BellaOnline Forums Travel and Culture Native American The Campfire Circle

Thank you for those wonderful wolf storys.
We have here in Finland also wolfs. And they have get people make two lines. Some people wants kill all wolfs, because wolfs eats they calfs and dogs. And ofcourse I affraid everytime my husbands go to hunting with our dog friends that someday dogs won't come aback and wolfs eated them. But still I also want that wolfs stays in our forrest.
By the way I did ask some my friend that what I should done If I want to translate some your storys, she sade that I need promised and some contract. I don't know.
Ok have you storys for kids? I think that I want to tell my kids some Native Americans story. I also want to tell my kids your wonderful culture.
Have you there now a days steamrooms? We have here in Finland place called sauna. It is almost like steamroom. We have sauna almost everyhouse. Sorry, now I discusting my culture.'
Have a Nice weekend

KatjaP....wolves don't need to be killed. Many people think they do, because they are afraid of them. Fear cultivates hate. But to kill all the wolves disrupts the natural order. It's hard, to try to break away from conventional 'modern' thinking, isn't it? Here, in Ohio where I live, the black bear is starting to come back and occasionally when I'm out in my yard I can feel a presence. I'm never able to figure out if it is a bear spirit, or if there really is a black bear in my woods watching me. Either way, it makes me happy. The coyote is another animal here in Southern Ohio that is making a strong come-back. 'Course, people hate coyotes about as much as they hate wolves.....I cant figure it out. Every now and again at night I can hear them yipping and howling with each other. Once there was one in my front yard and it answered a call from another, more distant coyote. Brought me straight up out of my sleep, but even though it startled the bejeebers out of me I found the sound comforting. It was good that coyote felt comfortable enough to come into our yard and share his song with us. I believe that most Native Cultures and traditions consider coyote a trickster....DawnEagle? Am I right? Would you care to share more about that? And to be honest, when I see or hear coyote I tend to be more aware of things happening around me. But I think they, like the wolf are beautiful animals whose presence is vital in maintaining the balance Mother Earth so vitally needs. I am so glad you are interested in learning about Native America. I suggest you read a book called 'The Earth Shall Weep'. It's a history book of sorts, and is very informative. You can find it on Amazon.

As far as steamrooms, I'm sure they are available in the US, you know at sports clubs and spas. But I think you might be asking about Sweat Lodge. Native American use of Sweat Lodge is a sacred ceremony and my explanation of it couldn't possibly do it justice. I started a thread about Sweat Lodge on this forum and I believe DawnEagle will be doing some teachings about it soon. I would encourage you to read that thread. She is very knowledgeable about such things.

I'm so glad you're here, KatjaP. Its good to know that people from many walks of life are finding interest in the Native Americas. It is part of the prophecy.....all Peoples coming together to make a better life for all and to heal Mother. I believe it's begun. DawnEagle....please will you comment?

Love to you,
Conni

Good Morning and Happy Weekend!

Just getting to my morning coffee here, lemme see if I can answer a question or two while I'm at it. You mentioned Coyote, I have posted a few stories on them earlier in this thread, like just a few days ago. Someone asked about Trickster... (it's going to be the last few entries on page 9, and the first one on this page, 10) my first entry on them explained somewhat about the Trickster scenario.

I think Katja, if you want to publish Native American stories in your language, you would need a contract. If you just wish to share them with others, you maintain the copyright information and it should be okay. I will see if I can find some children's stories for you. The page I mentioned has a free translator service, check it out, you might find some there. I think it would be wonderful to hear some of these tales in another language, so I applaud your efforts.

We do have a Sweat Lodge thread, as Conni mentioned. I have posted a story there about the Sweat Lodge, and will get around to posting more about them in the coming days. Stay tuned!

As you may or may not know, I live right next to the Rio Grande (river). Sometimes, late at night, we'll hear coyotes howling. We are a bit south of the city, and have a riverside park between us and the river, so there is still some natural land there for them to run around on. One of the reasons I love living here! The other is the many birds that use the river as a navigation path for their migrations. The coyotes do come down and begin killing livestock, chickens, and so forth, and have become a problem for some who are afraid of them, as Conni said. First of all, I could never kill an animal unless it were for food, and I was starving. There was a news story a few weeks ago about them finding Coyote carcasses somewhere here in town. Someone shot them and dumped their bodies. What we are afraid of will keep after us, until we get over our fear. Using guns is not overcoming fear, it is thinking one is above, or better than animals, and this just is not true. We are all equal. When we realize our fears, and face them, we grow.

