Monday, December 27, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
UK won't let Iroquois lacrosse team go to tourney
By: Samantha Gross
NEW YORK – An American Indian lacrosse team will not be allowed entry into England for the world championship of the sport the Iroquois helped invent unless members accept U.S. or Canadian passports, the British government said Wednesday.
The Iroquois Nationals team won't be attending the world championship in Manchester unless the British government reverses its decision and allows them to use passports issued by the Iroquois Confederacy, said Tonya Gonnella Frichner, a lawyer for the team.
"They're telling us: 'Go get U.S. passports or Canadian passports,'" Frichner said Wednesday shortly after getting the news. "It's pretty devastating."
The team's 23 players — who are all eligible for passports issued by those nations — say that accepting them would be a strike against their identity.
In a statement, the U.K. Borders Agency said: "Like all those seeking entry into the U.K., they must present a document that we recognise as valid to enable us to complete our immigration and other checks."
Get the rest of the story here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100714/ap_on_sp_ot/us_lacrosse_iroquois_passports
NEW YORK – An American Indian lacrosse team will not be allowed entry into England for the world championship of the sport the Iroquois helped invent unless members accept U.S. or Canadian passports, the British government said Wednesday.
The Iroquois Nationals team won't be attending the world championship in Manchester unless the British government reverses its decision and allows them to use passports issued by the Iroquois Confederacy, said Tonya Gonnella Frichner, a lawyer for the team.
"They're telling us: 'Go get U.S. passports or Canadian passports,'" Frichner said Wednesday shortly after getting the news. "It's pretty devastating."
The team's 23 players — who are all eligible for passports issued by those nations — say that accepting them would be a strike against their identity.
In a statement, the U.K. Borders Agency said: "Like all those seeking entry into the U.K., they must present a document that we recognise as valid to enable us to complete our immigration and other checks."
Get the rest of the story here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100714/ap_on_sp_ot/us_lacrosse_iroquois_passports
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Sometimes...
Someone told me today that my standards are too high. The circumstances under which these words were spoken to me don’t really matter. The bottom line is this…I was faced with a situation which caught me off-guard. I found myself in a position of having to choose my principles or lie. So when I was asked a very direct and pointed question I chose to answer with the truth. Ever since then I’ve been condemned and abandoned.
It hurts more deeply than anything I can express that people who claim to love and respect me expected me to do anything different. Yet! I am told my standards are too high for people to live with.
I ask you this…what was I supposed to do? If I had gone against everything I believe in and stand for by lying then what good are my principles? What purpose does it serve to say you believe in one thing but do another?
My name is Waterbird/Weighs The Truth for a reason. Truth is the number one reason for my existence. Even if I try to justify any excuse for breaking my own code of ethics it doesn’t work because then I’m only lying to myself. I will not, under any circumstance, betray my name by speaking in a deceitful manner. What is wrong with this way of thinking? And why is it such a high standard to live up to?
Once upon a time I had faith in humanity. Once upon a time, on more than ten occasions, I have discovered how absurd people can really be. It’s a sad, sad state of affairs. It’s not like I gave away military secrets. If someone shares a confidence with me and someone else asks me about it I simply state that I am not at liberty to speak. But if I am asked to commit subterfuge, well, I simply refuse to participate at all.
Here’s the thing. My ancestors have had the burden of heavy lies and deceit for way too many generations. Too many games were played against them they couldn’t comprehend and I made a promise to them a long time ago that I would seek out the truth in their honor and memory.
It is my belief that if everyone would choose just one thing they believe in and then walk their talk; this world would be such a better place. After all, we live in an exquisite world. It’s only we human who screw it up. No laws are ever broken in the natural world. People are the single species who break the laws.
Sometimes I wish I was a dog.
It hurts more deeply than anything I can express that people who claim to love and respect me expected me to do anything different. Yet! I am told my standards are too high for people to live with.
I ask you this…what was I supposed to do? If I had gone against everything I believe in and stand for by lying then what good are my principles? What purpose does it serve to say you believe in one thing but do another?
My name is Waterbird/Weighs The Truth for a reason. Truth is the number one reason for my existence. Even if I try to justify any excuse for breaking my own code of ethics it doesn’t work because then I’m only lying to myself. I will not, under any circumstance, betray my name by speaking in a deceitful manner. What is wrong with this way of thinking? And why is it such a high standard to live up to?
