Daily Feast - July

[bluidkiti]

July 1st - 7th

JULY
Tsa lu wa'nee
CORN IN TASSEL

My people have kept me in the harness....I have never deceived them....I have done the best I could.

CHIEF JOHN ROSS

July 1 - Daily Feast

In these times of instant everything our patience wears thin when we have to wait. Who has not pushed an elevator button a number of times to get there faster? Waiting may well be the hardest work we do. We are less than tolerant of those who keep us waiting. Is their time more important than ours? So we keep pushing, racing our engines and taking chances in order to save five seconds. We can wait wisely - seeing that, sometimes, delays save us from a problem we could have met. How long has it been since we have had such a good excuse to just sit quietly and watch others trying to beat the clock. Time was when our mothers sat all afternoon and embroidered, while their heads and feet rested. Could we not take thirty minutes?

~ We are hoodwinked, duped more and more every year; we are made to feel that we are free when we are not. ~

WASSAJA

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 1

"I'm an Indian, I'm one of God's children."

--Mathew King, LAKOTA

My Creator, today let me remember the reason I'm here on Mother Earth. Let me look into my own eyes and see the beauty You have created. Let me have good thoughts. Being Indian is not the color of my skin. Being Indian is to listen to my heart, to think only the things You have taught, to watch nature and live in harmony. Being Indian is to walk in prayer, to talk to You constantly during the day. Being Indian is to act and to walk in a sacred way.

Today, let me think in beauty, let me walk in beauty, let me pray in beauty.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Why is it that we require so much scientific proof for the most ordinary things these days, when the very fact that we lie down and close our eyes at night is the highest proof that God's world is in order. Though perhaps our personal world may not know such sequence. There comes a time when our human limitations insist that we lay down our questions and accept by faith the only way to survive ourselves.

There are those who say they must have tangible evidence that the world and all its wonders be displayed before their eyes to see in wisdom the way things really are. And yet who said the human eyes could see or ears could hear more than one tiny bit of the wonder. Who could be so bold as to believe their senses were strong enough to know, except through faith.

Who could see with the visible eye the hand that changes the seasons, or hear Job's stars that sang together at dawn. Who set the day at rest and brings the morning in all its newness.

Only so far....then explanations know no more....and though we try to disbelieve when all goes wrong, there comes a time when we want no more explanation than that God's world is in order - and we cannot change it.

Surely if someone took our hand and asked us to walk along the world and view the wonders so magnificently displayed....If by some miracle we could see the vastness of it all at once, and still bear up under the beauty of it.....

If we can see the rolling rise and fall of the land - the purple, pink, and golden hues of shadows hung along the mountain sides....If our ears could hear the music of the rippling streams, the rushing waters, the graceful falls.

If by some mere chance we could sense the ebb and flow, the push and relaxing of the tides, the rise and set of the sun, the glittering stars and soft-faced moon that ignores the fact that other worlds encircle ours.....

And as the seasons sprinkle rain and flowers, golden leaves and snowfall....On this continuous circle....always new....always beautiful....

If we can see all this, how then, can we doubt that the earth that God created and saw as good is good. This is our land, and only our own forgetfulness of its source can make it different.
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July 2 - Daily Feast

To someone who likes to walk, all of nature is a miracle. The sights and sounds and fragrances are ever different and soothing to the spirit. But evening has a special charm when the sunset changes from phase to phase, coloring and shading the fields with an artist's touch. The sky is tinted with the palest pink that has edges of gold - and then, into a subtle movement, purples and deep blues darken the hills along the horizon. The wind-tossed clouds catch the last rays of sunlight, rose-red and wavy like strands of silky hair. Above it all, the evening star emerges cool and blue to dominate little by little. Earth and sky and all between have special times when everything else gives way to beauty. If only we could be so generous with one another.

~ Today you saw a deer bounding through the forest, he was lovely in strength and beauty, fleeter than the winds. ~

METHOATASKE

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 2

"If I destroy you, I destroy myself. If I honor you, I honor myself."

--Hunbatz Men, MAYAN

It is said, when we need love the most is when we deserve it the least. Whenever I have secret thoughts about someone else, it will put bad feelings inside myself. I will hurt myself. If I secretly hold a grudge or resentment against my brother or sister, I will be a slave to that person until I let them go. Let me remember to look at my brother in a sacred manner. Today, let me think like a Warrior. Let my thoughts toward my brothers and sisters be good thoughts. Let me remember that You are in charge. If I get upset at another person today, let me remember that the most important thing I can do is to first talk to You because, when I am right with You, it is impossible to be out of harmony with my brothers and sisters.

My Creator, take my hand and guide me through today.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There is an old Arabian proverb that if you pitch a lucky man in the Nile he will come up with a fish in his mouth. Just to come up would be enough for most of us, but still we do so many things - perhaps half in jest - that we have hopes will throw off the evil spirits and bring good luck to the rescue.

The tokens we carry we've carried from childhood, when we were careful never to step on a crack in the walk, or pick up a pin - the silly poems that fascinate children, and sometimes follow them into adulthood when the laughter is gone.

Who are the wise? Those who can rise with the sun letting yesterday go....and feel within their hearts the gratitude of being alive....to have the opportunity to glean from their mistakes something that will take them far over that place if ever the pass it again. They know that luck must have a "P" before it to keep them from waiting, to help them turn up something rather than waiting for something to turn up.

And yes, they are lucky who have love to give and the ability to receive it. They have faith in good. And no small amount of peace when they think not how lucky they are, but how blessed!
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July 3 - Daily Feast

We are always rich when we have courage. It is not the circumstance in which we find ourselves but how we handle it that makes the difference. If nothing ever challenged us we might not know our strength - we might never feel the power to overcome something that gives us courage to tackle another, O at li, mountain. Giving up does not come on us suddenly, but we cultivate it on a daily basis. Everything, success or failure - or even mediocrity - settles on us as we get ready for it. When we think and talk failure, it happens. When we think we can do something, we can do it. It takes as much effort to lose as it does to win - sometimes more. But to think courage, to think strength, is the breath of life.

~ Why don't you talk and go straight and all will be well? ~

BLACK KETTLE

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 3

"When you are in the woods, you cannot ever be lost. You are surrounded by friends and surrounded by God."

--Joe Coyhis, STOCKBRIDGE-MUNSEE

Every plant, every animal, every insect, every bird, every tree is made up of God. God is life and everything is alive. When you are hunting, remember all nature is your friend. All nature has purpose. All nature participates in the life cycle. Nature communicates; Nature talks; Nature listens; Nature forgives; Nature respects; Nature loves. Nature lives in harmony. Nature follows the law. Nature is kind. Nature is balance. The woods are alive and beautiful. She is our friend.

Great Spirit, let me honor and respect the forest and all the life it contains.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

In the frantic search for something that has meaning to life, we have a tendency to do a thing simply because everyone else is doing it. It becomes a "thing," a fad that must be done to keep on the inside circle. There's little originality, little thought, but a lot of following along in beaten paths.

It is a mistaken idea to believe that all I see with my eyes and the limits of my thinking are the limits of the world. There is a tremendous interesting world out there never before investigated, and I am an individual like no one else.

It is quite marvelous to break through the shell of the middling and to discover the ability to see and feel, and to hear more keenly. Suddenly, I can feel more kindly, not because of who I am on this earth, but because I'm a child of God.

I can see more color, more light, more vision because I'm not being shown, I'm discovering. My world is no longer based on passing fancies, but on lasting built slowly within me, with love.
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July 4 - Daily Feast

Let our objective be our country, our whole country, and nothing but our country. And, by the blessing of God, may that country itself become a vast and splendid monument, not of oppression and terror, but of wisdom and peace and of liberty, upon which the world may gaze with admiration forever." Daniel Webster spoke those words, and he knew that America would have fine troops, great leaders, and excellent equipment, a combination that stands for freedom. Even though freedoms have been stretched to the limits in some areas, we operate on the basic premise that this is America and it still stands as an example to countries everywhere of what it means to be free. President Eisenhower said that whatever America hopes to bring to pass in the world must first come to pass in the hearts of the American people. It has, and it will as long as we ask God to bless America.

~ Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of my people. ~

SEATTLE

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 4

"That is not our way, to set yourself apart and talk about who you are and what you've done. You let your life speak for you. With the Mohawk people, wisdom is how you live and how you interpret what your mother and father, what your grandmothers and grandfathers have told you about this world - and then how you interpret that into the fact of living every day."

--Tom Porter, MOHAWK

It is said, how you live your life makes so much noise that people can't hear what you are saying anyway. It is so easy to see people who do not walk the talk.

Creator, I ask you today to help me be humble. Let me spend the day listening. Help me to not brag or gossip. Help me today not to do those things that seek attention or approval from others. I am only accountable to You, Oh Great Spirit. You will tell me the things I need to know. Let me learn the lessons from my Elders. Let me teach the children by example. Today, let me walk the talk.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

To so many, getting up in the morning is the worst way to begin a day. To them every morning is the morning after, a time to feel nervous anxiety and regret in the deepest sense, while to others morning is a new world. Yesterday ceased to be with sleep last night.

