January 31 - Daily Feast

January 31 - Daily Feast Something to look forward to gives us reason to get up in the morning. It may be no more than watching the sun lay long shadows across the land, or enjoying the aroma of coffee and the sound of bacon sizzling in the skillet. Life's little pleasures give us greater compassion and the ability to comfort and to be comforted. It is a lonely road that does not have time for the daily joys that are so common but so enlivening. ~ Certain small things and observances sometimes have connection with large and more profound ideas. ~ PLENTY COUPS - CROW NATION "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 31 "In sharing, in loving all and everything, one people naturally found a due portion of the thing they sought, while in fearing, the other found need of conquest." --Chief Luther Standing Bear, SIOUX There are two systems of thought that are available for us to choose from. One is the love-thought system and the other is the fear-thought system. If we choose love, we will see the laws, principles and values of the Creator. If we choose fear, the results will be so paralyzing that it will cause us to take over and not rely on the Great Spirit. The fear-thought system will automatically cause attack, conflict, need to control over others. The love-thought system seeks peace of mind, unity and causes us to be love seekers. Great Spirit, today let me see only love. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler We smile in remembrance when the light touch of something unseen touches our spirits. Forgotten for a brief time are the familiar fragrances, the special scent of a gardenia a warm sunbeam or strain of music. How rich we are in memories. What a wealth of excellence we can take from the less important -- that may one day be just as important. We can allow those old dead unhappy thoughts to dissolve, leaving only the cream, only the secret hidden things in our hearts to smile about. Certainly, there were some unhappy and hard times, but how do they compare with the good ones? *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 30 - Daily Feast

January 30 - Daily Feast Nothing is sweeter than to have a friend to rely on. We need each other to ease worry, to give and get reassurance. But when that reliance focuses on nothing but problems, then there needs to be a change toward solutions. Problems can make some people feel significant. The struggle can be too important and having someone hear all about it can detract from friendship. We can never do another person a greater service than to stop being a prop for unstable emotions. Love and care and support - but never be a prop. It steals the floor where a person needs to stand. ~ The Cherokee people do not desire to be involved in war, but self-preservation fully justifies them to the course they have adopted and they will be recreant to themselves if they do not sustain it. ~ JOHN ROSS - CHIEF, CHEROKEE NATION "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 30 "Bright days and dark days were both expressions of the Great Mystery, and the Indian reveled in being close to the Great Holiness." --Chief Luther Standing Bear, SIOUX The Great Spirit created a world of harmony, a world of justice, a world that is interconnected, a balanced world that has positive and negative, this way and that way, up and down, man and woman, boy and girl, honest and dishonest, responsible and irresponsible, day and night. In other words, He created a polarity system. Both sides are to be respected. Both sides or anything are sacred. We need to do good and we need to learn from our mistakes. We need to honor what takes place in the daytime and we need to honor what takes place in the nighttime. WE learn that we need to learn and we see what we are supposed to see by staying close to the Great Spirit. We need to be talking to Him all the time, saying "Grandfather, what is it you want me to learn?" Great Spirit, let me learn today that all things are sacred. Help me stay close to You, my Creator. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler The nicest thing about the end of the day is the giving. We give in to needed rest, forgive ourselves and others that everything on the list was not accomplished in one short day. We give love to those around us and give peace to those who need someone to stand with them. We do not always do what we wanted to do -- showing a good side that others may not know we have. A cry that life is too hard should fall to the ground. Of course, it is too hard, but if we are not tried and tempered, how do we handle the changes when they come? We need to give ourselves support and stop dwelling on what seems so wrong. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 29 - Daily Feast