Once upon a time I had faith in humanity. Once upon a time, on more than ten occasions, I have discovered how absurd people can really be. It’s a sad, sad state of affairs. It’s not like I gave away military secrets. If someone shares a confidence with me and someone else asks me about it I simply state that I am not at liberty to speak. But if I am asked to commit subterfuge, well, I simply refuse to participate at all.
Here’s the thing. My ancestors have had the burden of heavy lies and deceit for way too many generations. Too many games were played against them they couldn’t comprehend and I made a promise to them a long time ago that I would seek out the truth in their honor and memory.
It is my belief that if everyone would choose just one thing they believe in and then walk their talk; this world would be such a better place. After all, we live in an exquisite world. It’s only we human who screw it up. No laws are ever broken in the natural world. People are the single species who break the laws.
Sometimes I wish I was a dog.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Former Cherokee Nation chief Wilma Mankiller dies
By: Rochelle Hines and Murray Evans, AP writers
OKLAHOMA CITY – Former Cherokee Nation Chief Wilma Mankiller, one of the nation's most visible American Indian leaders and one of the few women to lead a major tribe, died Tuesday after suffering from cancer and other health problems. She was 64.
Mankiller, whose first taste of federal policy toward Indians came when her family ended up in a housing project after a government relocation project, took Indian issues to the White House and met with three presidents. She earned a reputation for facing conflict head-on.
As the first female chief of the Cherokees, from 1985 to 1995, Mankiller led the tribe in tripling its enrollment, doubling employment and building new health centers and children's programs.
"We feel overwhelmed and lost when we realize she has left us, but we should reflect on what legacy she leaves us," current Cherokee Chief Chad Smith said. "We are better people and a stronger tribal nation because her example of Cherokee leadership, statesmanship, humility, grace, determination and decisiveness."
Mankiller met snide remarks about her surname — a Cherokee military title — with humor, often delivering a straight-faced, "Mankiller is actually a well-earned nickname."
Continual struggles with her health appeared not to deter her. A 1979 car accident nearly claimed her life and resulted in 17 operations. She developed the muscular disorder myasthenia gravis and had a kidney transplant in 1990.
Mankiller used some hospital stays to work on her autobiography with Michael Wallis, which came out in 1993. In "Mankiller: A Chief and Her People," she said she wanted to be remembered not just for being the tribe's first female chief but for emphasizing that Cherokee values can help solve contemporary problems.
"Friends describe me as someone who likes to dance along the edge of the roof," she wrote. "I try to encourage young women to be willing to take risks, to stand up for the things they believe in, and to step up and accept the challenge of serving in leadership roles."
Mankiller had also battled lymphoma, breast cancer and several other health problems. Last month, her husband, Charlie Soap, said that she had stage 4 metastatic pancreatic cancer.
After that, Mankiller said she was "mentally and spiritually prepared for this journey."
"I learned a long time ago that I can't control the challenges the creator sends my way, but I can control the way I think about them and deal with them," she said in a statement released by the tribe last month.
"On balance, I have been blessed with an extraordinarily rich and wonderful life, filled with incredible experiences."
"We have lost an inspirational leader and a great American, someone who was truly a legend in her own time," Gov. Brad Henry said. "As a leader and a person, Chief Wilma Mankiller continually defied the odds and overcame seemingly insurmountable obstacles to better her tribe, her state and her nation."
Born at W.W. Hastings Indian Hospital in Tahlequah, Mankiller moved with her family to San Francisco in the 1950s when their farm failed. The pledge of opportunity turned out to be poverty in a housing project. She married and had two daughters, Felicia and Gina.
In 1969, she got what she called "an enormous wake-up call" and took her first step into Indian activism by participating in the 19-month occupation of Alcatraz Island.
Seventy-nine Native Americans took over the site of the former federal prison to protest a policy that terminated the federal government's recognition of tribal sovereignty and the exclusion of Indians from state laws. The policy was based on the belief that Native Americans would be better off if they assimilated as individuals into mainstream American society.
Mankiller moved back to her family's land in Oklahoma after getting divorced in 1975. A decade later, she succeeded former Chief Ross Swimmer, who had tapped her as his running mate because of her business savvy. During her re-election campaign, she pledged to improve the tribe's economic interests.
As chief of the Tahlequah-based tribe, Mankiller was less of an activist and more of a pragmatist. She was criticized for focusing almost exclusively on social programs, instead of pushing for smoke shops and high-stakes gaming.