How much better off we'd be if only for a few hours we could put out of our minds every painful thought and every unpleasant person until the mind and body could find enough new life to begin again.

"The early morning hath gold in its mouth," wrote Franklin. But it has things more precious than gold. It has a life as fresh and sweet as the shimmering, clinging dewdrops in the first rays of golden sunlight. It has the grace of mimosa leaves rippling in the gentlest breeze. It has the songs of the birds and the love of a new awakening.

And in this breathless creation is something more. A new opportunity, another chance, a challenge to walk on, more strong, more forgiving, more loving.

Sleep deep and rest sweet, but rise glad. Don't let one joyful second be lost in dead oblivion. This is a vision of newness awaiting even the least to arise and accept the best - a new beginning.

Morning need not be a jury trial for oneself. Dawn and sleep can be a miraculous cleansing to set us out on our feet ready to being again and in a friendlier atmosphere. We must feel friendly toward ourselves before we can possibly find morning good to anyone else.

An unknown writer once wrote: "Every morning lean thine arms awhile upon awhile upon the window sill of heaven, and gaze upon thy Lord, then, with the vision in thy heart, turn strong to meet thy day."

We need to be strong to meet the day with self control, to find our reason and purpose, but, more important, to leave behind us the heavy and darkened thoughts that kept us from seeing the breathtaking beauty of the most important time - this morning.
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July 5 - Daily Feast

Remembering can be painful and sometimes without any real benefit. It keeps us feeling guilty and regretting so much that the good memories are washed out. It is easy enough to forget the good that happened, without covering the good with bad memories. No doubt, everything has not been ideal - but haven't we given enough thought to the unhappy times? It doesn't do any good to ruin the present time recalling what went wrong in the past. But we can begin to change. Maybe only a little at first - but honest effort has always changed things for the better and given us self-respect as well. Time grows more and more precious and what we do with it at this moment makes or breaks today and all our tomorrow's.

~ We are not afraid to work and we are not afraid to do right. ~

TOOKLANNI

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 5

"It does not require many words to speak the truth."

--Chief Joseph, NEZ PERCE

The truth shall set you free. This is the truth. When we speak the Truth, we do not need to be defensive. Truth needs no defense. When we speak the Truth, we do not need to attack because Truth cannot be attacked. It is so easy to want to manipulate or to be deceitful or dishonest. My head tells me I can get away with doing these things, after all everybody does it.

My Creator, today let me know Truth.
Let me live Truth.
Let me risk the Truth.
Let me make the Truth sweet.
Help me to make my word good.
Let Your spirit and intent be added to by words.
Let My thoughts be Truth.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There are very few days when we have control of our time. No matter what our schedules may be, there is always a change taking place that keeps something from happening when it is supposed to happen. And when the day is ended and our schedules have not been met, then it begins to drag on our spirits.

Soon we become so wound up in the problems of the moment that the delights of our souls drift away and become a part of the mist of "someday." Someday I will get to do what I want to do. Someday when this necessary work is finished - and it is possible that the things we believe to be so necessary are really robbers of our lives? Do we spend too much time with the menial tasks and allow our creativity - the ability to bring newness into our lives - to dry up and become nonexistent?

William Blake called this within us "God." One of the greatest poets ever to live, he believed that if we keep alive our ability to see and feel the beauty of life, our menial tasks will become easy and the way successful.

Yesterday is only a dream, tomorrow only a vision, but today - we live. If we live as we should, our yesterdays will be dreams of happiness, and our tomorrow's will be visions of hope.

Nothing is so sad as the man who spends all his time today judging tomorrow by his experiences of yesterday. He has a vision, but his faith does not support him to pursue it. If some great stroke of good fortune should overtake him, he will be all ready to go, but he doesn't really expect it to happen. So today he sits waiting for the world to change for him, never guessing that he is the one who must change.

No one is so misled as the woman who has such a busy schedule that she hasn't time to listen to her children. She expects to take the time to play with them - someday. But it is today that the bridges must be built from the soul to the body to the spirit. It isn't something built from a quick kiss or a smart smack in the right place, but from daily communion and understanding.

Today is the very life of life when the best things are nearest - breath in our nostrils, light in our eyes, flowers at our feet, duties at our hand, and the path of God before us.
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July 6 - Daily Feast

Influence is like the wild phlox that blooms in the woods. Its fragrance drifts toward us, but from where? The distinctive scent tells us it is phlox - or is it wild grapes or plum? In the final analysis we know we smell flowers, but the kind and the location remains a mystery. So it is with advertising or rumor or neighborhood gossip. We know something is going on, because we are being conditioned to take suggestions, to be open to so much we don't need and do not want to hear. The same influence operates in other area - age and illness, loneliness and fear. We not only get it over the airwaves that something miraculous has happened, to be contradicted only days later, but we hear people boldly claiming disease in a joking manner. Influence is subtle like the scent of phlox - or is it petunias?

~ The Great Spirit has given the white man great foresightedness; he sees everything at a distance and makes the most extraordinary things. ~

CROW BELLY

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 6

"Silence is the cornerstone of character."

--Charles Alexander Eastman, OHIYESA SANTEE SIOUX

Be still and know. Anyone can verbally attack another. Anyone can be a smart Aleck. Anyone can be angry and tell other people things that will hurt them. Anyone can be sarcastic, devaluating and belittling. It takes a Warrior to be silent. Silence is so powerful. Silence can be so loving.

My Creator, if I get into a situation today that needs me to respond with silence, help me to use my silence in a good and sacred way. In my silence, let me be talking to You and You talking to me. Silence is the way of the warrior.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

So you missed an opportunity! And they say that opportunity knocks only once - but, only if you believe it! Opportunity has been known to pound on the door and go unnoticed, and it has been known to whisper and be heard. It is all according to how hard we require opportunity to knock before we recognize it.

Our awareness of opportunity will reveal to us how many times it presents itself; so subtle, it may not be recognized by the casual eye. And usually it seems to be completely unprofitable to us personally. More often than not it is service to others without thought of return. It is humility, a willingness to accept the most humble beginnings. It is joy in finding communication with others and finding a kinship with them.

Have you heard of an opportunity fund? Some call it saving for a rainy day. Rainy days can be lovely, too. A rainy day can be an opportunity to get things done. But an opportunity can be any day, rain or shine.

Do you often have the opportunity to speak to your neighbor? It seems to happen too infrequently these days.

The most fun we can have comes when we've the opportunity to squelch an ugly rumor. You know, "curst be the tongue whence slanderous rumor, withering friendship's faith..." Sometimes a little friendship does wither, but if it really amounts to anything it will survive.

What a splendid opportunity to sit quietly and mentally forgive with such depth and joy as to start life anew. There is no greater blessing, no greater opportunity fund.

American editor A.E. Duning write, "Great opportunities come to all, but many do not know they have met them. The only preparation to take advantage of them, is simple fidelity to what each day brings."

A missed opportunity may well be another opportunity to prepare for a bigger and better one!
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July 7 - Daily Feast

A difficult challenge does little harm in comparison to the uncertainty of what to do about it. To take action, or let it ride; to stay or to go, to ask for help or wait for new developments. Indecision can wreck our whole thinking process and stall us out at a time that we most need a clear head. Our emotions rise and fall - from do nothing to do something. One minute we have a clear-cut answer and the next we don't know what to do. The Cherokee calls this, a is in, backward thinking, going forward and backing up. It doesn't get us anywhere. There is nothing wrong with questioning, but wavering gets everything out of focus. No clear picture comes out of a shaky camera. Taking an action with a calm mind helps to clarify and give stability to the next steps.

~ You might as well expect rivers to run backward as that any man who was born a free man should be contented when penned up and denied liberty. ~

CHIEF JOSEPH

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 7

"I believe much trouble and blood would be saved if we opened our hearts more."

--Chief Joseph, NEZ PERCE

We are as sick as our secrets. Our ego takes over control of our lives and when that happens our minds get very sick. Then we hurt people and our minds will always justify our actions. Our minds will give us rationalization and excuses that we are justified in doing what we are doing.


My Creator, Let me live today with an open heart. Let me realize to be vulnerable is a strength, not a weakness. Let me realize the power of an open heart. Let me be available to truth. If I get into trouble, let me hear the whisper of your guidance. Let me make heart decisions and let my head catch up to that decision.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Haven't you heard someone say, after experiencing something either good or bad, "I knew it was going to be that way." And perhaps the conviction was very strong that certain conditions would take a definite turn. But much of the time we say it not out of conviction, but resignedly agreeing beforehand that something will be a certain way, and usually with dire overtones.

It used to be believed that we had no power to control anything coming to us. We were mere victims of circumstances, almost like stones waiting to be kicked aside. But we were taught, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so he is."

We must not be so presumptuous as to believe we know everything there is to know about the workings of the mind. But we attract a great many of our problems simply by dwelling on them in our thoughts.

Premonition, or "knowing" things are going to be a certain way, is merely giving us a little time to head off the trouble. Such things should be a challenge, not an accepted rule. "Know" better until you believe it into conviction and into being.