January 29 - Daily Feast An individual responsibility is to set the course of the day, a year - a lifetime. Words and thoughts bring us to some crucial point of strength or else utter weakness. Decide now to forgive. It does not mean reconciling with an enemy - but it does mean freedom. Decide to love - others, but yourself in particular. Wait until the flames settle before you take on the problem. Even tempers and orderly minds can handle heat better. Walk softly, for others are on the same road and they look for a gentle word, less criticism and full observance of the Spirit. ~ We, the people composing the Eastern and Western Cherokee Nation.... By virtue of our original and inalienable rights, do hereby solemnly and mutually agree.... To one body politic.... The Cherokee Nation. ~ SEQUOYAH - CHEROKEE LEADER "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 29 "We grieve more because we have been disconnected from our earth, our first Mother, our spiritual Mother." --Larry P. Aitken, CHIPPEWA Where does all life come from? The Earth. Where does everything return to? The Earth. Where do values come them? The Earth. Many people are lost because they don't know the importance of connection to the Earth. They connect to money, to relationships, to success, to goals. When we are disconnected from the Earth, we have feelings of being sad or lost. When we are connected to the Earth, we feel warm and secure. Great Spirit, help me to stay connected to the Mother Earth. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Someone said if we do what we have always done, we will get what we have always gotten. For most of us that means we work and work and work, a somewhat rigid path from which there seems little reprieve. Weariness has its ways of making us feel we are set on a track that goes around and around like a toy train. But even a toy is expected to change somewhere. What do we expect? Do we expect something good to happen or something less than good? Now, is the time to change our expectations. Sometimes it means we have to reach out and take hold of a dream and as Jacob said to the angel that wrestled with him, "I will not let you go until you bless me." *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 28 - Daily Feast

January 28 - Daily Feast Losing is not always what it seems, and how we react makes the difference. We may be disappointed, feel let down - and maybe a little betrayed - but we haven't lost until we quit. What is done is done. We have cried and we have hurt - but this will show the stuff we are made of and how nothing can keep us down. How we think, what we say, and where we put our faith will set our new course and keep us on it. ~ Our new home will be beyond a great river on the way to the setting sun... Our wigwams on another land where we hope the Great Spirit will smile. ~ KEOKUK - SAUK LEADER, 1832 "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 28 "We call it the `sacred' red road because it is the road that will lead us to living the good life, an honest and healthy life." --Larry P. Aitken, CHIPPEWA The Red Road is the path we walk on when we want a direct relationship with the Great Spirit. This requires sacrifice. This requires us to have our beliefs tested. To walk this path is really an honor. The returns for doing so are exciting, not only for ourselves but for the effect that will be felt for three generations. This means your children will see the benefits as well as your grandchildren. Do I want to walk this sacred road? Great Spirit, guide myself and my family on the Red Road. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Three things we can do without - jealousy, pride, and a sense of competition that makes us cruel. French writer, La Rochefoucauld, said that jealousy is more a self-love than a love for another. But more than that, it is a weak ego afraid that someone else is getting ahead. We have no business being where we feel we cannot hold our own. Pride, it is said, goes before a fall. Pride is so transparent and without scruples. We can say we are proud of someone or something without meaning anything wrong -- but pride that steals our common sense steals our peace. Competition is almost as bad because it contains in subtle ways jealousy and pride. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 27 - Daily Feast

January 27 - Daily Feast Trust is a fragile gem that most people never intend to lose. Too often a promise is easily made and easily broken. It reveals a deeper nature that may never have been trustworthy. A Cherokee elder once commented, "Indian may forgive - but Indian never forget." No grudge, but wisdom that a trust shattered one time may well be broken again. Trust is a stand - a ga to gv - says the Cherokee. If the Spirit is trustworthy, then we should be trustworthy. He is the Gem, the Power of the stand we take. We personally have no power - but the Gem has it all. ~ The Indian world was devoted to living; the European world to getting. ~ HISTORIAN, 1764 "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 27 "There is no death. Only a change of worlds." --Chief Seattle, SUQWAMISH AND DUWAMISH The Elders tell us of the other dimension, the Spirit World. Our spirit in our bodies does not die, it only looks that way to our eyes and our brains. Some of our ceremonies allow us to see into the Spirit World. Death is only part of a process of life. It shows the transition into the Spirit World. The Elders tell us this is a joyful life journey. My Creator, help me to understand both the seen world and the unseen world. Let me not be afraid of the world You live in. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* 'THINK on THESE THINGS' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler There is much to be said of small things. Even in this age of emphasis on bigness we must realize that bigness is only a mass of small things. An idea is a small thing. With it we can change our world. We can take a tiny seed and give it careful attention and reap a hundred fold. We can take a little idea and give it our attention and build it into a fortune. A smile is a small thing. Smile once at someone in passing and three will return the smile. Smiling is so contagious that it moves from person to person until a hundred smiling faces are the result of one. A thought is a small thing. One thought inspires another and another until a mental image is formed. From that mental image blueprints are drawn. And from those blueprints worlds are built. Hope is a small thing. One tiny glimmer of hope can lift us out of the deepest pit of darkness. One whisper of encouragement will help us to know that as long as there's hope there is an excellent chance. A wish is a small thing. Like a little prayer, it climbs the steps to an idea that makes a smile and gives us hope to make our wishes come true. For in small things are all great things formed, in little beginnings the possibilities of great events. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 26 - Daily Feast

January 26 - Daily Feast Peace at any price is not peace, it is hiding until the danger passes. Sooner or later those who have no honor will find another way to break the treaty. Tread water when necessary, avoid confrontation with those who love turmoil, and never be so self-sufficient as not to be able to say an honest prayer when it is needed. Cultivate peace, to hi dv, but do not give in to darkness. ~ Take away your guns and swords, the cause of all our jealousy, or you may die in the same manner. ~ WHAHUNSONACOCK - POWHATAN, 1600 "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 26 "All life is a circle." --Rolling Thunder, CHEROKEE The atom is a circle, orbits are circles, the earth, moon, and sun are circles. The seasons are circles. The cycle of life is a circle: baby, youth, adult, elder. The sun gives life to the earth who feeds life to the trees whose seeds fall to the earth to grow new trees. We need to practice seeing the cycles that the Great Spirit gave us because this will help us more in our understanding of how things operate. We need to respect these cycles and live in harmony with them. Great Spirit, let me grow in knowledge of the circle. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* 'THINK on THESE THINGS' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Human dignity is that silent something in us that keeps from falling below the level where others look down on us to make light of our very existence. None of us exists who cannot sense to some degree the feeling that others hold for us. It may create in us a "show them" attitude that takes us through life more successfully, but it will more likely destroy our desire to be anything more than what is expected of us. It is an appalling thing to see others impose their superiority upon human dignity of those whose literacy may not be equal to their own. Only profound ignorance could convince anyone they have the right to see and idly judge another's intelligence, or to insult the dignity of any human being. The little silent people who have not yet discovered within themselves the abilities they need to lift themselves, still have the right and dignity of being human. A small amount of respect and direction might start them on the road to better things, though it might be all uphill. At least if they know it is all uphill they may work harder and reach and place where they can look back at those with lofty ideas about themselves, standing forever stagnant, and feel more compassion than they could ever have felt. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 25 - Daily Feast

