Words say so much

Words have a profound effect on us as humans and they last for years.  They can help shape a future or tear down your soul.  We never know which directions our lives are headed to but it's sure that words help us get there.  Indefinitely.  My father had a saying he used to say, "when I say something, it's got to be right."  I never knew until some time later in life how those words shaped me.  In my version of life, it means to always speak the truth.  Do not throw away words senselessly.  Words are precious, just as life.  Words can change the world.  Living your word is such an important part of a human being. When we live with our words, we are much happier people, more free.  When we tell ourselves things such as, "I think I'll buy a car this year" or "I think I'll lose 5 lbs this summer" and we do it, it's a sense of freedom.  We've done exactly what we've said we'd do and it sets us free.  However, when we do not do what we say it can eat away at us for years and our lives do not move forward.  Because our spirit knows the truth and our spirit knows what it wants.  Our spirit is the true essence of what we are and when we deny it we don't live by the words.  This is where unhappiness comes from.  In order to turn it around, we have to listen to ourselves and reconnect with our true selves.  It is the only way and words can help us get there.  Words are magic, words are powerful, words can create worlds and help shape your future.  They are a force that we possess, a force so powerful that we don't even realize the magic we hold.  Words have created some of the best writers, best songs, best films, best plays, best students, and whatever else you can think of to put in this list.  Like a song that is timeless, it was the words that has lived on in our hearts that made it so.  Words are alive and they belong to us.  They belong to you and they belong to me.  This is what my father taught me all those years.  It is the gift that he left me with and I am grateful.

Sacred connection

Native American Indians have always had a deep connection to the land because it is our mother, she is what provides us the nourishment to live here.  This respect lives deep within all natives, the connection is there even if it doesn't appear to us.  It is silent and has no words, it is all action.  When we flock to pow wows across the land, we do it to be with the drums, people, and the land.  When we sing, it is our appreciation for the gifts that we are given in life and the blessings we've received.  It is our voices caressing every blade of grass and every leaf and tree around us that connects.  When we dance, our connection to the land is rythmic and it expresses our gratitude for this life we live.  There are not much words to explain what it means to natives and their connection to the land, it is something that is felt.  We value all things because all things are alive.  If we take from the land, an offering of tobacco and a prayer is given before we take anything.  It is our way of showing gratitude.  Even though today we are re-teaching ourselves the ways of the past, the teachings are inate and we understand the teachings.  No one has to tell us it is right, we know.  It is the sacred connection that is opened with the Creator and no one ever has to tell you when that happens, you will know.  It is not written in a book somewhere of how you should feel.  The spirit that lives inside of us knows all things and when we are fully aware of who we are, then the connection to everything comes alive.  It is the sacred gift of life promised by the Creator.

Grass dancers at Whitesand pow wow 2010

~Miigwetch