[bluidkiti]

July 8 - Daily Feast

It is not enough to make something look good. The underlying principle must be good. How else could nature produce such majestic landscapes? They were created because the laws of creativity were good. Now things are made to be temporary - to self-destruct. If it doesn't work very long - junk it. No wonder there are piles of debris. No wonder relationships struggle. The underlying principle is too often based on the idea that if it doesn't work, get rid of it. Few things are as enduring as the hills, few things as calm and serene as the lake on a quiet day. But if we have no firm foundation on which to build, what can we expect but upheaval and having to begin again.

~ The earth is full of minerals of all kinds....the ground is covered with forests of pine....if we give this up....it is the last thing that is valuable to us or the white people. ~

WHITE GHOST

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 8

"You are going to learn the most important lesson - that God is the most powerful thing there is."

--Mathew King, LAKOTA

The Medicine Wheel teaches that there are two worlds - the Seen World and the Unseen World, or the Physical World and the Spiritual World. We need information from both of these worlds in order to live our lives in a harmonious way. The most difficult way is to figure things out by ourselves and leave the Great Spirit out of it. When we do this, we are making decisions with information only from the Physical World. This can be called reliance on self. If we ask the Creator to help us, we then get information from the Unseen World or the Spiritual World. The Spiritual World is where we get our power. When we do this, we are God-reliant. Being God-reliant is the same as being on the Red Road.

Great Spirit, whisper the secrets of the Unseen World in my mind's ear.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

First things and first times....the newness of the present moment holds such a breath of youth, such a challenge, there are moments in everyone's life they wish they could relive. Just to recall those times when the newness, the memory of first things were beautiful and exciting.

But life never stands still. It moves forward or it decays. It cannot hold on to the past in any way. If the newness of first things has not grown into finer and more beautiful moments, then it cannot go on.

Everyone can recall something so dear that it becomes new again just be thinking about it. Courage, love, joy, contentment, all these can call to mind the special moments that were beginnings of new eras, new times in living. The scales of life tip this way and that to make those times full of meaning and sometimes vividly painful. And then sometimes it takes a season to mend the heart and spirit. When they are ready, the experience of new times and new beginnings and first things will bloom once more and the youthful challenge again enchants.
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July 9 - Daily Feast

When people are secure, they can let someone else have the credit for doing something worthwhile and not complain. Sooner or later, the truth comes out anyway. Life always balances the credit. People have thought many times they were getting something for nothing - but listen, nothing stands for nothing. There is always compensation. Call it what it is. The only thing we don't pay for is love, real love, which the Cherokee calls, a da ge yu di. What we give, we receive. Life is reciprocal, it requires us to do the best we can and to leave judgment and balancing to Him Who works out all things to their perfection.

~ Tell your people....that since we were promised we should never be removed, we have moved five times. ~

A CHIEF, 1876

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 9

"We have to educate ourselves to know who we are. That's what I mean when I say, 'Teach the children.'"

--Eddie Benton-Banai, OJIBWAY

It is only by knowing ourselves that we can get in touch with our power. It is said, "Tell me what you know about yourself and I'll tell you what you know about God. Tell me what you know about God and I'll tell you what you know about yourself." As we increase knowledge of ourselves, as we choose to grow spiritually, as we clean up our act, then we can teach the children.

My Creator, You have said "Know thyself." Today let me see the wisdom of this Truth. Give me Your insight of myself. I am always walking the talk and most people can see it. Today, help and guide me on the Red Road.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We have often heard it said that God never closes one door unless He opens another. It is a great comfort to know we never really lose when we believe, for any defeat can be turned to good if we will absorb the lesson in it.

And yet, how often we refuse to go through that door that has been opened for us. It is so much easier to stand back and wail about the closed one. There seems to be a certain amount of glorification in defeat. It is a subtle something that hides in us and keeps us from doing well that which we know we are capable of doing. If we show strength, we are afraid we will have to stand alone.

Sometimes a door will close for us because that particular one would have caused us more unhappiness, but it never closes for punishment. God is love and love does not punish, nor does it have any power but to give what is right and good for us. With this knowledge, we can be grace walk through those doors that open to us and know it is right.
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July 10 - Daily Feast

New trends and new ideas interest us, but how we love the familiar. We like to keep those things that are dear to us, old songs, familiar places, the good faces. Most of us don't want to recapture the old times. They have served their purpose and we have put too much into what counts for us now. But when something familiar comes to our ears, or a certain fragrance touches our memory, we are suddenly back there and reliving old times. It is tiresome to be forever striving toward the future. The road is unfamiliar - and every inch of it will have to be tested and tried. And then something we know by heart rises to the top and it buoys us up and we are ready to go again. Sometimes it takes the familiar to help us appreciate what we have today.

~ Grandfather, Great Spirit, the good road and the road of difficulties you have made me cross; and where they cross, the place is holy. ~

BLACK ELK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 10

"Each soul must meet the morning sun, the new, sweet earth, and the great silence alone."

--Charles Alexander Eastman, OHIYESA SANTEE SIOUX

Each morning a new sun for a new day arises. Each morning the sweet perfume from the Mother Earth spreads across the land. This combination of sun, earth, smell and quiet is a magic door for me to enter to kneel before the Grandfathers. The sacred time to commune with the Great Spirit.

Oh Great Spirit, I humbly stand before You along with the new sun, the Mother Earth and the smells of the morning. I ask You to direct my thinking today. Let me live in the silence. Teach me Your wisdom, Teach me to love my brothers and sisters. Let me respect the things You have made.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Good ideas are the flower of the mind, waiting to bloom for the benefit of the thinker.

We are constantly in the process of manufacturing ideas. Every waking moment we are thinking continually, making mental images of that which we desire or need. Everything we see was first an idea in someone's mind.

Ideas are fleeting messages that pass rapidly through the mind. Some of them are strong enough to impress the thinker. Many are not worth saving, but a few are very precious. They have to be sifted, sorted and analyzed for value. Then they must be acted on immediately, for they are very perishable. Once we lose an idea, it is seldom if ever recaptured.

Everyone has access to a better and happier life through ideas, if we can trust the Lord to give us the will and courage to follow through on them.
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July 11 - Daily Feast

As unlikely as it seems at times, there is always a way - even a better way. If we can keep on working and using our vision, there will be solutions and they will not fail. Our limited view can make us believe answers must come through certain channels. It is hard to stop thinking that one particular way is all there is, that we have no choice. It makes us rely on a crust of bread when we could have a feast. If we want a breakthrough, we need to take off our blinders - stop pressing our minds into tiny molds that have no room to expand. Allow, even encourage, the mind and spirit to use the gift of, a go wa dv di, vision - extraordinary ability to see beyond ordinary sight, to a better way.

~ There was a time....our wants were within our control....we saw nothing we could not get. ~

SHARITARISH

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 11

"Do not grieve. Misfortunes will happen to the wisest and best of men. Death will come, always out of season. It is the command of the Great Spirit, and all nations and people must obey. What is past and what cannot be prevented should not be grieved for..."

--Big Elk, OMAHA Chief

Our earth continues to Grow by cycles and seasons: The cycles of growth - spring, summer, fall, winter. The cycles of the human being - baby, youth, adult, elder. It is through these cycles that we will experience the changes. I will not always necessarily agree with these changes but I need to trust the Grandfathers are in charge. Things will come and things will go. Really, I own nothing, the Creator owns all. Too often I label things as mine. I say this belongs to me, but it really belongs to the Creator. He gives me things to take care of. I need to do the best I can with what I have, with what I know at the time. And when the Creator changes things, I need to let go for His planning is the best.

Oh Great Spirit, today let me do the best I can with what I know, with what I have. Let me experience acceptance of Your will.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

James Russell Lowell once wrote, "No man is born into the world whose work is not born with him." Each of us has been given a talent. It may not be some great shining thing that will attract attention and bring fame. But living has become so intricate, so great in detail, so fine in its workings, that it requires that skill of all men.

Every time we touch something, hear, see, and feel, we are using the results of other people's talents. Too many take their own abilities for granted and see a task as just another job. But that isn't true, because no matter how small your part may seem, it takes its place in the world of living as important and necessary as the greatest talent.

The secret of a successful talent is in its use. The most minute gift was put there for a purpose and we should never belittle it but gratefully devote our attention to developing its perfection.

There are a number of self-improvement books on the market today. Among them are excellent etiquette books teaching us the correct way of doing things and how to live more graciously with our fellow man. But one can be quite learned and lose the benefit of keeping the social graces with oneself.

You owe it to yourself to quit belittling your abilities in thought or word. Self-respect is a necessity in order to keep on good terms with oneself.

You owe yourself spiritual growth - the ability to enter a church reverently and to sit quietly in your own preparatory service before the formal service begins.

It is your duty to fill your mind with the better thoughts, the sweetening of the nature and a measure of tolerance - for you will make mistakes, but there should also be the power to forgive oneself, to go on from there.

To be on good terms with oneself is to worry less about violating the rules of good behavior with all others.
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July 12 - Daily Feast

The fragrances of the countryside are exhilarating after a summer rain. Wildflowers and morning glories have spread profusely along fence rows, and bittersweet vines abound wherever they can take hold. One breath of fresh air, one beautiful smell of petunias on the evening breeze, is never enough. It has to be repeated and held in remembrance for another time, another place. A pill doesn't exist that works better than a country lane after a rain shower. Huge drops make secret symbols in the dust and are, a da to li gi, a blessing on the head of a Cherokee. It is a special message, a private baptism from the Great Spirit.