January 25 - Daily Feast Dust trails on the ground and vapor trails in the sky where man travels with such speed we can only see where he has been - and these are everyday wonders. Others have left tracks for us - men and women we may never have heard about, or it may be our own mothers and fathers. Eras pass leaving only the faintest signs. Hills stay pretty much the same, the sky changes and changes again. The wind sweeps a trail of seeds that give us trees and flowers. Universal tracks - footsteps we hear again and again. Will ours be marching - or rolling softly as the steps of an evening walker? ~ I thank the Great Spirit for making me a Sauk, and the son of a great Sauk Chief. ~ BLACK HAWK "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 25 "Also ask your heart to purify and cleanse this defect and harmful desire. Ask also the help of the inner father and mother. Every time we eliminate a defect, we build our soul, our inner temple. We ascend, like going up a stairway." --Willaru Huayata, QUECHUA NATION, PERU The building blocks to knowledge and wisdom are constructed through the lessons of our character defects if we constructively review our conduct each day, asking where we are resentful, selfish, dishonest, or afraid. Remember, we need to review constructively, not destructively. Destructive review is when we ask, "what's the matter with me anyway." or "how could I be so stupid?" These question lead to morbid reflection or remorse and seriously affect our self esteem. In constructive review we ask, "what will I do next time?" With constructive review we progressively eliminate the defect and replace it with wisdom. My Creator, allow me to have my defects because through them I gain in knowledge of Your will. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler A pair of great horned owls swoop through the woods and light on an oak limb. They are hunting and their great heads swivel in all directions while they take in the view. A lone rabbit hides in a stack of wood and our domestic cats scatter to safety. Beau is our black tomcat and he came home one morning with long scratches down the length of his thick black coat. Something barely touched the skin but took the fur so that it will take a long time to grow what is missing. We suspect the owls and we bless Zsa, our female part-Siamese cat because she is so easy to spot. We know she is swift and can outrun many predators, but she is also ten years old and we do not leave her safety to how fast she can run. We should never leave our lives to ability -- they can have weaknesses, but Spirit has no weakness. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 24 - Daily Feast

January 24 - Daily Feast Homecoming is not just a certain hour but a feeling, an attitude, an an na li - a friend. One phase of the day has been completed, so now back to the reasons for it - home. Home with its familiar fragrances, its lighted warmth and peace of mind. At least, home ought to be this way - though it isn't always. Too little time, too much weariness, too many complaints. Too little, too late, too bad. Real homecoming is a state of mind. Someone needs to be comforted, someone needs a gentle touch, someone needs to think of others. It may not be perfect, but working together makes homecoming a celebration. ~ Do not touch the money of the white man or his clothes. We do not fight for these things. The Seminole is fighting for his hunting grounds. ~ OSCEOLA - SEMINOLE CHIEF "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 24 "Always listen to what the Elders say." --Dona Josefa Medrano, HUICHOL, SIERRA MADRE, MEXICO In school we have been taught to go to the encyclopedia when we need information about certain subjects. From the time we are little, we have a natural tendency to seek out role models. When we need information about living we tend to seek out books about living. These maybe self help books. The world is full of information. For the Native people, we have our Elders. All races have Elders. Our lives will run much smoother when we listen to the Elders. They don't always tell us what we want to hear but they always tell us what we need to hear. The Elders have the ability to make the truth sweet. Creator, thank You for the Elders. Help me this day to listen to them. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler We have to believe that the courage to do the impossible is possible. We have to have courage before we give up, thinking we are always going to be in the middle of difficult situations. Lasting courage comes by refusing to judge everything by appearances and by hearsay. The world is rife with rumors about anything and everything. Those who never intend to do anything of consequence will tell us how bad things are and how much worse it is going to get. Others will take heart and ride out the storm. There may not be any signs that promise better times, but there is that glimmer of inner-light, that knowledge that those who make it are the ones that kept going when everyone said it couldn't be done. If we can bear defeat and not lose heart, we will know it was no defeating life, but only one small part that went awry. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 23 - Daily Feast

January 23 - Daily Feast We can walk through a thousand people's lives and feel only the loneliness of our own existence. Others move by on both sides and some of them stand in the brightest light while our own corner is so dark. But we have to know that the noisy successes of other people are often their ways of dealing with the still places in their lives. Others are working with their lacks and needs, their call for recognition. All of us would be warriors. All of us would stitch red into our costumes. Fear can penetrate the strongest fortress - and the password is compassion, pure and simple understanding. ~ The Great Spirit made us all - He made my skin red and yours white; He places us on this earth, and intended that we should live differently from each other. ~ PETALESHARO - PAWNEE PRINCIPAL CHIEF "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 23 "Our true enemies, as well as our true sources of strength, lie within." --Willaru Huayta, QUECHUA NATION, PERU A long time ago, the Creator put inside the human being the secrets to the laws of life. We usually know this is true even though we may not know what these laws are. If something goes wrong with our lives, we usually fix the blame on something outside of ourselves. We tend to give up accountability. One way or another we say, "It's not my fault." We need to realize that all permanent and lasting change starts on the inside and works its way out. If it's meant to be, it is up to me. Oh Great Spirit, let me realize fully that my problems are of my own making. Therefore, so are the solutions. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Sometimes people are impressed more with status than they are content. The louder status is shouted the more glowing and receptive these people are. It is sad because so often status has no real substance, no teaching, but looks alone. Put down the need to be impressed. Feel instead the kinship of standing with someone who knows our situation. If they feel our need for them they will stay close. This is the only inside circle that will not be broken. One's own opinion is a privilege, but Lord, let us not sink out of sight in what we believe or profess to believe. If it is real and for the good, the true good, then we can relax and let life go on in its orderly way. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 22 - Daily Feast

