Discovering a Native heritage

Putting a spiritual experience into words is never easy, but participants in Weber State University's Second Annual Native American Symposium had the opportunity to learn about the Native American culture.


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Quiet Time

One of the most precious times of the day is when spent in quiet time. It’s a time when you get away from the wife or husband and children. It’s a time to get away from the television set and the phone. it’s a time to get away from the hustle and hassle of life. I know some who like to spend their quiet time locked in their room or backyard while others while walking their dog. I have a special place where I like to go. A place where there is no traffic. The only noise that I hear is the sounds of nature. I sit by a bubbly brook surrounded by tree’s and pray. I begin to light my cedar, sage, and sweet grass while praying. I lay tobacco upon Mother Earth. I pick up my drum and begin beating on it praying and singing my songs. I have noticed that without fail a red-tail hawk comes by to visit circling above. When I hear his shrill I lay down my drum and get real quiet still praying within my inner-self. I listen to the birds singing, and to the wind. I listen to the bubbly brook as it flows over the rocks. I listen to all the sounds in the area. I sit and just observe. Once a deer came within twenty feet of me, stopped and watched me for awhile then left. Another time a group of finches came just outside of my reach and sang for a long time. I just sit and observe. Sometimes I am given a song or words of encouragement. When I leave I always leave with more knowledge and wisdom and I always walk away completely content and full of peace. Yes quiet time is the most precious time of the day.

Written by Bear Warrior

Quotes

Our fathers gave us many laws...that it was a disgrace to tell a lie; that we should speak only the
truth.

CHIEF JOSEPH, NEZ PERCE

The white men is too far removed from America's formative processes. The roots of the tree of his life have not yet grasped the rock and soil...But for the Indian, the spirit of the land is still vested...When the Indian has forgotten the music of his forefathers, when the sound of the tom-tom is no more, when the memory of his heroes is no longer told in story...he will be dead.

-LUTHER STANDING BEAR, OGLALA SIOUX CHIEF,1905-1939