| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 30 | |
| "Don't be afraid to cry. It will free your mind of sorrowful thoughts." |  |
| --Don Talayesva, HOPI | |
| Human beings function from choice. We can choose to stuff things, or we can choose to let go of things. If we choose to stuff things, then we will feel a heaviness, or sorrow, self pity or fear. Sometimes we feel the need to cry. Sometimes we are taught it is not okay to cry. The creator designed the human being to cry. Crying is a release. This release allows us to let go of thoughts that are not helping us so we can open to new thoughts that will help. Crying is natural for women and men. | |
| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 29 | |
| "So I prayed, but I had to pray from my heart. All of my concentration and thoughts went from my head to my heart. All of my senses - hearing, smell, taste, and feeling - were connected to my heart." | |
| --Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA | |
| The heart is the gateway to the Unseen World, to the Spirit World. It takes real concentration to do this. To connect to our own heart is also a mental state. It starts in the head and transitions to the heart. This mental state is our inner stillness. Be still and know. This place of the heart is very joyous and peaceful. It is this place that we become one with God, our Creator. | |
| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 27 | |
| "I received my education from my culture. My teachers were my grandmothers, and I am really thankful for that." | |
| --Mary One Spot, SARCEE | |
| Our often unrecognized, but most powerful teachers are our women. In order for men to learn a balanced way, we need to learn from our men Elders and our women Elders. Learning from the women Elders will teach us a whole different set of values and insights to life. When we have life problems, we need to go to the grandmothers to get their advice. | |
| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 26 | |
| "No one likes to be criticized, but criticism can be something like the desert wind that, in whipping the tender stalks, forces them to strike their roots down deeper for security." | |
| --Polingaysi Qoyawayma, HOPI | |
| You move toward and become that which you think about. Creating a vision is what guides our lives. If we get off track with our vision, then we experience conflict. Conflict is nature's way of telling us we are not in harmony. Criticism can be a way for one human being to help another. Often our Elders will give us criticism. This feedback is intended to be helpful. Criticism from our Elders helps us grow strong. | |
| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 24 | |
| "Touch not the poisonous firewater that makes wise men turn to fools and robs the spirit of its vision." | |
| --Tecumseh, SHAWNEE | |
| It's not an accident that firewater is also called spirits. Firewater affects our judgments. The Great Spirit created a set of laws and principles by which we are to live our lives. When we have problems we should pray and ask for the wisdom of these laws. If instead we turn to liquor, our judgement will be affected. It is the decision and choice made under the influence of booze that causes us to be fools. We need to learn to lean on prayer and not on the spirits of alcohol. | |
| Elder's Meditation of the Day September 23 | |
| "When that spirit comes, we don't ever ask questions. If I don't understand, I just hold onto it. Then later down the road, maybe in a couple of years, I understand what that spirit meant." | |
| --Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA | |
| At certain spiritual events or happenings, it is possible for the spirits to come. Sometimes these spirits look like sparklers of light, sometimes you can feel them, sometimes they will look like live human beings. The spirits always come for a reason. When we deal with the spirit world, we need to be patient. The Great Spirit will tell us the meaning of these happenings when He is ready. | |
