then, the gifting was done and Grandma was so excited. She came back to the booth with her granddaughters to share her excitement with Cloudburst.

It almost seemed that the scenario was meant for me to witness.  Little did I know when I took that first photo of Cloudburst in action that it would result in the sale of that very special bracelet.

Mrs. Hasty, Granddaughters and Snowy River

I felt honored to me present for the event. Cloudburst was delighted that her bracelet had found its proper home. The daughter and granddaughters were so pleased to do something very special for their mother and grandmother during her visit. And, I got to witness and record the event.


The photos are being sent to Mrs. Hasty so that she can add them to her memoirs of her visit to Indian Market. I hope she will enjoy them and I know that she will enjoy “Snowy River” for many years to come.


So that is the story of Snowy River....A proud Grandmother with her beautiful and thoughtful granddaughters who made her the excited new owner of this wonderful one of kind bracelet.  A talented artist, our very own Cloudburst,  who knows that Snowy River found its rightful owner.  It doesn't  get better than that!