Story Circles

The Navajo, like the Maya, have a large circle of teaching stories for their children. They tell them and tell them again. They are likely to consider the the time of thunder and lightning before they do.


They have other cycles of stories too. Inside the circle of children's stories is a large circle of the stories and deeds of the people. Within that circle their may be on of stories of legitimization and origins.


Cycles within cycles. Inside the stories of origins and legitimization may be a great cycle of of curing ceremonies which contain other stories. The curing ceremonies may seem a bit like variety shows, operas, dances and more. They can be expensive. There is a set way for them to be done and are meant to be carried out correctly by those who know.


A new story may be created, but it may be very wrong to change and old one.


Deep within the circles of stories may be a cycle of mysteries and hidden things. Near the center may be things that I do not imagine and cannot guess.


For those who can turn the circle of circles inside-out, it may not be necessary to guess.


I am neither Maya nor Navajo nor am I an authority on these things.

Tohono O'odham

The Tohono O'odham are probably not Irish. They are probably closely related to the Pima/Papago peoples. What do the Pima have to do with sheets?


The Tohono O'odham may be the largest American Indian Nation. They are likely to have been in this land longer than the Navajo. They also may have cultivated the best dry country bean known to Woman.


Have you seen the Tohono O'odham Cultural Center and Museum? I would like to. The Museum is about 70 miles from Tucson in Topawa, AZ about 7 or 8 miles south by southeast of Sells, AZ. Organ Pipe National Park is very near. It's an interesting area to cross the boarder into Mexico. An old Texas Ranger thought it was almost as interesting as the crossing at Big Bend.

Hopewell System

Most tribal peoples of Canada and the United States don't speak of the Hopewell System, but from Chippewa and Ojibwa of the north to the Choctaw and Chickasaw of the south a feeling comes up. Its a feeling like, perhaps a stream of arterial blood or a stream of energy connecting them. There are Ojibwa who speak a language that can speak of that flow of wise energy. Its a language which caries more knowledge than many realize. Navajo, Cree, and Inuit speak powerful languages and they know the waters too. The Ojibwa have long known the water ways.


When a language dies much dies with it, but not all. There are other symbols and memories. When I was young perhaps 300,000 could speak the language known to the Ojibwa, now there are not that many. There are still those who can speak more than one sentence and those who can remember a whole chant without an error. The language has guardians and supporters.


These days the gene-pool of the Cherokee may be larger and spread more widely than the Ojibwa line. Who can tell the blood?


In a dream I have been told that we have a few drops of the blood of the sea-going Miigis, but that we ate the wrong turtle. I don't know what the dream means, suspect that it may speak of a lost power that is not completely lost.


My home is far from the great rivers and far from the Great Lakes, but I have heard of an island that has more than a hundred lakes on it! Many of those lakes have islands on them! I reminds me of something I saw on the paper on a can of milk. This same island may be largest island on fresh water. On that island, I hear, are those who ave some memory of thriving connections among many Indian people going back and back and far. They eat Haw berries and remember things. Some teach. They remember the old word for copper.


Some of the people who come to that island, I hear, know strange names like Anishiwaabe, Sheguiada, Shehewaning, and Miigis too. I may have been drunk in LA when someone told me.


If you know more please tell. If I have spoken a lie please tell me. I try to give my best understanding.

Navajo

Navajo, I'm just this old guy who thinks language is important who sometimes gives advice that nobody has asked for.

Learn your language. If you do, you will have a good chance of thinking better than anyone who speaks just  English. Did you ever meet an Indian who can speak Spanish?

Prayers may be worth more than you think. Prayers in Navajo may be worth more than that.

Have you ever heard of a guy who came back from war who had bad thinking and bad feelings? There is a Navajo cure for that that begins to work in 3 or 4 days. I don't know the ceremonies at all, but a good start might be The Enemy Way.

If you have a chance to practice Navajo, do it. Ask a couple of questions.

If someone wants to help you to understand better Navajo, let them. Try to make some time for it.