Mankiller decided not to seek re-election in 1995, and accepted a teaching position at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H., where she held an honorary degree. Among her other honors was a Presidential Medal of Freedom — the nation's highest civilian award — presented in 1998.
A memorial service has been scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Cherokee Nation Cultural Grounds in Tahlequah.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Intertribal Teachings - Positively Negative
Intertribal Teachings
Positively Negative
By: Pamela Waterbird Davison
aka Weighs The Truth
One of the most prominent teachings amongst North American tribes is balance. As is the case with intertribal teachings, it’s a fairly simple concept. We must have balance.
We cannot know light without darkness. We cannot know love without hate. We cannot know joy without sorrow. In other words, we cannot live in a perpetual positive state. If we didn’t have hard times or troubled relationships we would not know how to appreciate when times are easy and our relations flow.
Negativity is a fact of life. It’s absolutely crucial. And it’s a shame how modern society views negativity. The truth is that as a general rule we humans learn more from the negative flow in life than at any other time. It’s just the way it is.
Instead of looking at the negativity, groaning and complaining about the situation, I sit back and ponder what it is I’m supposed to be learning. Believe me, I know when I’m wrapped up in the moment it can be very hard to see the lesson. Sometimes it might even take years before I understand the ramifications of a negative energy.
But what I’ve come to know of balance is how truly important it is. Too much sun will dry and crack the precious soil. Too much rain will flood the garden and rot the roots. So for every drop of sun and every gray cloud, I am grateful to be in balance, even if it doesn’t seem like a whole lot of fun at the time.
That’s why every seed I plant every day is charged with positively negative energy. In doing so my harvest is guaranteed to fill my life’s journey with great satisfaction and my spiritual needs are always met.
Positively Negative
By: Pamela Waterbird Davison
aka Weighs The Truth
One of the most prominent teachings amongst North American tribes is balance. As is the case with intertribal teachings, it’s a fairly simple concept. We must have balance.
We cannot know light without darkness. We cannot know love without hate. We cannot know joy without sorrow. In other words, we cannot live in a perpetual positive state. If we didn’t have hard times or troubled relationships we would not know how to appreciate when times are easy and our relations flow.
Negativity is a fact of life. It’s absolutely crucial. And it’s a shame how modern society views negativity. The truth is that as a general rule we humans learn more from the negative flow in life than at any other time. It’s just the way it is.
Instead of looking at the negativity, groaning and complaining about the situation, I sit back and ponder what it is I’m supposed to be learning. Believe me, I know when I’m wrapped up in the moment it can be very hard to see the lesson. Sometimes it might even take years before I understand the ramifications of a negative energy.
But what I’ve come to know of balance is how truly important it is. Too much sun will dry and crack the precious soil. Too much rain will flood the garden and rot the roots. So for every drop of sun and every gray cloud, I am grateful to be in balance, even if it doesn’t seem like a whole lot of fun at the time.
That’s why every seed I plant every day is charged with positively negative energy. In doing so my harvest is guaranteed to fill my life’s journey with great satisfaction and my spiritual needs are always met.
Monday, March 29, 2010
False Evidence
F – false
E – evidence
A – appearing
R – real
It’s startling to think of how much fear is the basis for everything in this world. I mean think about it. We have fear of intimacy, fear of terrorism, fear of success, fear of failure. The driver with road rage is either afraid he won’t make his appointment on time or he’s afraid of looking weak. The murderer kills because he’s afraid of what will come out if the victim lives or he’s afraid of looking weak. The ironic thing is that fear is the very thing that makes us weak. A woman throws herself at every man she can because she’s afraid she isn’t attractive or afraid she has nothing of value to offer. We live and die, make huge life decisions derived from a bottom line of fear.
So I looked up the word FEAR for a solid definition. Webster’s New World dictionary says the following:
1. a feeling of anxiety and agitation cause by the presence or nearness of danger, evil, pain, etc. 2. respectful dread, awe; reverence. 3. a feeling of uneasiness or apprehension; concern.
It’s interesting to think on these things from a detached point of view. When I think back on my younger years and realize how many mistakes I made based solely on the idea of fear it becomes abundantly clear to me. I didn’t have children because I was afraid on very many levels for very many reasons. I married because I was afraid I wasn’t worthy of better. Oh sure, I loved the guy but my choice to marry, if I’m being honest with myself, wasn’t for love…it was for fear of losing.
