Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

I Don't Know What These Indians Are Telling me...

But I believe them. They chant with such conviction and seem so sure of the words they share. I have learned alot from the local natives and it started in their school. I substitute teach and was sent to a school in Warner Springs which sits among the local reservations. One day, someone wrote "F--- Native Pride" on the blackboard and my class squared off! It was Indians on one side, Mexicans on the other. "You brought E-Coli to the country," one side shouted. "Your dads are alcoholics," one hispanic boy threw back.

Egad! We had to have a sit-down in the cafeteria to address the issue. These kids are so sensitive to criticism that my guess is that they've absorbed alot of negative comments over what some on their reservations have done. That is when I saw what Paul Harvey used to call "The Rest of The Story."

I always knew the history of our country but I never lived near a reservation before. There is a defined sense of lost identity. Relics of their past show up around the town of Julian, like teepees and totem poles. Some of their traditions have merged with the local ways and both are represented at events such as funerals.

The first funeral I went to in Julian was for a young man named Christopher. Indians burned sage throughout the ceremony, beat drums and chanted. It was very moving. They later burned the boy's belongings which didn't go over very well with his family who came later to claim them.

I know they do the sweat lodges here but I believe that those are cleansing ceremonies performed mainly by men, for men. Women do prayer circles/meditation rituals such as all focusing on the same problem or issue at the same time hoping to break down the energy of it.

Some of the native Americans meet at dawn on mornings after a rain at a place in the woods near the Vulcan Mountain entrance. There are 10 log benches seated in a power circle and you can see where a fire has been lit in the center. It is a place for prayer or meditation but also a place to "bring" a problem and "leave" it with the group.

One brings an amulet or charm to represent a person in trouble or crisis and places it on a platter. The first time I was invited to watch, there were 8-10 pieces on the tray. Now, items are piled up and spilling over. Problems have amplified due to what these women called an "energy shift." In it, the power shifted from a male to female base which occurs every 1000 years.

These gatherings feel like church used to. They are uplifting and inspiring. These women are bringing problems forward to solve instead of hoping they will go away on their own. This is a powerful sharing among women-for to share is to expose and that could bring shame. These women are honor-bound to handle the information exchanged with respect.

After a few visits, I was asked to participate and now it is one of my favorite things to do. I'm honored that they let me 'play" in their very sacred game.

for now, sherry

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Gonzo Report: Ben Folds takes requests via paper airplane at UCSD

A bunch of folks brought theirs from home
Next Article

Steven Richter comes up with $1 million for Lincoln Club

Lincoln Club helps Larry Turner, hits Terra Lawson-Remer

But I believe them. They chant with such conviction and seem so sure of the words they share. I have learned alot from the local natives and it started in their school. I substitute teach and was sent to a school in Warner Springs which sits among the local reservations. One day, someone wrote "F--- Native Pride" on the blackboard and my class squared off! It was Indians on one side, Mexicans on the other. "You brought E-Coli to the country," one side shouted. "Your dads are alcoholics," one hispanic boy threw back.

Egad! We had to have a sit-down in the cafeteria to address the issue. These kids are so sensitive to criticism that my guess is that they've absorbed alot of negative comments over what some on their reservations have done. That is when I saw what Paul Harvey used to call "The Rest of The Story."

I always knew the history of our country but I never lived near a reservation before. There is a defined sense of lost identity. Relics of their past show up around the town of Julian, like teepees and totem poles. Some of their traditions have merged with the local ways and both are represented at events such as funerals.

The first funeral I went to in Julian was for a young man named Christopher. Indians burned sage throughout the ceremony, beat drums and chanted. It was very moving. They later burned the boy's belongings which didn't go over very well with his family who came later to claim them.

I know they do the sweat lodges here but I believe that those are cleansing ceremonies performed mainly by men, for men. Women do prayer circles/meditation rituals such as all focusing on the same problem or issue at the same time hoping to break down the energy of it.

Some of the native Americans meet at dawn on mornings after a rain at a place in the woods near the Vulcan Mountain entrance. There are 10 log benches seated in a power circle and you can see where a fire has been lit in the center. It is a place for prayer or meditation but also a place to "bring" a problem and "leave" it with the group.

One brings an amulet or charm to represent a person in trouble or crisis and places it on a platter. The first time I was invited to watch, there were 8-10 pieces on the tray. Now, items are piled up and spilling over. Problems have amplified due to what these women called an "energy shift." In it, the power shifted from a male to female base which occurs every 1000 years.

These gatherings feel like church used to. They are uplifting and inspiring. These women are bringing problems forward to solve instead of hoping they will go away on their own. This is a powerful sharing among women-for to share is to expose and that could bring shame. These women are honor-bound to handle the information exchanged with respect.

After a few visits, I was asked to participate and now it is one of my favorite things to do. I'm honored that they let me 'play" in their very sacred game.

for now, sherry

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

We Did Not Want a Monstrosity

Jamul Indians dream big dreams for six acres
Next Article

Alien Lands in PB Revisited

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader