The Earthkeepers

The children’s honoring ceremony is very dear to my heart. It is a time to turn to the children and express not only our affection for them, but to help them begin to realize that we see purpose to their lives. With our acknowledgement of this, we hope that they will also begin the process of finding within themselves that sense of purpose and direction that will carry them through the difficult times ahead of them and will glorify and enliven all the wonderful experiences of life that are still unrevealed to them.

This is not an easy process. It is best to take a full day to work with the children and the adults who are supporting them. Often the children feel that the ceremony is really for the adults and not for them. This is partly right and is not to be denied. The trick then is to establish a positive link between the ceremonial activities and other activities that they enjoy.

Camping, games, and free play are important. A wide range of ages is helpful, because it is like a chain of understanding… each age group relating in some ways to those older and younger than them. 

We have seen positive results with red rover red rover, crafts - key chain making with putting prayers into them and other craft work to bring out creativity. Having the children take over the drums worked. Having a very focused teenage leader was very productive for the children’s talking circle.

The honoring dance is based on a simple fact. The children will be the ones to touch the future, not us. It is their future we are deciding every day. Though it is up to them to make of it what they will, we are leaving them the starting point which will define their world view and influence their decisions for the rest of their lives.

In this way, during the honoring dance, the alter or tree which is the central part of the dance is touched only by the children. The adults touch the alter by touching the children. This can be a very powerful image. A very telling comment on one of the very compelling facts of life. 

When we talk about the past and future minds, we are referring to the fact that so much of our time is spent contemplating and contending with the past or planning, worrying, or dreading the future.

It is important to understand that in both cases the power to change always lies in the present. Our lack of awareness of the present will rob us of golden opportunities to absorb the joy and uplifting quality of the world around us. To do this we have to have an open channel to the energy of living all around us. Sorrow, regret, disgust, hurt, jealousy, anger, all sap us of the energy to see, taste, touch, FEEL the moment with all our senses and with all that we sense is us. Worry, dread, hopelessness, and hope can all turn our attention from the blessings we are receiving every moment of the day.

Drumming, singing, dance all help to strip away the dark smoke of our illusion… it is the illusion of being in the past or future. In addition, acceptance of the past will release us from that past. Faith and releasing total control will free us from the future. In the present we can let our energy flow into everything we do or everything we experience. In that way, our essential selves, the part of us that is sincere, exuberant, confident, and committed will produce the future one present moment at a time.

— John Armbruster

The summer solstice arrives tomorrow.  I offer a few words John wrote years ago about the summer solstice:

Summer Solstice

The Solstice time is a time of intensity and passion. It is a time of extremes.  

The summer solstice is the Midsummer’s Night energy. It is the longest day of the year. Sensuous, even oppressive energy of the Sun. Unrelenting. It is a time when the planet is bursting with power. Overflowing with lifeforce. This is a time for celebration and release.

Many of the Sun dances occur around this time. The power of the Sun being strongest. In lower latitudes they are held earlier.

The Long Dance is good to be held around this time. 

One ceremony we have done over the years is a nature’s Spirit Dance, where everyone dresses up as a plant or animal. Strong drumming, passionate songs, and lots of clowning are appropriate.

The give away ceremony is important in bringing together the people of the community. The passing of objects which have meaning for a person is an act of magnification and resolution.

The feelings and energy which is embodied in an object are magnified and more open for examination when the object is consciously given away. When it is done in public the energy is brought into the community circle. It is a point of vulnerability and innocence, and should be carefully respected and supported.

The give away is traditionally done when an honor or change in life status occurs. It can be part of any ceremony and acts to blend the energy of the person who is doing the give away and the energy of the community surrounding them.

The give away is very different for our culture to understand because it is in reverse to our cultural norms. When someone is getting married, we give them presents. In the give away thinking they give us presents. In a way they do just that. They give a reception. They give gifts to members of the wedding party etc… When someone has a birthday, they receive presents. In the give-away way of thinking they should give presents to all who attend the party. When we are honored, we are given an award. In the give away way of thinking the person receiving the award should do a big give away. Could you imagine what the Oscars Ceremony would look like if that were the social norm?

The give away blanket ceremony is something we use at our encampments.

It is a great way to complete the energy of the encampment. Each person brings an object which means something to them and places it on the blanket. The oldest person at the gathering begins the choosing. The person who placed the object on the blanket then says why it is important to them. Then that person picks something off the blanket. At some point the person who picked first will have his/her object picked. They then have the honor of picking someone to pick next. Often times people bring more than one object or they bring objects for others. In the case of bringing more than one object, when their second object is chosen they have the honor of picking the next person to choose. People who have not brought anything are good candidates at that point. This gets everyone included. Those people usually participate to a greater degree as time goes on.

There is something very powerful that happens at these give-away blankets. So very often, the gift chosen and what it means to the person who put it on the blanket matches the experience of the person who chooses it in a very deep and mysterious way. It sometimes feels like our hands are guided by a larger hand.

–John Armbruster

As we welcome new people into the Sacred Hoop, we thought John’s words about smudging would be beneficial.

We return to the first teachings, where it all begins in ceremonies as we embark on a new cycle of the Medicine Wheel. As the Medicine Wheel is the circle of lessons that each of us must pass through on our journey, may we honor the lessons learned, so we might see the gifts of growth that each upcoming direction will offer us as we…Step into the Circle.

Smudging

Smudging is a purifying ceremony that occurs at the beginning of most ceremonies.

We use the smudge to take time with each person. It gives them some personal attention and honors their part in the ceremony. More importantly, it is an opportunity for the smudger to transfer his/her meditative state to the participant. (Smudgers should prepare themselves carefully.)

Smudging marks the beginning of the ceremony for the participant. It is a precise beginning and is very satisfying because of that.

It is important to remind the group that they are not being smudged because there is anything wrong with them. It is just that we take on the cares of the everyday world and smudging is done to allow us to release the everyday and honor ourselves by spending some time with the Earth and our Creator. It marks the beginning of our “sacred time”. We make the effort to release outside thoughts and focus ourselves on this very special time of ceremony. ~ John Armbruster

Hugs, Tracy - take what you want…find your truths…leave the rest. I share because I care.