Now I’ve learned that life isn’t something to be afraid of if you’re telling the truth and walking your talk. It’s okay to be late for an appointment. It’s okay to be weak. It’s okay to live and die fearlessly. In fact, if we live as though there were nothing to be afraid of then we are living fully and willfully. How cool is that idea? How cool it is to know that no matter what questions we ask or how many times we ask them we don’t have to be afraid…as long as the questions are coming from a place of honesty and truth. No hidden agenda. No secret identity. We can be who we are.
Can you imagine how wonderful it would be if people could simply relax, let themselves live without concentrating so much on what might or might not be? Letting go of all the anxiety is so empowering. I’ve seen it for myself in my own day to day living. Who cares if I’m attractive enough? If someone doesn’t like the way I look they don’t have to hang around me. Who cares if my house is the cleanest? In a hundred years who will be around to talk about it? So what if I don’t win a singing competition? There will be someone who wants to hear my song, even if it’s just the trees and dogs and birds and lizards.
This is one of the big things I’ve learned over the last two years. I’m not here to agree with you. I’m not afraid if we disagree. I’m not here for my reputation or yours. I’m here to tell my truth. I’m here to walk my talk. I’m here to teach. I’m here to learn. Where ever that leads me I will not be afraid. False evidence will never appear real to me. It’s all a part of the journey and even death doesn’t scare me. This is what makes me free.
Try it. I bet you like it.
E – evidence
A – appearing
R – real
It’s startling to think of how much fear is the basis for everything in this world. I mean think about it. We have fear of intimacy, fear of terrorism, fear of success, fear of failure. The driver with road rage is either afraid he won’t make his appointment on time or he’s afraid of looking weak. The murderer kills because he’s afraid of what will come out if the victim lives or he’s afraid of looking weak. The ironic thing is that fear is the very thing that makes us weak. A woman throws herself at every man she can because she’s afraid she isn’t attractive or afraid she has nothing of value to offer. We live and die, make huge life decisions derived from a bottom line of fear.
So I looked up the word FEAR for a solid definition. Webster’s New World dictionary says the following:
1. a feeling of anxiety and agitation cause by the presence or nearness of danger, evil, pain, etc. 2. respectful dread, awe; reverence. 3. a feeling of uneasiness or apprehension; concern.
It’s interesting to think on these things from a detached point of view. When I think back on my younger years and realize how many mistakes I made based solely on the idea of fear it becomes abundantly clear to me. I didn’t have children because I was afraid on very many levels for very many reasons. I married because I was afraid I wasn’t worthy of better. Oh sure, I loved the guy but my choice to marry, if I’m being honest with myself, wasn’t for love…it was for fear of losing.
Now I’ve learned that life isn’t something to be afraid of if you’re telling the truth and walking your talk. It’s okay to be late for an appointment. It’s okay to be weak. It’s okay to live and die fearlessly. In fact, if we live as though there were nothing to be afraid of then we are living fully and willfully. How cool is that idea? How cool it is to know that no matter what questions we ask or how many times we ask them we don’t have to be afraid…as long as the questions are coming from a place of honesty and truth. No hidden agenda. No secret identity. We can be who we are.
Can you imagine how wonderful it would be if people could simply relax, let themselves live without concentrating so much on what might or might not be? Letting go of all the anxiety is so empowering. I’ve seen it for myself in my own day to day living. Who cares if I’m attractive enough? If someone doesn’t like the way I look they don’t have to hang around me. Who cares if my house is the cleanest? In a hundred years who will be around to talk about it? So what if I don’t win a singing competition? There will be someone who wants to hear my song, even if it’s just the trees and dogs and birds and lizards.
This is one of the big things I’ve learned over the last two years. I’m not here to agree with you. I’m not afraid if we disagree. I’m not here for my reputation or yours. I’m here to tell my truth. I’m here to walk my talk. I’m here to teach. I’m here to learn. Where ever that leads me I will not be afraid. False evidence will never appear real to me. It’s all a part of the journey and even death doesn’t scare me. This is what makes me free.
Try it. I bet you like it.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Impact - part 2
My Relatives Say: “We are all related. We are related. All my relations.”