~ This country is mine, I was raised on it; my forefathers died on it; and I wish to remain on it. ~

CROW FEATHER

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 12

"Each man is good in the sight of the Great Spirit."

--Sitting Bull, TETON SIOUX

Our bodies are both physical and spiritual. At our very center we are spiritual. Our bodies are built around the spiritual. The center is the unseen world. Therefore, we cannot see it with our eyes and we tend to judge the body because we can see it. The body is not who we are. We can see the spiritual if we are spiritual ourselves. We won't see this always with our physical eyes. Usually we will see it with our spiritual eye. We will hear ourselves say "I know this to be true."

At the center of all human beings is the place of good. That includes myself. At my very core is good. I can find this place by staying free of resentments, fear, dishonesty and self-seeking motives. My Creator, keep me free this day of resentment, selfishness, dishonesty and fear.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Leave yourself a choice. It is a sorry state of affairs when a person's life becomes so regimented that it is impossible to make even one change in plans. There is a story about a gentleman who kept a record in minute detail of his living and every cent he earned so that he could make a trip abroad. The record keeping became such an obsession that when he could make the trip he took along crackers to keep from eating in the dining room aboard ship. The journey was nearly over before he discovered the price of his meals was included in the fare.

How much do we miss by refusing to accept the bounty of choices? "If only" and "I wish" are so over used. We bind ourselves daily by refusing to recognize the volume of opportunities open to each of us. All of life is not free, but there is much available for our personal selection.

Dr. William S. Sadler wrote of a woman who was so orderly and systematic in her living that she inquired of her minister how to go about dying since she had never done it before. Living in a systematic world is possible, but there are limits to what we can prepare for and about which to be orderly. Daily we meet and settle many small emergencies, and some not so small. And it is our developed ability to meet these things successfully and on the spur of the moment that makes a well-rounded individual.

But the steady, uniform methods of doing things do not necessarily mean a person is ready to meet every situation in life. In fact, such living often makes change practically impossible when change is sorely needed.

Order is heaven's first law. But order means first things first. A place for everything and everything in its place. Then, if we've learned how to live, we never have to worry about the art of dying gracefully.
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July 13 - Daily Feast

Summer heat has brought a lull to the meadows. Tiny titmice and bright yellow warblers stay close to watering places, and only the locust sings on in its raspy tones. It sings to remind us that it is summer and time to slow our pace. Hay meadows are dotted with bales, and wheat and beans are ready for harvest. Evening is alive with the songs of meadowlarks and killdeer, and the mockingbird is the comic that sings in all the other bird's voices. It would be impossible to live among the things of nature and not pace oneself to them. It is the nature of the Cherokee to go to a flowing stream with any problem he may have. And he comes away with the best harvest of all, a quiet eye and the peaceful harmony of summer.

~ I have a good heart, and I want no mistake made this time, to live with a good heart and talk truth. ~

CAPTAIN JACK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 13

"Grandfather, Great Spirit, once more behold me on earth and lean to hear my feeble voice. You lived first, and You are older than all need, older than all prayer...You are the life of all things."

--Black Elk, OGLALA SIOUX

Great Spirit - Sometimes I don't feel like praying. Sometimes when I have done something wrong, I'm ashamed to come to You. Even though You have always been there for me, I sometimes choose to stay away. It's hard for me to understand what all knowing is. Sometimes it's hard for me to see how much You really care. But I know if I take a few minutes and think about what I know to be true about You, the things change and I am able to realize Your power and Your love. Today, I'll start by thinking of You. I'll think about all the times You have helped and guided me in the past. You are life, You are love, You are power, You are desire, You are truth, Your are principle, You are intelligence, You are courage. With You I am everything; without You I am nothing.

Creator, thank You for allowing me to start my day with You.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

What is it that keeps us from doing the creative things we want to do? Fear of venturing and losing, fear of the unknown? And yet, every day of our lives we venture and seldom acknowledge the fact that we didn't lose. We too often accomplish something because circumstances forced a courage we could not muster from mere desire.

Frequently we must simply have the audacity to lay aside the taboos we have built for ourselves, for fear of appearing foolish, and follow a creative curiosity.

When Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, "Give me a young man with brains enough to make a fool of himself," he didn't mean intentionally acting foolishly. He meant that a fearlessness of appearing foolish can enable us to step outside the realms of what others would call the limits.

The simplest ventures often bring joy to many, particularly to those who in the beginning dared to stand on their own chances of winning or losing.
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July 14 - Daily Feast

Never quit when the going gets tough. Now is the time to bear down even harder. It would be a shame to quit and find we had almost reached our goal. If a person that can't swim panics in deep water, he will sink. But if he rolls over and floats for a while, he can get his sense of balance and make the distance easily. The Cherokee believes he can endure, he can work, and he can fight. He will not be, a tsv na, turned back. We owe it to ourselves to see what we can accomplish. And it may well be that we can do what others said is not possible.

~ You showed me....the spirit shape of things as they should be. You have shown me, and I have seen. ~

BLACK ELK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 14

"It was good for the skin to touch the earth, and the old people liked to remove their moccasins and walk with bare feet on the sacred earth... The soil was soothing, strengthening, cleansing, and healing."

--Chief Luther Standing Bear, TETON SIOUX

Touching the earth - getting grounded, centered. There is magic in touching the earth and feeling her healing power. This is especially healthy to do during a troubling time when our minds are racing or can't stop thinking or are locked onto fear or resentment. When I need to feel free I can go to the Mother Earth. The Mother Earth is full of life and love. She always gives her powers to those who come to her. The Mother Earth is alive.

Today, my Great Spirit, let me remember to touch the earth. Let me slow down and live just for today. Let me be gentle, patient and kind.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

This is a day that God has made, rejoice and be glad in it.

What we do with each day is largely decided by the thought we give it in the beginning and how we start a new day plays an immense part in the success or failure of either carefully laid plans or helter-skelter activity.

We should open this day with as much reverence as if it were gift wrapped and presented to us personally, which it is.

What wonderful thing can I do this day that no one else can do! Shall I spend these precious moments complaining? Shall I sit glum at my work to make others feel morbid? Should I continually acknowledge how little I have and how badly I feel?

Or should I speak kindly, think kindly, feel kindly, and be so grateful that I have another opportunity today to do something for others that will bring them joy and lift their spirits?

This day is in your hands. You will reap from it what you plant. If you would be loved, then be lovable; if you want peace, be peaceable; and if you would ask freedom, grant freedom. And learn to forgive without reservation.
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July 15 - Daily Feast

A shallow river that is not deep enough to hold all the water that runs into it during the rainy season is always in danger of pushing out of its banks. When it overflows, everything is in danger. Those who live near such a river know the must be prepared. They have seen havoc wreaked on everything in its way. But they have the same feeling about people who are so like the river. Such people have no control and no depths, and tend to push into the lives of others persons. Many of the walls we build are to protect us from intrusion. The Cherokees remember that need for, a li s de lv to di, safety or protection, and will not again be caught in the floodtide.

~ No man of my race has ever stood there before. The flood rises, looking upward I see a steep, stony path. I lead the way up.... ~

STANDING BEAR

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 15

"We are nothing compared to His power, and we feel and know it."

--Black Hawk, SAUK

Inside of every man and woman is a place of knowing. In this place is the knowing that there is a Great One, the Great Mystery, the Holy One, the Great Spirit. We can deny this all we want but we know what we know. This place of knowing is at the very center of our being. It is gratifying to know that God cannot leave us. It is said we are spiritual beings trying to be human. With this power in our lives, we can accomplish much. We can do many good things for our people.

Oh Great Spirit, I know of Your power. I love the days when I can feel Your presence. Let today be one of those days. Let me walk today in Your beauty.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

What is the texture of life?

Texture is that finely woven fabric of life that demands we have a congenial environment. It asks that we be industrious toward success, and that we should have a way of life, a purpose. We should hear the music of life and taste the bitter and the sweet.


Texture requires us to research every experience and learn the lessons in it. It orders us to communicate with life and make discoveries about ourselves and progress toward a texture where the coarse has been refined.

Frequently we should examine the texture of life to identify the quality. How wide is my world? How high is my sky?

All of us should know our own makeup, our capabilities, our gifts with which we have been divinely endowed. And we should think long on these words from Edna St. Vincent Millay's Renascence:

"The world stands out on either side no wider than the heart is wide. Above the world is stretched the sky, no higher than the soul is high."

[bluidkiti]

July 16 - Daily Feast

If time were a dollar - how careful we would be with how we spent it. We wouldn't spend it on worry, for we know fretting is not profitable. Anything limited makes us conscious of what we do with it, whether it is time or money or the people in our lives. How we value what we have decides what we keep. The Cherokee doesn't want many things, but they know the wise are, I yv da, careful or mindful of what is important. Such caution teaches us to think before we talk, to slow our pace and find peace of mind. It eventually gives us more resources, and more time to enjoy them.

~ If we could have spared more, we would have given more.... ~

CANASSATEGO

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 16

"Grandfather says...you must not hurt anybody or do harm to anyone. You must not fight. Do right always. It will give you satisfaction in life."