Anyway, I digress. Warned you I was just starting on the coffee... heehee! I'll be back with a story later, it seems to be a good day for it. In the meantime, everyone have a wonderful Saturday.

ya ta say, my fellow "camp-sitters"!

I sit here all alone and lonely with my little blanket, keeping the fire going, while I wait for DawnEagle to come back, as she promised (*grin*) with her story.

I feel that people are more fearful of the coyote than the wolf because it seems that they kill just for the act of killing, whereas a wolf only kills the old, ill, or injured. Therefore keeping the balance of the natural order. But I am not sure that shooting a coyote that is creating havoc is the answer.

I DO believe in hunting! Especially managed hunts. For those, too, help keep the natural order. I have hunted and shot deer. People have said to me "How can you kill 'Bambi'". Those same people are terribly uninformed. As was I. But then I was taught why hunting is Necessary. I Did not consider even picking up a rifle until I KNEW the proper way to handle it and the reason for the hunt. Those reasons ARE valid! A woman whose chooses to hunt or enjoys handling a gun is shocking to many, if not most, women. But, again, most women are uniformed and are not willing to learn. I think that is sad.

And I think it best for me now to get off this stump and stop preaching! *grin*.

I would like to leave you with a pretty traditional Apache prayer:

May the sun
bring you new energy by day.
May the moon
softly restore you by night.
May the rain
wash away your worries.
May the breeze
blow new strength into your being.
May you walk
gently through the world and know
its beauty all the days of your life.

wakan tanan kici un,
kimi kaya

I agree with you, Kimikaya....although I do not hunt, my David does. I'm happy to tend the garden. I applaud your courage and conviction.
Conni

OMG! I forgot about StoryTelling hour... oh man, did this weekend get away from me, I am so sorry! Okay, lemme find an appropriate story for tonight, brb...

Here I am, didn't get lost this time! This one is appropriate to me today, what do you think?


The Falcon And The Duck

Native American Lore

The wintry winds had already begun to whistle and the waves to rise when the Drake and his mate gathered their half- grown brood together on the shore of their far northern lake.

"Wife," said he, "it is now time to take the children southward, to the Warm Countries which they have never yet seen!"

Very early the next morning they et out on their long journey, forming a great "V" against the sky in their flight. The mother led her flock and the father brought up the rear, keeping a sharp lookout for stragglers.

All day they flew high in the keen air, over wide prairies and great forests of northern pine, until toward evening they saw below them a chain of lakes, glittering like a string of dark-blue stones.

Swinging round in a half circle, they dropped lower and lower, ready to alight and rest upon the smooth surface of the nearest lake.

Suddenly their leader heard a whizzing sound like that of a bullet as it cuts the air, and she quickly gave the waming: "Honk! honk! Danger, danger!" All descended in dizzy spirals, but as the great Falcon swooped toward them with upraised wing, the ducklings scattered wildly hither and thither. The old Drake came last, and it was he who was struck!

"Honk, honk!" cried all the Ducks in terror, and for a minute the air was full of soft downy feathers like flakes of snow. But the force of the blow was lost upon the well-cushioned body of the Drake, he soon got over his fright and went on his way southward with his family, while the Falcon dropped heavily to the water's edge with a broken wing.

There he stayed and hunted mice as best he could from day to day, sleeping at night in a hollow log to be out of the way of the Fox and the Weasel. All the wit he had was not too much whereby to keep himself alive through the long, hard winter.

Toward spring, however, the Falcon's wing had healed and he could fly a little, though feebly. The sun rose higher and higher in the blue heavens, and the Ducks began to return to their cool northern home. Every day a flock or two flew over the lake; but the Falcon dared not charge upon the flocks, much as he wished to do so. He was weak with hunger, and afraid to trust to the strength of the broken wing.

One fine day a chattering flock of Mallards alighted quite near him, cooling their glossy breasts upon the gently rippling wave.