The impact of these words is more than phenomenal. From the trees to the soil beneath our feet, from the eagle to the mouse, from man and woman to child, we are a part of each other, connected in ways we can’t possibly begin to comprehend. Every single molecule that courses through our bodies out into the atmosphere through the sky right on up to the moon and stars connects us, weaves us together like a spiders web. And like a spiders web it is strong but tenuous; able to withstand up to a hundred times its own weight but easily torn apart when a single thread becomes weak.
My Relatives Say: “If we see as a mouse we live as a mouse.”
Mouse cannot fathom what is beyond his whiskers. The only world he knows is what lies immediately ahead and surrounding him. It is hawk and eagle who can fly the highest and can fully see the ramifications of our relation. If everything in the universe is connected like a web then the impact of what we do to ourselves we do to everyone and everything. What we do to our relatives we do to ourselves. If we poison we will be poisoned. If we kill we will be killed. If we love we will be loved.
My Relatives Say: “Honor all of Creation and you will Honor Creator.”
For a long time now I’ve wondered why people say and do the things they do. I’ve wondered why humanity cannot see how much we have in common with each other, how much we have in common with rabbit, snake, mouse, dragonfly, bear, wolf, rock, sand, wind, rain, and all the other things of this world we call insect, predator, or annoying. And really we’re not all that different from each other. We all want to be understood and accepted. These ideas impact me on so many levels.
I do not worship the moon or even the earth. I do not pray to many gods. I give thanks for and honor every speck of this world we live in. I realize that to walk in balance with all I live with in this world then surely Great Mystery is also honored. And that is why I want to walk gently upon the shores, treasure the gifts offered in the smallest ways, hear the spirit of Great Mystery in the wind and rain, and smile whenever I see a rainbow.
Tomorrow I will go to powwow for the first time in over two years. I look forward to seeing relatives I have not seen for so long. I will leave the past behind me, forgive the mistakes made by everyone, including myself, and move into the life I want to live. And when I dance in the circle I will honor the healing that will be taking place. There may be moments when I will see as a mouse but I know there will be many more moments when I will see as eagle. I will be thankful for all my relatives through laughter and tears. Once again, I will be connected and know my ancestors are smiling. It is the purest joy anyone can ever hope to experience.
We are all related. We are related. All my relations. Can you feel the impact?
The impact of these words is more than phenomenal. From the trees to the soil beneath our feet, from the eagle to the mouse, from man and woman to child, we are a part of each other, connected in ways we can’t possibly begin to comprehend. Every single molecule that courses through our bodies out into the atmosphere through the sky right on up to the moon and stars connects us, weaves us together like a spiders web. And like a spiders web it is strong but tenuous; able to withstand up to a hundred times its own weight but easily torn apart when a single thread becomes weak.
My Relatives Say: “If we see as a mouse we live as a mouse.”
Mouse cannot fathom what is beyond his whiskers. The only world he knows is what lies immediately ahead and surrounding him. It is hawk and eagle who can fly the highest and can fully see the ramifications of our relation. If everything in the universe is connected like a web then the impact of what we do to ourselves we do to everyone and everything. What we do to our relatives we do to ourselves. If we poison we will be poisoned. If we kill we will be killed. If we love we will be loved.
My Relatives Say: “Honor all of Creation and you will Honor Creator.”
For a long time now I’ve wondered why people say and do the things they do. I’ve wondered why humanity cannot see how much we have in common with each other, how much we have in common with rabbit, snake, mouse, dragonfly, bear, wolf, rock, sand, wind, rain, and all the other things of this world we call insect, predator, or annoying. And really we’re not all that different from each other. We all want to be understood and accepted. These ideas impact me on so many levels.
I do not worship the moon or even the earth. I do not pray to many gods. I give thanks for and honor every speck of this world we live in. I realize that to walk in balance with all I live with in this world then surely Great Mystery is also honored. And that is why I want to walk gently upon the shores, treasure the gifts offered in the smallest ways, hear the spirit of Great Mystery in the wind and rain, and smile whenever I see a rainbow.
Tomorrow I will go to powwow for the first time in over two years. I look forward to seeing relatives I have not seen for so long. I will leave the past behind me, forgive the mistakes made by everyone, including myself, and move into the life I want to live. And when I dance in the circle I will honor the healing that will be taking place. There may be moments when I will see as a mouse but I know there will be many more moments when I will see as eagle. I will be thankful for all my relatives through laughter and tears. Once again, I will be connected and know my ancestors are smiling. It is the purest joy anyone can ever hope to experience.
We are all related. We are related. All my relations. Can you feel the impact?
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