The Voices we hear
Gwo-Ia u-ne-ga ak-wa-hi-li

The words of a man who is called chief some where and someplace, far removed.

I sat on the bank of the Mississippi River in the early morning and listen to the sound of the water as it washed ashore and the sound of the current as it moved with remarkable speed south to end up in the Gulf of Mexico. Our people, the AhNIYvWIYa, have from the beginning of their time on this earth come to the water to hear what it says to us. As it runs over stones in the mountain streams, this sound has always been the voice of the water speaking not only to us but to the universe around it. I could see in my mind our ancient medicine men preparing medicines for our people as they knelt by the springs and streams in our ancient homeland. Scattered to the four winds by merciless powers, our people have continued to come to the water for its powers and giving of life wherever they have been lodged by the winds which have blown them there.

Now, in this time of change and moving forward, finding the ancient customs of our people alive and living in this 2001, we must again learn to listen to the voices which spoke to our ancestors. There are many voices which speak proclaiming everything under the sun as the ways of our people. But when the spirit listens to the voices of our siblings, the fire, water, trees, winds, etc., as we have always known them to be, we will gain the knowledge which has been lost to the busy modern world of structured sciences.

An Elder of many seasons ago said to me as a Child, “listen to the wind and to the trees, they will tell you things.” Modern man quickly responds with such questions as “what things can a tree tell me? ”This is why they never hear because they are already filled with doubts and questions. The Native AhN1YVWIYa person took time to listen without immediately constructing a wall between themselves and the powerful spirit which would speak to them. Listen to the birds. When they are high in the tops of the trees, there will be good weather. When they are in the lower parts of the tree, there will be a change in the weather.

Learning to listen to the spirit within ourselves will keep us out of many problems which we sometimes get ourselves into. A person relayed this incident to me: at a gathering a person was demonstrating knowledge of another persons health problems through spirit means. Even though what was said was apparently right, the spirit within was telling them to not get involved with this person demonstrating these powers. When one listens to their spirit guide with an “open mind” it will guide us away from problems and heartaches later. One must learn how to listen. We must learn how not to influence what we think we hear with preconceived ideas. Learning how to listen brings our spiritual sensitivities to much higher levels and allows us to know and see things which others think of as mystical powers. But in reality are the natural parts of our beings which can be developed through the spirituality of our culture.

Being able to hear the voices of the universe around us is a thing of which one must be careful how and to whom they speak. Remember!!!! “they burned Joan of Arch for saying she heard voices.” The Native “Indian” is portrayed as being a mystical being. We learned in the beginning from the Creative Power that we were to listen to everything around us. Observing and listening to all other “peoples” (remember, In our culture all things are people) with respect of equality and (desire of knowledge would teach us how to live in balance and harmony with our universe and all things around us. Listening to these voices, our people, our governments, our environments, (1) our families, our lands lived and operated with the beauty and harmony intended for our universe. If those who roamed the earth had allowed the voices of spirit guides to speak to them, e-lo-hi, the earth, would not be polluted and diseased. The voices speaking to them were not of a spiritual nature and said “gold, wealth, power” so they listened and became destructive forces destroying lands and peoples In their path.

Now, the voices of our ancestors speak in spiritual tones to the hearts and lives of our people. Many voices are feelings that tug at their spiritual beings. There is a desire to know the ways of our people; the ways which taught our people to live in balance and beauty with the universe. To once again walk among the trees and hear and feel their spirit uniting with theirs. To sit by the water and know the voice of the water can speak of health, giving life and not pollution. To see the animal siblings whose spirits have gone into the spirit world, once again come to us. To listen to the wind voices and know it brings to us news of what is happening far away. To look into the faces of our children and know they will be able to know the real path of our people. To hear their voices speak and sing in the native tongue of their people. These are the voices which we want to hear today. Let those who follow other paths continue on in their way. Let those who bring disharmony and confusion walk their path. But let the voices which we hear lead us into the beauty and power of who we are and the great people who have given us life by the sacrifice of their own.

Quoted from an newsletter sent to a lady I know named Pitter, online . . . [Here are the other words I have found that ring in my soul and bring me peace.]

. . . "Like many I used to say I would like to go back to the culture. I've learned since that we must go forward to the culture. We can not return to a place we have never been. No conscious memory exists for an experience we have never had. For what ever reason most of our ancestors turned from the culture years ago and left little or nothing of the Aniyvwiya culture to us. I do not judge them . . . They did what they did to survive. But for those in this time that want to learn and practice the true culture of their ancestors . . . We must go forward to it."

As with any group of people, the AniYvwiya are not perfect. First one tribe experiences growing pains, and then another. People yell "FRAUD" so easily when they do not understand that this journey is about being True Human Beings, not about being Indian. One cries "He's not Traditional enough", another points the finger and shouts "NEW AGE". Where does that leave the weary soul who needs a place to rest? Especially if they do not truly understand what it means to be Aniyvwiya? It leaves them straddling the fence and watching for splinters. It is my two cents, that we get off the fence and make a decision to practice our WALK; find a way to join with others of like mind. The Aniyvwiya are 'Old Souls" who are here to help humanity make it through the coming Shift. If you don't know what that means, it is time to do some study before placing yourself in a position to belong anywhere. Some people are against books. If that is all you have, I say read them. Read the Bible. Ask questions about the Giants. Our people were crystal workers and dealt with vibrations. Did they call the body zones Chakras? I doubt it, but they worked with stones, gems and crystals ENERGY just the same. They knew that to 'Shift' their vibrations had to be very high. We called ourselves Starseeds. Have you any idea what that means? Pointing fingers to one's lack of traditionality is a crock if you don't understand who and what your ancestors were. If you think they were Christian, you better get busy and do that research. Christianity is not incompatibile with being AniYvwiya. But it is MORE . . . oh so much more. Christ was a mighty teacher and there is nothing incompatible with the way of LOVE. We are an amazing People. Don't stop with the word Cherokee. Keep going. Become a Warrior for PEACE. LEARN what it means to be a TRUE Human Being. Get to know your Creator. The voices of the ancestors have been speaking all along. All you have to do is learn to listen. My heart is open.
with much love
I am
~Morning Rain