"Here, children," boasted an old Drake, "is the very spot where your father was charged upon last autumn by a cruel Falcon! I can tell you that it took all my skill and quickness in dodging to save my life. Best of all, our fierce enemy dropped to the ground with a broken wing! Doubtless he is long since dead of starvation, or else a Fox or a Mink has made a meal of the wicked creature! "

By these words the Falcon knew his old enemy, and his courage returned.

"Nevertheless, I am still here!" he exclaimed, and darted like a flash upon the unsuspecting old Drake, who was resting and telling of his exploit and narrow escape with the greatest pride and satisfaction.

"Honk! honk! " screamed all the Ducks, and they scattered and whirled upward like the dead leaves in autumn; but the Falcon with sure aim selected the old Drake and gave swift chase. Round and round in dizzy spirals they swung together, till with a quick spurt the Falcon struck the shining, outstretched neck of the other, and snapped it with one powerful blow of his reunited wing.

Do not exult too soon; nor is it wise to tell of your brave deeds within the hearing of your enemy.

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Enjoy it I did, DawnEagle. Thank you. Your stories are always so enjoyable. That is the neat thing about most Native American stories; they mean something, they have a moral.

I thank you for the vote of confidence, Conni. I, too, love to tend the garden. I hope by hunting and enjoying guns I do not come across as being less feminine. For I do consider myself a "lady" *grin*.

I see the fire is getting dim. I have no story to tell, but I shall add sticks to our fire with the hopes that someone will stop by with, perhaps, hot dogs or marshmellows and maybe even a ghost story!

heen akeeya, (smile)
kimi kaya

Ah yes, the "Season of the Witch" is almost upon us, the time when we sit by the fire for the warmth it will bring to our souls, and tell ghost stories to scare each other. I can't wait! Halloween is also a time of Ancestor worship for me, as in "Day of the Dead", as it is celebrated in Mexico. Living in New Mexico is such a blending of cultures, that I find I have absorbed their Day of the Dead practices and added them to my usual Halloween festivities - which I usually celebrate in Mexico.

I know, many don't think of Mexico when they think of Native American culture, but I am here to tell you that there are Native tribes living in Mexico in much the same way they always have - living with nature, living off the land. One tribe that I have had the pleasure of contact with is the Tarahumara, a very private people, who still make many traditional Ceremonial craft items and sell them. I own a few of them. One day we will get around to discussing Natives of the Americas, which will include both Central and South America, as well as Canada.

Right now, I am working on an Ancestor series for us all, and exploring the Mogollon culture, an ancient tribal people who lived in southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. They left some important cliff dwellings in the Gila National Forest here, and that began my interest in them. I had hoped to bring you that article this week, but the research required is just too extensive, and it is taking longer than I thought to put it all together. In the Ancestor series, I will also explore the Anasazi, Hohokam, and Mayan cultures, as they all are intertwined through trade. Maybe next week we'll get around to that!

This week I am now working on an article on Autumn Equinox, which will be very early Sunday morning. I am going to start a thread here in the forum for everyone's thoughts on this subject, so if you want to share, go to that thread.

Ok Kimikaya, you've left me thinking about ghost stories... maybe one day soon I can post one for us here. Now if you know a good one, feel free to go ahead and post it. I'll be by the campfire, listening, and looking for sticks for these hotdogs I brought... care to join me?

Wishing you all a wonderful day,

Here's a seasonal story I thought I'd share:

Blue Corn Maiden and the Coming of Winter

A story of the People of the Eight Northern Pueblos along the Rio Grande in New Mexico

Blue Corn Maiden was the prettiest of the corn maiden sisters. The Pueblo People loved her very much, and loved the delicious blue corn that she gave them all year long. Not only was Blue Corn Maiden beautiful, but she also had a kind and gentle spirit. She brought peace and happiness to the People of the Pueblos.

One cold winter day, Blue Corn Maiden went out to gather firewood. This was something she would not normally do. While she was out of her adobe house, she saw Winter Katsina. Winter Katsina is the spirit who brings the winter to the earth. He wore his blueand-white mask and blew cold wind with his breath. But when Winter Katsina saw Blue Corn Maiden, he loved her at once.