--Wovoka, PAIUTE

The question one should ask themselves is: Do you want to be right or do you want to be happy? If you want to be right, this is a request from your ego. If you want to be happy then this is of the Great Spirit. The only meaning anything has is the meaning we give it. Maybe we should develop a philosophy of: Today is the last day of the rest of my life. If this were true, how easy it would be to let things go - how easy it would be to forgive.

Oh Great Spirit, let me live today as if it was my last. Let me express Your joy and be happy today. Let me see the joy and honor of living on the Red Road.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There are many fears in the minds of man, but none so subtle, yet so effectual, as fear of failure.

We are so afraid we've been unwise and wasted valuable time and it makes us wonder how many times we've failed those who depended upon us, and how many times we've failed ourselves.

Time seems too short to make up and overcome the things long past. It seems sometimes that opportunities are there and gone before we’ve had time to make use of them. We condemn ourselves so much for the lack of knowledge when we most needed it. But if decisions were made on after thought, they might not be as wise as those made quickly, without time to think.

We should no longer think about past failures, nor give undue thought to our chances for future ones, but only begin now to do the very best we can.

True failure comes only to those who stop trying, for no age, no time, no place can stop the person who decides to try one more time. As Frederick William Farrar, English author, has written, "There is only one real failure in life that is possible, and that is, not to be true to the best one knows."
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July 17 - Daily Feast

There is little wrong with the earth that it cannot clean up itself. It renews constantly, trying to keep pace with so much tampering going on. It has its hot spots, its upheavals, and the recycling of elements - but the Indian has known how to live with the changes. It is the world of people that needs to clean up its act. Some think the trouble began when the atom was split - but it was more apt to be when man split with the Great Holy Spirit. We learn from the earth not to build up too much pressure or we will blow it. The river has taught us we can't be too broadminded or we spread out in the shallows and dry up in the midday sun. When moral standards were lost in the shuffle, the world kicked over the lantern again.

~ Hear me, not for myself but for my people....that they may once more go back....and find the good road and the shielding tree. ~

BLACK ELK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 17

"My friends, how desperately do we need to be loved and to love."

--Chief Dan George, SKOKOMISH

Oh my great Creator: Help me this day to love myself. I can't give away anything that I don't have myself. If I am to love others, then I must love myself. If I am to forgive others, then I am to forgive myself. If I am to accept others as they are then I need to accept myself as I am. If I am to not judge others, then I need to lighten up on myself. Let me experience this power of love...

My Creator, today I will love myself so I can love my neighbor. I will look at each person today and see Your light within them. If I do this, I will hold my brothers and sisters without guilt.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

It is written that where there's a will there's a way. If a desire is sincere and the results are for the good of everyone, the first giant steps have already been taken. American clergyman Joel Hawes has been quoted, "You may be whatever you resolve to be. Determine to be something in the world, and you will be something - 'I cannot' never accomplishes anything; 'I will try' has wrought wonders."

A positive attitude can be one of the greatest joys to experience. To begin a day by willing everything good, and meeting any obstacle with the idea that it has no power, can make some of the most sudden and drastic changes in anyone's life.

To be something or someone is one of the strongest desires, but it does mean sacrifices of doubt and apprehension and feeling sorry for oneself. It means standing straighter when it is more comfortable to crawl. It means laughing instead of lamenting. It means thinking positively and speaking good words.

It is said that a great deal of talent is lost in this world for the want of a little courage. We often think of courage as the kind that wins wars and braves new fronts. But there is another plain, ordinary kind of courage that helps us face our everyday problems.

There is a surprising lack of this kind of courage, and it leads us to seek ways to dodge our responsibilities. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to face everything and everyone and take a firm stand for what we believe. It takes courage to admit we have weaknesses and needs that we must overcome. It is a daily fight to follow the right road when the wrong one looks so smooth. And it takes courage to believe, when obstacles face us.

God has given courage to each of us, for strength to overcome is available to all who are courageous in asking for help to be courageous.
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July 18 - Daily Feast

Time is the supreme equalizer. It puts us on the same level with people that never considered us their equal. The person in most revered and feared position can suddenly have his breath taken away by sudden descent. Time seems almost mischievous in the way it turns things around. We never really know what people think or what they believe until they have had some time. Our only drawback is how we think about ourselves and the need to talk about it. When our mouths are talking, our minds stop to listen. We may not like what time has done - but we can rely on its fairness. It has seen our actions, heard us talk, and knows our hearts. We can only hope there is enough time that we learn and change.

~ Like the wildwood birds which our fathers used to hold their breath to hear, they sing in concert....alike in forest and field.....alike before wigwam or castle....alike. ~

POKAGON

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 18

"Our fathers gave us many laws which they had learned from their fathers. These laws were good."

--Chief Joseph, NEZ PERCE

The Creator gives us many laws to live by. These are different than the laws of man. The laws of the Creator are designed for us to live in harmony and balance with ourselves and each other. These laws are about having freedom and happiness. Our Elders teach us these laws. Laws about how to treat each other, laws about how to treat and respect our Mother Earth, laws about the environment.

Oh Great Spirit, teach me the laws of the unseen world. Today I pray You open my eyes so I can better see the Red Road.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Sensibility is said to be neither good nor evil in itself, but in its application. Sometimes we just "out-sensible" ourselves. In the course of years we come to see the pattern of the truly sensible. What have we at this moment that really means anything? Does it give us happiness? Did in once seem most impractical? Was it worth fighting for?

The intellectual strives for knowledge and in his absorption leaves the world but hardly leaves a vacancy. The materialistic must have everything at the price of peace, and their possessions decay but never their chaotic souls. And the insecure forfeit the most minute comforts to save for that rainy day. Happiness would have been greater and far more lasting if the fund had been smaller and used as an opportunity fund.

The fine line of sensibility can be most elusive, but it seems to be more clearly seen when we relax and quit shoving to get there. If the place we desire is meant for us, it will come when we learn the way isn't always sharp and direct and by demand.
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July 19 - Daily Feast

Talk is easy, but listening is better. Mouths have a way of getting away from us - and then we say things we are not committed to - or don't necessarily believe. Others may seem sensitive - too sensitive. But we may be dull and careless. When the mouth starts to work, the minds stops to listen. Where did those words come from? They came from trouble on the horizon. True, some are easily offended - and on the other hand, what would it have cost to be quiet?

~ I am the maker of my own future. ~

SHOOTING STAR - SHAWNEE WAR CHIEF

"A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day - July 19

"We were taught to believe that the Great Spirit sees and hears everything, and that He never forgets, that hereafter He will give every man a spirit-home according to his deserts: If he has been a good man, he will have a good home; if he has been a bad man, he will have a bad home."

--Chief Joseph, NEZ PERCE

I cannot hide my true spirit and intent from the Creator. He created a system of justice. This system of justice says we will get back whatever we plant. If I plant good then good returns - if we plant bad, then we will suffer the consequences. Whatever we think about another person, the same things are thought about us. Whatever we send out is sent back.
Man cannot alter this system of justice. It doesn't matter what we say or do. What really matters is what we really, really did.

Oh Great Spirit, guide me today to do good, to have good thoughts. Let me remember the things I do are to honor Your way of life.

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"THINK on THESE THINGS"
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Before we can share with others, we must have something to share. And all of us do have something to give. Not material things, but we can share our peace and our love and our loyalty.

Before we can share with others, there must be others with whom to share. For if we are selfish and self-centered enough, we will never have to worry about sharing anything. We will be alone.

Before we can expect others to share with us, we must be capable of accepting. We must be worthy of others who desire to share with us; we must deserve their love.

Before the two of us can ever find anything in this world of mutual interest, we must have enough concern and enough love to feel a need within to produce something good enough to offer; not only to others, but to ourselves. If we have abused our own nature with thoughts of bitterness, harboring painful experiences, self-condemnation for little progress regardless of circumstances, then we have nothing to offer.

The French philosopher Achille Poincelot once said, "Some people think that all the world should share their misfortunes, though they do not share in the sufferings of anyone else."
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July 20 - Daily Feast

The hours were longer when we were children. Summer was a time of sunlight, bare feet, and shade trees. We fished in a creek with a crooked pole and feasted on potatoes and onions cooked over an open fire, which the Cherokee calls, a tsi la. It was a good time, and we expected everything to be good. There was time to daydream - or hide out in a secret place and be quiet. Now we have less time and more responsibility - or have we let fear steal our joy? If we let it, it will tell us we can't remember details, we hear less, our vision is blurred and we are afraid of what we see and read. Fear is a contaminate that dulls our senses. But it can't affect us when we turn around and renew and restore our minds. The creek and the sunperch are still there to help.

~ We sang songs that carried in their melodies all the sounds of nature - the running of waters, the sighing of winds, and the calls of the animals. Teach your children..... ~

AMERICAN INDIAN

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 20

"When you begin a great work you can't expect to finish it all at once; therefore, do you and your brothers press on and let nothing discourage you until you have entirely finished what you have begun."

