Episode #12 Continuing Native Lands from

You wake to the smell of fresh bannock, hearing bacon and eggs frying once opening your eyes. “Wow Jordan, you are up early. I didn’t know you knew how to cook on a campfire.”

Jordan answers, “Very funny! I just woke myself and thought I would help Abbe make breakfast. Get out of bed sleepy head! We need to eat and get down to the altar, its almost time to cut the tree.”

During breakfast Abbe explains what cutting the sacred tree is all about saying, “When we go to cut the sacred tree the male dancers will be the ones to physically cut a sacred tree chosen previously by the Elder. The female dancers will lay their shawls on the ground beneath the sacred tree to keep it pure by not letting it touch the ground. It will then be carried by hand back to the Altar to be planted in the center of the circle after offerings are tied to branches of the sacred tree.

We will be driving closer to where this sacred tree is and returning in the same fashion. Only because neither of you would be able to last the length of the walk without suffering heat exhaustion. I suggest you wear one of the skirts and shirts I have provided, it will help to keep you cool as the day becomes hotter.”

Your first thought is to make sure you bring water along. Drumming begins in the background, commenting, “Well Jordan, guess we had better clean up and get ready for your next journey.” Jumping up, you grab the dishes and head for a jug of water to wash them off. Getting dressed and heading down to the Altar with Jordan and Abbe.

By the time you arrive at the Altar there is a hundred if not more people gathering around the circular edge of the Altar, most are Native, but there are a few other white people as well. The chatter of people talking amongst each other gets louder the closer you get.

Once the drumming starts, only the sound of drumming and one voice speaking can be heard, “Today we will begin by the cutting of the Sacred Tree. For those who will be walking with me, follow me. For those who are driving please stay with Abbe and attend to your offerings before joining us.” He walks away, most follow, leaving about forty behind for Abbe to help.

Abbe stands in front of you all explaining, “Over here I have different colors of cloth for you to choose from. After choosing what color you would like to use, you will need to make an offering. An offering is a small amount of tobacco. If you do not have tobacco, please ask another, if you do have tobacco, please share with another.”

You ask, “Do the different colors have different meanings?”

Abbe answers, “Yes, that is correct. I have six colors to choose from black for West direction, the meaning is water or vitality. Red is for North direction; the meaning is the cleansing one must undergo or patience and endurance. Yellow is for the East direction; the meaning is wisdom of helping people live good lives. White is for the South direction, stands for warmth and direction. The last two directions are the sky, color is blue, meaning if healing, final direction is the ground or Mother Earth. Her color is green, meaning for all living things. Please help yourself.”

Abbe continues, “Once you have chosen your cloth and have your offering, you will need to place an offering in the center of the cloth and tie it off with a piece of string.” She begins walking from person to person making sure all is going well.

You know Jordan doesn’t smoke, so you offer her some tobacco immediately! You also let others around you know if they need any tobacco to help themselves to the pack you place out on the ground. You decided to pick the color of blue with hopes of finding a way to over come your personal illness. You tear a cigarette apart placing only the tobacco in the center of your blue cloth, using string provided by Abbe to tie it off, leaving enough to make a loop for hanging it on a branch later.

Next Abbe requests that we all get in one of the vehicles provided and began our short drive to the edge of a forest. You meet up with the Elder walking next to the road, all jumping out, the moment the vehicles stopped. Joining him in his walk, you find yourself climbing over fallen trees, through bushes, over rocks and up hills before arriving at your destination of the Sacred Tree.

You hear the Elder, “This is our Sacred Tree, can we have the dancers begin to cut the Sacred Tree?”

The sun begins to feel ridiculously hot, many around you begin to speak of how they are getting extremely hot and feeling faint. You hand them your bottle of cold water without a thought of there not being any left once it is returned to you. You watch your bottle of water get passed from person to person to person until you don’t even see it anymore. Still, it doesn’t bother you that everyone is drinking all your water, instead you are so incredibly happy you had brought your water if only to help others around you.