January 22 - Daily Feast Words are judged by what we have in our hearts. Our ears pick up the words we hear, but once inside the heart decides the meaning. Love is one of those words. To some it is purely physical - and others hear it as flowery springtime with little substance. But to some it is healing and a deep and wonderful commitment that cannot waver. It is the power at the core of a person, a strength not dependent on muscle and bone but life and principle and character. If the heart is right, the decision Cannot fail. ~ I shall exercise my calm, deliberate judgment in behalf of those most dear to me.... ~ PUSHMATAHA - CHOCTAW LEADER "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 22 "The first factor in the revolution of consciousness is the mystic death of the ego - the death of negative thinking, negative personalities. We must purify the soul of the inner enemies. Every time a defect manifests- envy, gluttony, anger, lust, whatever-that impulse to the heart. Ask, `Do I really need to invoke this?' And then honor the heart." --Willaru Huayta, QUECHAU NATION, PERU Our egos have character defects. These character defects we sometimes act out and they invariably bring results to our lives that we might not want. If we continue to use these character defects, we will continue to have undesirable results in our lives. How do we change ourselves or get rid of a character defect? We can go to the heart-ask a question, make a decision-then honor the heart. For example, say I get angry today. I would go to the heart and ask, would I rather be right or would I rather be happy? How we answer this question can have an enormous impact on how our day goes. Once we decide the answer to this question, we need to honor the heart by saying, "Thank you for the power of changing my thoughts. I choose to be happy and to experience peace of mind." Great Spirit, today, let me teach only love and learn only love. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Much has been blamed on lack of opportunity, but some of the strongest and most successful had no opportunity at all. They had to make it themselves -- right in the face of those who would defy a person's right to think for himself, to be creative. We can turn away from those who would tell us that we haven't a chance. As far as they know, maybe we don't, but why give any thought to what others think -- what do we think? How things look may be important to some but those who are ready to kick over the traces, have every chance and no one can stop them from success. We cannot take huge steps at first, but there are small steps waiting for someone to recognize their importance. Take those little steps and prove that opportunity comes to those who truly look for it. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 21 - Daily Feast

January 21 - Daily Feast Identity does not require a label - for man is spirit, and spirit is nonpolitical and unconscious of color or class. An Indian woman is not as apt to board a luxury cruise ship or to sit at a bridge table hour after hour as she is to pitch camp beside some sparkling stream where the sunset tips the mountains with gold. People are different and fall naturally into different categories - though basically they are spiritual entities. These diverse spirits can even love each other if they can evade the labels. Labels are indicative of importance - but it is the heart that counts. ~ Is it wicked of me because my skin is red? Is it wrong of me to love my own? I am a Sioux because I was born where my father lived. ~ SITTING BULL - SIOUX "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 21 "This is the time of awakening to the inner father and the inner mother. Without this we will receive no high initiation; instead we get initiated into darkness. That's because any investigation or revolution without God leads, not to freedom, but to more slavery." --Willaru Huayta, QUECHAU NATION, PERU Honor the Father and the Mother. Father stands for wisdom and Mother stands for feelings. Inside each of us is the Father and the Mother. If we do not honor both, we will not grow in balance. To honor both the Father and the Mother helps our masculine and feminine sides grow. The winter season is a good time to focus on this. This is our season of reflection. Honoring both sides allows us to see the Creator is both Father and Mother. Great Spirit, Father Sky, Mother Earth, guide me today. Let me experience balance. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Happiness seems to be an ultimate goal -- but what about contentment? Is there any difference? Definitely. Happiness is a kind of butterfly thing that can flit in and out -- but contentment? It is the best for knowing peace and being able to share it. Contentment is ease regardless of what is going on. If we ever once experience it, we want to go back to where it was. Going back isn't necessary because contentment is a part of anyone who doesn't stew and fret and stir up contention. When we know that what others do doesn't have to change us, we feel humility, knowing that God knows us as individuals and we receive our comfort individually. Trifles should never get inside to irritate our well being and steal our freedom. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 20 - Daily Feast