--Teedyuschung, DELAWARE

All things have their seasons. All thoughts are real. We must think to cause action and each action creates results. Big visions require many thoughts. It takes a series of thoughts to create a series of actions. A series of actions creates a series of results. These results are what makes vision become real. If we are here to serve the Creator then we can expect to be accomplishing big visions. How do we do this: One step at a time.

Let me focus on what needs to be done today. Give me clear thoughts to accomplish the results that you, my Creator, would have me accomplish.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Life equips us in many ways for very special purposes. Some never catch the high vision as to why they may be the object of ridicule or the witness of cruelty - while others bear the brunt of many heartaches and still are capable of knowing compassion for those who cause it.

Jesus was such a man - He withstood more than we are able to comprehend, but He asked that His tormentors be forgiven for they knew not what they were doing.

It is our individual decision whether we choose to be one of the throng of agitators who see only to confirm what everyone else is doing, or we can catch the vision of greater things and walk firmly in paths we believe are right.

To fall into the role of just another face in the crowd is an ill-chosen path, but to lead others to follow is the essence of parasitism - the need to have others be just as nameless and even more dependent.
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July 21 - Daily Feast

When we are appalled at the other person's ignorance, it is hard to believe that our own is just as profound. We stand in awe that they do not see what is so apparent, but in all our self-confidence we are as much in the dark as the next person. We are just ignorant on different subjects. What one person studies intensely may mean nothing to someone involved in another idea. But it takes all of us to make up the families of the world. We each have a purpose - and none of us quite like another. Time, circumstances, and beliefs have separated some as far as the East is from the West. It is not that we were created to be, nu da le hna v, different or separated - but that we chose. We chose. We had the freedom to choose, and therein lies the difference.

~ You think I am a fool, but you are a greater fool than I am. ~

SITTING BULL

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 21

"You must speak straight so that your words may go as sunlight into our hearts."

--Cochise "Like Ironweed" CHIRICAHUA APACHE

Come into my heart this morning. Allow me this day to live in the now. Help me to see all the beauty You have created in all things. Let me know myself. Today, as I make mistakes, let me see them as lessons. Guide me. When I see others make mistakes, let me honor them for where they are. Let me realize that they are Your children and only You, my Grandfather, knows what is really going on. When my lips move, let the words be Your words.

Allow me to have the courage to speak Your truth.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

"There is no royal road to anything - One thing at a time, and all things in succession. That which grows slowly endures."
- J.G. Holland.

The first lessons we have to learn is that instant success in anything is a fantasy. The overnight success stories we hear about are really products of much preparation.

If we could view a life laid out before us, we could see it is much like a hand sewn quilt, built of many tiny pieces, colors of every hue, fabrics of every kind, and patiently joined together by tiny stitches to give many years of service. Maybe we missed a stitch someplace and it caused a weak place, but the strength of many other stitches will carry it through. Finally a complete quilt has been created and it is strong and lasting.

When we truly want to move ahead we build our lives a quilt block at a time, patiently adding to another part of life until we have the strength and courage to endure.

Take on step at a time, but take it positively forward! The patience will be rewarded. To have a dream come true we must first have a dream. Don't look back. The past is gone, but the future is still in our hands.
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July 22 - Daily Feast

We are forever in transition - continually moving, changing direction, doing differently than we imagined. If we were to stop and analyze the past and what lies ahead, we would know that if anything is required of us, it is to be flexible. Not flexible in seeing everything one color, one ideal, one belief - but bending without breaking, able to see the chaos and not fall down under it. It is our duty, our, a da du da lv ne di, obligation, to move and bend without creating a rift in our own spirit. A house cut in two cannot stand. However far we move in any direction, we must get it back together, we must bond with the law of our own spiritual being - which is to love others as we love ourselves. But we have to first love ourselves.

~ I had a dream.....that the maker of all was Wakan Tanka.....to honor Him, I must honor his works. ~

BRAVE BUFFALO

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 22

In this universe, all activities, events, and entities are related. Indians believe that everything in the universe has value and instructs us in some aspect of life. Everything is alive and is making choices that determine the future, so the world is constantly creating itself - With the wisdom and time for reflection that old age provides, we may discover unsuspected relationships.
---Vine Deloria, Jr, STANDING ROCK SIOUX
We are all connected. This is what the Elders have told us for a long time. If we are connected to all things, then whenever we harm anything, it causes harm to ourselves. If we destroy the air, then we will be affected by what we breathe in. If we poison the earth, we poison ourselves. We must respect our Mother Earth and She will respect us in return. We must open our eyes and obey the spiritual laws that govern the earth and ourselves.

Grandfather, today allow me to honor and respect the things You have made. Let me see the beauty of all things.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

It has been written that an optimist is someone who can fall ten stories and call out to each floor in passing that everything is okay so far. It has also been said that an optimist is someone who refuses to see things as they really are.

It is far better, the pessimist believes, to look for the worst so as to be pleasant surprised when things are better than expected. Then, if they are as bad as imagined, the disappointment won't be quite so great.

But this is somewhat like backing into a room so to avoid seeing the beauty of it, only to find it is an elevator shaft.

There can be no advancement where we expect the worst and believe that going outside the limits of ordinary thinking is only day dreaming. Thinkers, capable of forecasting and predicting answers before the questions arise, are in great demand.

Only the optimist can fill the bill. Only the optimist can dare to believe there are things waiting for discovery and further development.

An optimist questions life the same as a pessimist - the difference is that the optimist knows there is an answer and that the answer can be found. Optimists are aware that the cherries of life have pits, but they are prepared to remove them. Their minds do not dwell on the pits, but on the sweetness of the cherries.

There will be situations that will make us afraid. Fear is a common sense emotion that keeps us from walking in front of a moving car or from jumping off the deep end of anything. And there are periods of natural anxiety when we want too much to perform well, and the butterflies begin to flutter.

Then, there is another kind of fear that is unnatural. It has the ability to possess us and rule over our very lives. It is that "what if" fear that builds nests in our minds and hatches dire images that scare the daylights out of us. It can keep the lights off, the doors bolted, and the windows of our souls blocked against the most beautiful things in life.

It is no disgrace in this day to ask for professional help in understanding our fears. Only the very foolish would consider this help a crutch. It is a brave person who admits the need for help and has the courage to go and find it.

They are the pioneers in recognizing our existence as threefold: spirit, mind, and body.
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July 23 - Daily Feast

Much is lost through misunderstanding - and often because we want someone to know we are angry. We choose to think they intentionally displease us, though we know nothing of their circumstance of what their thoughts really were. It must be an ego-building thing to believe that someone is trying to offend us. Somehow it gives an importance where there had been none. We have the uncanny knack of building a sad story with such realism that it makes us think we are more important than we are. It is not enjoyable to be the kind of person who wants to misunderstand - not only other people, but also life itself. It is painful to be unhappy and disagreeable, but some cannot resist the temptation.

~ It has come to me through the bushes that you are not united (agreeable); come to me when you are united. ~

BIG BEAR

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 23

"...the greatest strength is in gentleness."

--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA

Our Elders have taught us many lessons about becoming a Warrior and how to think and act like one. We have been told about the power of gentleness. We have been told about the power of the stillness. Physical power is about effort. Mental power is the opposite. It's about being effortless or less any effort. Gentleness is one of the greatest attributes of the Warrior and one of the greatest mental powers. It takes a lot of love to be gentle. Gentleness is not an ego word. Gentleness is the weapon of the Great Spirit.

My Creator, today I will be gentle with myself and with others. I will listen to the whisper of my heart and learn the power of being gentle.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

How weak-willed we are at times when we've made a decision and know we must stand on it. It is so much easier to give in to the easy way of doing things.

We are almost a "house divided against itself," and the strain of staying with a decision seems almost our enemy. But we never gain much stature by giving in to ourselves against our better judgment. And we never get anywhere by scattering our efforts.

Making a decision is difficult enough without losing one's determination in following through. Laying down the responsibility is someone like warning children to behave themselves and then permitting them to continue to misbehave.

How long has it been since you've proven to yourself that you mean business in carrying out a plan?

A man of wisdom has written that we have firmness of character when we have the ability to say "no" to the wrong as well as to those things which are good but stand in the way of our progress.

Always remember that to want something that is good and right is the blessing. God gave us that ability to desire or we would never have thought of using it. But God also gave us the ability to cry, to feel pain, and the freedom to choose whether we go on or quit.

In our lives we face many decisions. Some are hard to make because we know we must turn our backs upon something that seems harmless at the moment simply because we know it would not be good in the long run.

But there are also decisions that are more challenge than decision. They are the good things that are placed before us, and our will to follow through is tested. When defeat seems sure, then is the time to begin to fight. When others are quitting, then is the time to throw more strength into the battle. Anything worth having is worth working for, and is of lasting value.

Very often these sieges must be made silently and without seeming effort. And yet we know we cannot get something for nothing. We have a service to perform. We can make it a drudge, or we can make it a delightful experience, according to our faith. Be persistent. Unless you do not particularly want your dreams to come true, you can't afford to know the meaning of apathy. You must continually be on the scene with the muscles of your mind toned.

It isn't difficult to have a dream. But it often ceases at that point. The willingness to follow through, the determination to look impossibilities in the eye and trudge on must be practiced before that dream can amount to anything.