After about twenty minutes of tree cutting and extremely hot sun beating down on you, Jordan hands you, your bottle of water. Expecting the bottle to be empty, you are completely amazed to find it returned full and still cold. So, you take a drink and continue listening to the Elder as you pass the bottle of water to him, he smiles takes a sip and passes it onto the next group of people. All of a sudden, all the female dancers run closer to the Sacred Tree, placing their shawls all over the ground assuming where the tree will land.

The Elder yells out, “Timber!” You heard the rustling and crashing of the Sacred Tree through other trees as it tumbles to the ground with a loud thump!

All the male dancers line up next to each other on both sides of the Sacred Tree. Together they wrap shawls around the trunk, using the shawls to carry it back through all the trees, the bushes, over the rocks down the hills. When arriving back to where the vehicles were parked the Elder, male and female dancers continue on their way back to the Altar.

Just before you get in the car, an elderly Native woman comes up to you saying, “I hear this is your bottle of water. We thank you! Please know you are blessed.” She hands you back your bottle of water, again it is full of cold water! You turn to ask the woman if maybe she would know how this bottle of water continues to be cold and full, no matter how many people drink from it? But she is already gone. You climb into the car sitting next to Jordan, handing her the bottle of water so she can have a drink.

Once back at the Altar you meet up with the Elder and all who had walked with him, as they are laying the Sacred Tree down on the ground in the center of the circle. The Elder advises everyone they can now enter the circle to tie their offerings on the Sacred Tree. You and Jordan make your way into the center of the circle following the others to the Sacred Tree. You say a prayer, while you’re tying your offering way up at the top of the Sacred Tree, getting it as close as possible to the heavens above. Leaving the way you came in, you and Jordan sit in the shade, provided by the branches of the Altar.

Drumming begins, and the Elder stands in the West with his peace pipe. He walks from one group of people to another sharing his peace pipe, making his way to you and Jordan. He sits, lights his peace pipe and hands it to you. You inhale smoke that you have no idea what it is. But it doesn’t make you feel strange, its seen no different then having a cigarette. You pass it to Jordan, watching as the male dancers use rope to raise the Sacred Tree and plant it in a previously dug hole in the ground.

When the Sacred Tree is raised you notice the male dancers are now attached to the tree by piercings on their bodies. Some are attached by their chest, some their back and some are attached by their legs and arms. They all begin to dance towards the Sacred Tree and away from the Sacred Tree and side to side, repeating it over and over nonstop.

The female dancers have gathered their shawls and are now dancing in a full circle around the male dancers, within the circle. One Native man walks within the circle, separate from others and has the entire skeleton of a buffalo pierced to his shoulders and back, dragging it behind himself. Yet their drumming is so relaxing, it makes you want to head back to the teepee.

Commenting to Jordan, “I’m getting rather hungry, ready to head back to the teepee, make something to eat and head to bed?” Jordan replies, “Yes, I am ready. Let’s go!”

By the time you return home, Abbe has an awesome meal ready for you all. It entails, fresh salmon, fresh bannock and salad, with fruit for dessert. After supper you all clean up, Abbe heading off to her teepee, you and Jordan head to bed. The next morning just could not have come soon enough for either you or Jordan. It feels like you guys have been waiting an exceedingly long time for the night of the Ghost Dance to arrive!

After a day of relaxing and eating in the warm summer sun, you grab your towel and bottle of water, which has continued to stay cold and full for your entire journey, before heading down to the Altar with Jordan. When arriving you notice right away there is a much fewer amount of people attending this ceremony then any other one. It is a very calm night; the sun has set, and darkness is moving in slowly. Drumming starts and you hear the Elder chanting as he stands next to the drummers. He wears a bright red robe; his white hair flowing freely over his shoulders as he walks back and forth with his arms in the air.

