As we grow older it's amazing how smart those more aged seem to become. Of course, the Elders already know this – which is why they show tolerance for us while we are in our youth. Native American culture reserves a place of honor for Elders. They are the wisdom keepers without whom we would not have the luxury of learning about our spiritual practices and cultural ways.
To sit in the place of an Elder requires more than just the accumulation of years and white hair. People of this stature carry themselves a certain way, and they are seen as having integrity, knowledge of the culture, fairness of judgment and a temperate nature. An Elder may be a clan mother, family leader or a person of special chief lineage.
There are also organizations of Elders. One of these is Spiritual Elders of Mother Earth, a council of American Indian Elders that gathers to research prophecies and to preserve native culture. Dana Mitchell, Penabscot, the Grand Chief of this Elder Council, states that there are young Elders too. These are young people who have demonstrated a special gift or talent for knowing the medicines or plants and healing techniques, and who have demonstrated leadership ability, ability in conducting ceremonies or for remembering the old songs or language, roles traditionally filled by an Elder.
Many of the stories and teachings have been passed from one generation to another through oral tradition. In this way, our people learned directly from the Elders (and each other) the tribal history, lessons for life, expectations and protocol. Perhaps most importantly, a sense of personal identity is instilled in this way of teaching.
Most teaching was (and is) conducted in an informal way. Life lessons, morals and values weave their way through stories and conversations with laughter and love. This way the Elders help us keep the quest for learning alive and remind us to not take ourselves too seriously in the process. Aniishinaabe Elders John Brown and George, his older brother, have stated that we should laugh often so we do not scare away the Spirits who come to help us.
I remember as a child standing in my father's shadow with my little arms stretched and fingers tightly grasping my green and white fiberglass bow and arrow. Poised to loose my arrow, I peeked over my shoulder to see if my dad was watching the target or me. We both stood there as if frozen in time. His beautiful inlaid wooden bow stretched tight and his arms were still and strong. Focus, breathe, 1-2-3, release. I can't remember actually hitting anything with my arrows, but oh, how I loved the quiet time we spent together in the sunlight. I don't remember him speaking at all as we stood there, yet I feel I learned so much from him about the state of just being. I learned early that Elders often teach without using words.
I now realize that those quiet lessons helped me know that there was, and is, great peace in just being, even though life interrupts along the way. The challenge then is to return to that state of being, that peace, or else spend our days searching fruitlessly. This sense of peace is the state of harmony inside and out. Cherokee Elders, teachers and authors J.T. Garrett and his son, Michael Garrett, refer to it as the Way of Right Relationship: being fully present in the moment, with no expectation, hesitation or projection. It is the state of spiritual connection that envelops the physical being like a down comforter on a crisp autumn night. The Cherokee Elders teach us to always strive for harmonious balance with all people and things around us. One does not necessarily need a Cherokee father who uses few words or bows and arrows to learn this.
We can all incorporate Native teachings of the Elders into our daily lives to help us attain this Way of Right Relationship. The Native Elders teach children about the natural law of reciprocity by offering stories or items of importance in exchange for a pinch of tobacco, a handful of cedar or a similar small gift. Tobacco and cedar represent two of the four sacred plants that Indian people use while communicating or praying directly to the Great Spirit. The smoke from tobacco is thicker and stronger and, therefore, it is believed to rise higher through the clouds. As it rises it is lifted on the wings of the eagle and taken up to the Great Spirit. One does not need to burn the tobacco to use it in ceremony. Aniishinaabe Elder Ivan Hunter recommends using tobacco every day. He suggests that we offer a pinch of tobacco in the morning by holding it in our hand as we greet the day, pray and then give it back to Mother Earth. The intention is released as the tobacco hits the ground and rises to the Creator.
As we grow older, things change and we have to learn to accept and adapt. This seems natural enough, but how often do we fight against what is happening? The Elders say it is like the willow tree that fights against the wind. If it doesn't bend and sway it will snap and break. When we fight against the natural flow, the winds of change, we usually find ourselves in pain. We are told this is when we are to ask ourselves, “What is it that we are trying to hold on to? What are we afraid of letting go? Where is our faith?” To fight against change requires more energy and effort than it would take to bend and bow with the inevitable. Fighting steals our peace and causes unbalance and disharmony. It can stop or stunt our growth as a human being. This is not the Way of Right Relationship.
Changes that are referred to as “inevitable” are quite different from those that are a direct result of selfish, ego-centered or money-motivated actions. The Elders and leaders of yesteryear like Sitting Bull, Chief Joseph, Sequoia and others called for people to recognize and question the impact their actions would have on the next seven generations. As a teenager living in the typical egocentric world of teenagers, this concept was hard for me to fathom. My parents and other Elders asked us to think about the consequences of everything we did and how it might affect the people who weren't yet born, people we didn't even know and might never know.
Today, however, the importance of this concept becomes paramount as the Elders tell us that my generation, the baby boomers, is considered to be the seventh generation about which the ancient visionaries foretold. Knowing this has caused me to feel great pride, yet I shudder to think of what would have been lost to our Indian people and the world's people had those Elders not chosen to fight with forethought against actions that would have desecrated sacred lands, used up natural resources or otherwise destroyed the balance and harmony of the natural world.
The lesson here is that we need to learn how and when to fight and when to bend as the willow. When do we hold on, and when do we let go? We are taught at a young age that every action has a consequence. This consequence goes on to touch the next seven generations like ripples on the water after a stone has been thrown in. The ripples get bigger and bigger with one simple action and we do not know where they end. When we consider whether to fight or to bend, foremost in our thoughts must be the question, “Will the consequence be beneficial or not?”
The Elders have taught me to speak from my own perspective, from what I have personally learned and experienced. I cannot speak as a representative of all Native people. To try to do so is a sign of disrespect to the Elders and the People. There are more than 500 Indian Nations in this country and each is unique in cultural traditions, spiritual practices, language and history, though there are many striking similarities.
Respect for the aged is universal in theory, even if it isn't in general practice. I encourage you all to explore your own cultural interpretation of your Elders because I dare to wager that we may be quite similar. We can start respecting our Elders today by honoring their teachings that all of our life experiences are valid and worthwhile. As we accept the winds of change in our own life and embrace the maturing of our senses and sensibilities, then we can model that behavior for our children and them for their children. This is what the Elders have taught me; to begin with myself, to look within, honor myself and explore my own feelings, actions, thoughts, words and history. Only then can I expand to show honor for those around me my family, community and environment. In so doing, I am honoring the next seven generations, two of which walk right now. The Spiritual Elders of Mother Earth ask us, “What are you going to give to the next seven generations? Do you have a beautiful gift to pass on?”
Of Cherokee, Italian and English decent, Georgi is a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, and considered an Elder in the local Native community. As a professional trainer, she has lectured extensively on topics ranging from Indian spirituality to traditional crafts. She is the former Co-Director of the American Indian Rights Association at Kent State University. She is also a story teller, teacher and student of traditional values and is currently Executive Producer and host of Red Hearts Radio, a show featuring contemporary and traditional Native American music on a local, public radio station, WAPS 91.3 FM, Tuesday evenings from 11:00 pm to 12:00 midnight. E-mail redheartsradio@hotmail.com for events or more information.
Photos by Bob Perkoski, www.Perkoski.com.