All along life's road there are those who would discourage you, every often in ignorance, not realizing the effect of their words upon you. It is then that you must muster the strength to believe that theirs is only an opinion while your plans are based on the principle that all good things come to those who hustle while they wait.

It is too bad that they cannot see your invisible companions, persistence, faith, and a worthwhile plan. Smile and walk on.

There is a Divine Being with whom we can place all our obstacles, all our doubts and fears - and then our work begins. We give lovingly of friendship, of any kind of help that we are capable of giving, of positive words and thoughts and understanding.

Give without thought of return. For while we are giving with loving selflessness, life shapes for us our heart's desire.

[bluidkiti]

July 24 - Daily Feast

How like moths we are when we are caught in the dark, beating our wings against anything that stands between us and the light. Though we strain against barriers, we are the, a tsv s dv, we are the light or candle that lights the place where we are. Others who follow watch for a signal, a light in the dark, to know they are not alone. We need to take some time to be quiet, to recharge and it may mean waiting a while in the dark. But whatever our need, if we wait, the light will come. And it will illuminate us instead of blinding us with its glare.

~ The path to glory is rough and many gloomy hours obscure it. May the Great Spirit shed light on yours. ~

BLACK HAWK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 24

"Life is like a path...and we all have to walk the path... As we walk...we'll find experiences like little scraps of paper in front of us along the way. We must pick up those pieces of scrap paper and put them in our pocket... Then, one day, we will have enough scraps of papers to put together and see what they say... Read the information and take it to heart."

--Uncle Frank Davis (quoting his mother), PAWNEE

The Creator designed us to learn by trial and error. The path of life we walk is very wide. Everything on the path is sacred - what we do right is sacred - but our mistakes are also sacred. This is the Creator's way of teaching spiritual people. To criticize ourselves when we make mistakes is not part of the spiritual path. To criticize mistakes is not the Indian way. To learn from our mistakes is the Indian way. The definition of a spiritual person is someone who makes 30-50 mistakes each day and talks to the Creator after each one to see what to do next time. This is the way of the Warrior.

Today let me see my mistakes as a positive process. Let me learn the aha's of life... Awaken my awareness so I can see the great learning that You, my Creator, have designed for my life.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

At night sometimes the world seems so topsy-turvy and you're so weary of doing things the same old way. Then nothing seems to please....You try desperately for something new and different, something that doesn't seem so much like you. Why? Tonight you are different.

One cannot expect the world to be top side up all the time. Such perfection does not come so easily to human nature. And always there is a search for something new and different. A change of pace....that thought that I don't want to be me today, to think my thoughts and do my daily chores. I want to make a complete change now, to know a whole new way of life. And it is good to leave behind the many daily situations that sometimes stand too closely to be seen clearly, but to be wise enough to know which things should be left behind.

There have been clean sweeps that have left behind the dearest things....and have taken along the same dreary, dark unhappy things of the mind that should have been left behind.

A line from the prayer of serenity is "The wisdom to know the difference...." And wisdom, says Samuel Taylor Coleridge, is common sense in an uncommon degree. If one has the wisdom to wait a bit, wait until morning - or several mornings - that uncommon degree of common sense will give us the wisdom to know the difference.
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July 25 - Daily Feast

The haying season is in full swing and trucks loaded with bales of green-gold leave the meadows stirred into action. Killdeer circle overhead, and quail call for a covey scattered by the noise of machines. To all appearances, this is the quiet season - but appearances are deceiving. The end is never the end but another beginning. The grasses drying in the sun have dropped seeds that will sprout again. Tall graceful sunflowers shade the wild petunias that wait for another rain. We finish one thing and begin another - always with a fresh eye for how we can do better. It reminds us that what we want to reap, we must first plant and cultivate and water with love.

~ The Great Spirit has smiled upon us and made us glad. ~

KEOKUK, 1848

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 25

"People need to wake up. They can't hear God's voice if they're asleep."

--Vernon Cooper, LUMBEE

Black Elk, a Sioux, talks about the hoop of many hoops. He says that above the people is a hoop, a conscience, the total belief of the people. If the hoop is sick, meaning dysfunctional, co-dependent, a lot of alcoholism, family abuse, violence, racism and sexual abuse, the people can get used to this and think this is normal. In other words, the people are asleep. If we have left the spiritual way of life, the people are asleep. If we are giving our power to another entity, the people are asleep. In most tribes, there are Coyote Clans. The job of the Coyote Clan people is to wake the people up. They need to become a nuisance and irritate the people. We must return to the spiritual walk.

Oh Great Spirit, keep me awake today. Let me hear the voices of our ancestors...let me hear the voices of the Grandfathers. Because everybody is doing it doesn't make things right. Let me hear the truth today and become a coyote for the people. Give me the courage to be willing to be different. Let me walk straight on the Red Road.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We often wonder why we must come in contact with some phases of life that seem so unrelated to how we think and plan. It seems we should be able to contend with things that really have little kinship to what we're trying to do.

But no matter how we question and analyze, situations and events continue to present themselves for solving. It takes a great deal of wisdom to know the difference between that which we must do and that which we must refuse serious consideration. This very thin line is the deciding factor in the victory or defeat of a plan.

Like a well-written story, sometimes the smallest incident hidden among our experiences can play a very big part at some later time. It is difficult to know just which parts of the puzzle will fall into place to complete a picture we seek.

We must take one step at a time, being sensibly aware of the thoughts we store in our minds. For "as a man thinketh in his heart, so he is." As long as we dwell on all the unnecessary activities we will never have time for the important things. If we seek the wisdom of the one Creative Mind we have much less chance of being led astray by the glitter of unimportant things.
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July 26 - Daily Feast

If we squint our eyes a little when we look in the mirror, the result isn't so bad. But when we pass a mirror and catch a reflection unexpectedly, it reveals more than we wanted to see. In a brief moment, we caught ourselves unaware. There was no time to narrow the eyes - and there we were without a disguise. It was a stranger. No smiles - just grim. Why is it we think we are smiling when we are not? The Cherokee often has a stoic expression, a du tiv to di, a mask that protects his sensitive nature from the world around him. Others are the same way. It helps to have a sense of humor when we are caught off-guard.

~ Old Lakota knew that man's heart away from nature becomes hard. ~

STANDING BEAR

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 26

"These are our times and our responsibilities. Every human being has a sacred duty to protect the welfare of our Mother Earth, from whom all life comes. In order to do this, we must recognize the enemy - the one within us. We must begin with ourselves..."

--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA

The outside is merely a reflection of our insides. My mind is designed to tell me that I'm not crazy for thinking what I am thinking. Even if I have angry thought, my mind is giving me excuses and reasons why it is OK to think what I'm thinking. I need to be knowledgeable about the laws of harmony and balance. I cannot twist the laws to serve me but I can adjust my life to serve the laws. This is the law - I am here to serve the earth. The earth is not here for me to misuse and abuse.

Oh Great Spirit, allow me the insight and knowledge of how to live in harmony and balance with my surroundings. Grant me change from within.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

All of us have at sometime questioned our normalcy as human beings. We wonder why we did this or that, why we reacted to something so violently, or why we failed to react at all. An American author, Katherine Fullerton Gerould, has written, "The only glory most of us have to hope for is the glory of being normal." And for all our questionable actions sometimes normal people must be those who have felt not only the high points, but the low points of their emotions.

It is not the fact that people run the gamut of their emotions that make them normal, but that they have had the ability to right themselves before they could impose upon the rights of others.

The persons who never lose their tempers, nor shed tears, nor refuse to respond to other people, but stay day after day in light, shallow experience, have never known what it is to come into the center of the calm so richly appreciated.

All of us have made mistakes in behavior, some in ignorance, but more in bad taste. Perfection belongs to a higher Source. It is ours to strive for; and our mistakes are to use in the growing-up process.
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July 27 - Daily Feast

Perfectly intelligent people lose what they want most by demanding something that is still in the courting stage. There is a time to be bold, or in ga na ye s gv na, says the Cherokee, but it takes wisdom to know when it is. If something is worth having, it is worth waiting for, worth working toward. But fear of losing something before we have had a chance to make it our own can stir us to take risks that are often unwise. Insecurity makes us react in plain-speaking ways that cause us to lose the very thing we want to keep. Action is a necessary part of living, but persuasion is an art and seldom appears demanding.

~ The Great Spirit will not punish us for what we do not know. ~

RED JACKET

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 27

"Let us put our minds together as one."

--Irving Powless, Sr., ONONDAGA

If we sat in a circle and put an object in the center of the circle and we all described what we saw, everyone would see different points of views from each other. Some would even see opposites because they would be sitting on opposite sides of the circle. In other words, you don't have to see what I see for you to be right. In fact, everyone in the circle is right based on their own point of view. If we are willing to listen to everyone's point of view, then we can get a more accurate description of the object in the center. This is one way to put our minds together. When we get the clarity from each other, we should give thanks and be grateful to each other.

Grandfathers from the four directions, guide me today with Your wisdom from the East, from the South, from the West and from the North.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

There comes a time when we have to turn a firm and deaf ear to those people who have no other intention than to disturb our peace of mind.
There comes a time when we have to turn ourselves about in our very tracks and ignore the bitter complaining voice of experience.

