Me & mine still have to develop more skills. My closest friends and I have considered ourselves to be “family” long before any of us (at least voiced) interests in getting out of Civ, but only recently have some of us realized a similar goal. So, this summer and beyond we’re dedicating to learning and practicing skills and such. Also, I’d like to integrate at least one more female into our group, heh. So far I’m one of only two! Some of us are more into the idea than others; my boyfriend, for example, is supportive but his goal is to build a recording studio, but he’s still all about learning how to hunt and such, so I’m fairly optimistic even then. And really, as a musician, I can’t argue much with a recording studio at my fingertips :-\
It’ll still be awhile (like, a few years) before we’re ready, but we’ve all been talking about throwin’ down for some land in the future, so I am optimistic that we’ll get to actually do it when we’re ready.
If something goes wrong, though, I’m keeping Russell Means’s invitation to the Lakota Country he extended the folks of NE, SD, ND, WY and Montana in mind. He’s controversial, but the impression I’ve gotten from the Lakota I’ve met is that so long as you’re genuine, the door is open. At least up there.
On the topic of being ‘arrogant’ in wishing to join an already-existing group of Indigenous, you’d be surprised at how open people can be if you’re sincere. Of course, you can’t exactly waltz right in and expect instant acceptance; but it is possible. 30% of the population of the Santee Reservation in Nebraska is white. And the Indians I have met that attend Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, KS are eager to share their culture with non-Indians who are interested. At least, that’s been my experience.