Within minutes you see four strikes of lightning bolts coming from all four directions meeting in the center of the Sacred Tree top. Right after you hear the crack of thunder an Eagle appears flying in a circle above the Sacred Tree! It begins to start pouring rain, soaking both you and Jordan to the bone, you pray for all your family members who have passed to come and be with you, covering your shoulders with your towel.

Immediately you can feel a warmth coming from under your towel, beginning to dry your clothes and body instantly. Completely bewildered, yet incredibly happy you motion to Jordan to put half the towel over her shoulder as well before long she too is dried off and warm. From there you both lay on the ground and cover yourselves with your towel. Odd thing is that you are both able to cover yourselves from toe to chin, yet it is only a bath towel.

Laying there you witness orbs dancing around the Sacred Tree, bouncing off all the different offerings, giving off an amazing assortment of different colors. You notice the Elder now walking the circumference of the circle, he is dressed in all white holding a very tall white staff in his right hand, tapping it off the dirt as he walks. As he makes his way by, you also notice that he is not the Elder, rather it must be his Spirit, as the Elder is still standing with the drummers and chanting to the sounds.

“Are you seeing all the different things I am, Jordan?” "You mean like all those different colors and those ghosts flying around us?” “Well kind of, I can see the orbs, but I don’t see a bunch of ghosts flying around. I can see two Elders that look the same other than one is all white and dressed all in white and the other one looks normal and dressed in red.”

“I can only see one Elder. Did you see the Eagle? That was really neat.” “Yes, I seen the lightning, heard the thunder and then saw the Eagle.” “Wow, I only saw the Eagle.”

You both continue to lay on the ground, with your eyes closed, still covered with your towel, enjoying the feeling of rain hitting your face. You wake to the Elder’s voice, “You are welcome to stay as long as you like, but you might want to make your way back to your teepee, to sleep for the night.”

You look up to see the Elder standing above you and Jordan, realizing there is now no other people there but you, Jordan, the Elder, the male and female dancers and the drummers.

You shake Jordan, “Wow, Jordan wake up! We need to head back to the teepee, the ceremony is over! Wake up!” Jordan stretches commenting, “Wow is right! I didn’t even know I fell asleep.” “Me neither.”

The two of you make your way back to your teepee, listening to the drumming and enjoying a run through the downfall of rain. Once arriving home, you eat a good meal left by Abbe, clean up and fall asleep to the sound of pouring rain.

Morning arrives and today is the healing ceremony, something you have been curious about since day one of being at the Sundance. Your understanding from Abbe is that all are welcome into the circle and the Elder will pray for the healing of all, as the dancers will continue to dance even if their piercings have broken loose. The day is extremely hot, 100 degrees Fahrenheit is what you have been told, with a possibility of it getting even hotter.

Both you and Jordan enjoy yet another amazing meal prepared by Abbe and help clean up before heading down to the Alter for the healing Ceremony. You follow the same elderly Native woman, who had returned your bottle, into the center of the circle standing next to the Sacred Tree.

When Jordan stands next to you, she questions, “So do you know what we are supposed to do while we are in here? Or when we are supposed to leave? “I have no idea. I plan to leave when this nice lady next to me leaves. Until then I plan to close my eyes and enjoy the drumming and chanting from the Elder and dancers.”

Jordan states, “Sounds good to me.” You both stand there with your eyes closed. The sound of drumming and chanting becomes so tranquil for you, you begin to feel as though you are floating away. Free from everything and everyone, it’s extremely peaceful. That’s when you hear the Elder yell out in English, “Ground her now!”

To find out what ground her now meant? You were given a hint, if you would like to find out what happens to you while in the enter of the Sacred Circle next to the Sacred Tree that carries your offering of healing. What now?

If you are interested in finding out why you are being grounded, what grounding means and if there is anything the Elder can do to save you better, quick, run on over to EPSODE #35

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