There comes a time when we have to get angry with ourselves for allowing bad to become worse when there is Someone bigger than we are who can handle everything.

There comes a time when we have to make a decision and to be so firm that it leaves no doubt in our minds that we know what we must do - and then do it.

There comes a time when we have to hear music and feel peace, or we have no foundation for living.

There comes a time when we must learn to appreciate and be thankful or lose all the matters to us.

There comes a time when we recognize the many faces of God as true blessings and give thanks.
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July 28 - Daily Feast

Other people may tell us they know what is best for us. And maybe they do at times. But it is more important that we have time to know for ourselves what we are to do. The strength of other people tends to wane after a while, so we need strength of our own to sustain us when no one else is around. Few stay prepared for any event. But we know to put our, go hi yu di, our faith, where it helps us. When we get to those places of not knowing what to do, we shouldn't do anything - not until we have had time to stand still - and see.

~ The earth and myself are of one mind. ~

CHIEF JOSEPH

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 28

"A good heart and a good mind - those are what you need to be a chief."

--Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA

The combination of heart and mind is very powerful. The Medicine Wheel teaches that two worlds exist - the seen and the unseen. The seen world is the physical and the unseen is the spiritual world. Both of the worlds are necessary to discover true reality. The seen world is easiest seen by the male side. The unseen is easiest seen by the female side. The heart is the unseen and the mind is the seen. Blessed is the leader or person who has developed the heart and the mind. Truly, the person is of tremendous value to the Creator and the people.

My Great Spirit, help me this day to develop both my female side and my male side. Let me know all the feelings of each, let me develop and grow my intuition and my mind. Let my development only serve You.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Don't try to tell me what your enemy looks like. My enemy is lazy, a procrastinator that spends most of the time talking me out of success. My enemy says friends are fickle and true ones are most infrequent. Faith, I'm told, is not enough to carry me over barriers. And I'm not loved so much as others, but that's all right because what good is love?

The day is dreary, my enemy says, and the flowers at my feet will soon wilt. I shouldn't smile at anyone today because they won't smile back at me.

This will be one of those days when everything goes wrong, my enemy tells me, and if I do anything right someone else will get the credit. I should watch the clock and realize how long the day is and how weary I am.

Don't tell me about your enemy, I have one of my own. But the fact that I know my enemy makes all the difference. My enemy lies to me and wants to destroy me. So I'll refuse to give my enemy power this day by giving a special measure of love to my friends and knowing that everything is exactly opposite of what my enemy tells me.
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July 29 - Daily Feast

First impressions are reflections of what we are ready to think. How easy to believe we already know another person when we know ourselves so little. None of us reveal who we really are until we feel safe, and then it is a long time before we trust anyone enough to call them friend. We need to be told that we are liked - not once but many times, at li a le-yu go di-wo di s ge s di, or "twice or more say it," is the way a Cherokee puts it. Even the most innocent of us tends to judge. But to judge before we know someone may show a lack of sincerity in our own makeup - or maybe even a little fear that we may see in others what we are afraid of finding in ourselves.

~ We concealed nothing. We came not secretly nor in the night. We came in open day. ~

MANGAS COLORADAS

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 29

"When we want to talk to Him we burn tobacco and it takes our prayers all the way up to the Sky World."

--Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA

Our herbs and our medicines are all here for the purpose of serving. Offering tobacco as a gift to the Creator is proper use of our medicine. In this way, we are able to communicate from the physical world to the spiritual world. Sometimes we have a hard time coming up with the right words when we pray especially if we are really mixed up. The tobacco and the sage will take the intent to the spirit world. The meaning behind the words are more important then words. The Creator always knows our intent. The tobacco helps us get to the Sky World.

Today, my Creator, I offer You this tobacco. I want to thank You for being in my life. I want to tell You how much I appreciate the honor of being here to serve You. Tell me this morning what I can do for You. You are the reason I live.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Life offers us a great deal of stormy weather. In the beginning we are quite strong about it, taking things in stride and moving confidently along. The things that test us seem to give us extra strength we didn't know belonged to us. And quite suddenly there is an awareness that enough is enough. But life doesn't know it, and the storm goes on and so do we.

Even though we are quite willing to give as long as we have to give, there seems to be no more stretch to the strength, either spiritually, mentally, or physically. We question how much longer, how many more times we shall be able to reach into our bag of reserves to borrow another ounce of strength.

Of course, the first thing we must do is take our minds off the thing as we do not want it, and begin to think steadily about how we do want it. It allows our creative minds to find the answers. It may mean we will have to wait awhile in the dark, but when the light comes, it is radiant.

There are many things that stay our feet along the way, but faith that this too will pass can make that way serene.
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July 30 - Daily Feast

We talk about choosing our friends, but true friends are self-selected. It is they who decide to respond and by what method. And finally they make themselves our friends by being loyal and having a genuine concern for our well being - or allowing privacy when it is needed. Acquaintances wait and judge. And sometimes it is better to be acquaintances when we cannot find a common ground on which to be friends. There is honesty in admitting we cannot be dear friends to all people. But there is always something special. A friend is, a unali - without question or fear or concern for equal time. This is why friends are dear to us. They have chosen to be so.

~ The white man does not obey the Great Spirit; that is why the Indian never could agree with him. ~

FLYING HAWK

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 30

"You want to know who's a real medicine man? He's the one who doesn't say 'I'm a medicine man.' He doesn't ask you to come to him. You've got to go and ask him. And you'll find he's always there among his own people."

--Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA

The Medicine Man is a role model of what it is like to live in harmony and balance with the Creator. It takes a long time, a lot of sacrifice and discipline to become a Medicine Man. A Medicine Man is humble and never crass about anything. He knows he lives to do the will of the Great Spirit. He knows he is to help the people. He lives very low key - the more low key he lives, the more people seek him out - and such is life. The more one serves the people and is quiet about it, the more he is sought out. The quieter he is, the more powerful is his medicine.

Great Spirit, allow me this day to be humble. Allow me this day not to seek attention, but to live quietly and keep my focus and attention on serving You.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

We pray for a change, we hope for a change, but we wait impatiently. Is God not hearing us? We asked. Where is the answers?

If our prayers were suddenly answered, would we be ready? Or would we look behind us for the familiar things, the people, the habits, the routine?

If we were instantly healed, instantly prospered, instantly sought after and loved, then what would we do? Attention, compassion and self-pity are sometimes more important than having everything changed for the better. The fear of being without something to keep us working with the same burden, dealing with familiar pain, can stop us from knowing what it is to be free and well.

If we can envision life without a particular problem we can turn our minds to real change and have it happen. If we can see change, receive it, and know the joy, then gratitude and thanksgiving sets it in place.
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July 31 - Daily Feast

Rejoice when the going gets rough, when everything turns mean. It is time to shout and clap our hands - if only in the privacy of our own minds. To rejoice in difficulty doesn't seem reasonable, because the natural way would be to give up and cry. But we rebound from trouble faster when we turn off the tears and turn on the joy. It comes from the inside and goes to the outside - and that is how the, u hi so di, the spell or gloom, is broken. If we have never done it before, we need to learn how to think joy and act joyful, because the heart is listening - and it is out of the heart that all issues are settled.

~ I beg you now to believe that, all miserable as we seem in your eye, we consider ourselves nevertheless much happier than you. ~

GASPESIAN CHIEF, 1676

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Elder's Meditation of the Day July 31

Look behind you. See your sons and your daughters. They are your future. Look farther and see your sons' and your daughters' children and their children's children even unto the Seventh Generation. That's the way we were taught. "Think about it: you yourself are a Seventh Generation."

--Leon Shenandoah, ONONDAGA

The Creator designed us with a free will. That means we function from choices and consequences. It is important that we practice thinking about consequences before we make decisions about choices. Every choice I make is like setting up dominos one after the other that produce consequences. Not just for me but also for my children and for the children that are unborn. My choices and decision today will have consequences for seven generations. For example, if I work on my own spiritual development and I walk the Red Road, the odds are that my children will. They will marry and their children will follow the Red Road and so will my grandchildren even up to the seventh generation. This will happen because of the choices and decisions that I make today.

Great Spirit, grant that the choices and decisions that I make today will honor Your laws and values. May I live in peace today that will ripple into the seventh generation.

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'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

In this day of emphasis on right connections with the right people, into the right places, at the right time, we must have truly extraordinary qualities to become successes on our own.

They who have worked hard and achieved success often carry a double burden by wrongful accusations of being privileged characters. Perhaps some to whom doors automatically open because of right connections seem to be privileged characters, but they, like dictators, have a limited existence.

Having connections may help us on the ladder of life, but it will never keep those rungs steady beneath our feet. Only our own greatness keeps us tall, sun-crowned. We must have something to give, something to offer before we can expect to be truly privileged characters. And then, we will have earned the right to our privileges. We are somewhat like God, blamed for much we don't do and seldom given credit for the good we have done.

Whatever the future, the world still needs citizens like those J.G. Holland wrote about nearly a century ago: "God give us men. The times demand strong minds, great hearts, true faith, and willing hands....Tall men, sun-crowned, who live above the fog, in public duty and in private thinking!"