The mixing of cultures in Silko's Ceremony

In Silko's Ceremony, one of the major themes is the mixing of Indian tradition wit the white tradition. Tayo, among other characters in the book such as Betonie, is of mixed ancestry. The difficulty of this is seen throughout the novel, such as his aunt's reaction to him as well as the way the white population treat him. He is stuck between two cultures, never being fully accepted by either one. I think that this is part of the reason that he suffers so greatly. He is blaming himself for his mother's actions as well as the death of his brother and the rain that never comes.
Even the medicine man that helps him uses objects from the white culture to cure him. The reasoning behind this is interesting because instead of rejecting the fact that the white population is around and is not going away, Betonie embraces it and alters his "medicine" to include everything around him, including the white culture. Silko is trying to make the point that even though it is not ideal for the Indian population to have the white culture seeping into their own, it is there and needs to be recognized at the very least if not accepted so that tribes can move forward. Their culture still needs to be kept alive and remembered even though the white culture is intruding. Too often, as seen in the book, many of the tribal population are drawn into the world of white culture and feel as though they can never get back to their true selves. This is seen along the river where people sleep in boxes and would do anything for alcohol, which was they case with Tayo’s mother. Betonie serves as a equilibrium in a way because he keeps the tradition of the Indian culture, while at the same time using white culture to his advantage