He invited her to come to his house, and she had to go with him. Inside his house, he blocked the windows with ice and the doorway with snow and made Blue Corn Maiden his prisoner. Although Winter Katsina was very kind to Blue Corn Maiden and loved her very much, she was sad living with him. She wanted to go back to her own house and make the blue corn grow for the People of the Pueblos.

Winter Katsina went out one day to do his duties, and blow cold wind upon the earth and scatter snow over the mesas and valleys. While he was gone, Blue Corn Maiden pushed the snow away from the doorway, and went out of the house to look for the plants and foods she loved to find in summer. Under all the ice and snow, all she found was four blades of yucca.

She took the yucca back to Winter Katsina's house and started a fire. Winter Katsina would not allow her to start a fire when he was in the house.

When the fire was started, the snow in the doorway fell away and in walked Summer Katsina. Summer Katsina carried in one hand fresh corn and in the other many blades of yucca. He came toward his friend Blue Corn Maiden.

Just then, Winter Katsina stormed through the doorway followed by a roar of winter wind. Winter Katsina carried an icicle in his right hand, which he held like a flint knife, and a ball of ice in his left hand, which he wielded like a hand-ax. It looked like Winter Katsina intended to fight with Summer Katsina.

As Winter Katsina blew a blast of cold air, Summer Katsina blew a warm breeze. When Winter Katsina raised his icicle-knife, Summer Katsina raised his bundle of yucca leaves, and they caught fire. The fire melted the icicle.

Winter Katsina saw that he needed to make peace with Summer Katsina, not war. The two sat and talked.

They agreed that Blue Corn Maiden would live among the People of the Pueblos and give them her blue corn for half of the year, in the time of Summer Katsina. The other half of the year, Blue Corn Maiden would live with Winter Katsina and the People would have no corn.

Blue Corn Maiden went away with Summer Katsina, and he was kind to her. She became the sign of springtime, eagerly awaited by the People.

Sometimes, when spring has come already, Winter Katsina will blow cold wind suddenly, or scatter snow when it is not the snow time. He does this just to show how displeased he is to have to give up Blue Corn Maiden for half of the year.

+++++++++++++++++++

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A wonderful tale, DawnEagle. Yes, the "Season of the Witch" is a fun time, but oh dear, the ghost stories are hard to come by.

Tarahumara is a tribe I am unfamiliar with, it is such a pretty name. I anxiously await a discussion of the Natives of the Americas.....I have much to learn.

Glad to see you have brought hotdogs, DawnEagle. I have found the sticks and have brought marshmallows and have also brought
"The Strange Origin of Corn".

A long time ago, when the Indians were first made, one man lived alone, far from any others. He did not know fire, and so he lived on roots, bark, and nuts.
This man became very lonely for companionship. He grew tired of digging roots, lost his appetite, and for several days lay dreaming in the sunshine.
When he awoke, he saw someone standing near and, at first, was very frightened.

But when he heard the stranger's voice, his heart was glad, and he looked up. He saw a beautiful woman with long light hair!
"Come to me," he whispered.
But she did not, and when he tried to approach her, she moved farther away.

He sang to her about his loneliness, and begged her not to leave him.

At last she replied,
"If you will do exactly what I tell you to do, I will also be with you."

He promised that he would try his very best. So she led him to a place where there was some very dry grass.
"Now get two dry sticks," she told him, "and rub them together fast while you hold them in the grass."

Soon a spark flew out. The grass caught fire, and as swiftly as an arrow takes flight, the ground was burned over. Then the beautiful woman spoke again:
"When the sun sets, take me by the hair and drag me over the burned ground."
"Oh, I don't want to do that!" the man exclaimed.
"You must do what I tell you to do," said she. "Wherever you drag me, something like grass will spring up, and you will see something like hair coming from between the leaves. Soon seeds will be ready for your use."

The man followed the beautiful woman's orders.
And when the Indians see silk on the cornstalk, they know that the beautiful woman has not forgotten them.
Source: ~BamaRiver~

Perhaps someone will bring corn for us to roast on our fire. I have heard they are excellent fixed that way. Of course that means we will need butter and salt, as well. Hummm...sounds like the making of a yummy picnic! *grin* And is this not the perfect time to meet around a warming fire?

heen akeeya,
kimi kaya