January 20 - Daily Feast The wounded frequently want to hurt others. Meanness is not always involved but an unconscious bitterness that wants to control. The worst wounds are not always physical. Some who have suffered psychological wounds are bent on full payment whether or not it is due. The pity of it is, the wounded is the only one that cannot escape. Pain and unforgiveness are replayed day after day - as though sadness is an honorable reason never to heal. Whole lifetimes are given to demanding respect and veneration - for no other reason than life has dealt them a wound, a wound that would heal if there were a little love. ~ A man ought to desire that which is genuine instead of that which is artificial. ~ OKUTE - TETON SIOUX, 1911 "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 20 "The most important thing now is to reveal the inner temple of the soul with right thinking and right activity." --Willaru Huayta, QUECHUA NATION, PERU The key to growing a strong tree is to have a good system of roots and to feed the roots with good medicine. If we put poison in the root system, it will affect the tree, and it will become obvious to the rest of the forest what is being fed to the roots. This is also true of the human being. We need to feed our roots with right thinking. If our thinking is right, it will become obvious to the rest of the people. We don't need to tell people about ourselves with our mouth because our actions always tell them. Great Spirit, direct my thinking today. Feed my roots. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* 'THINK on THESE THINGS' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler True forgiveness could be described as a divine amnesty where we receive a pardon from the unworthy things we've done, and have another chance to prove our worth. Forgiveness is something we must give in order to receive. And we have a tendency to linger over old grudges, using them to bolster our reasons for not forgiving. But we cannot return to the past, nor can we change one whit of anything that happened then. We cannot make up for resentments we've caused in others, no more than they can make up for ours. To forgive is divine. God is above punishment, but we are not. It is we, not God, who punish by taking things into our own hands and making them work for our own selfish reasons. We demand punishment by hanging on to painful past experiences that produce self-pity. We are the ones who blame God's will for our illness, our poverty, our lack of friends. But we are wrong, for there is a moment of truth when we face ourselves and know that we are the guilty. And there is a time such as William Wordsworth wrote about, "that blessed mood, in which the burden of the mystery, in which they heavy and weary weight of all this unintelligible world, is lightened"....because we've been forgiven. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 19 - Daily Feast

January 19 - Daily Feast Rigid routine, rigid thought, can make rigid bodies. Turn off the paved path and put your foot on the earth. Feel the pulse, the life, the clean earth. If there are things that keep you from seeing the horizon, look straight up. The sky is there above the smoke, the smog, the haze that would hide the blue. Reach out and lay your fingers in the flow of any little stream - clean water is there behind the chemicals, beyond the things that would pollute. Lift your spirit above the sirens and shrill voices and ugliness of graceless personalities. Pause for even a minute in an attitude of worship. It is your day. ~ Each soul must meet the morning sun, the new sweet earth and the Great Silence alone. ~ OHIYSA - SANTEE DAKOTA "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 19 "Heal yourself - your physical and spiritual bodies. Regenerate yourself with light, and then help those who have poverty of the soul. Return to the inner spirit, which we have abandoned while looking elsewhere for happiness." --Willaru Huayta, QUECHUA NATION, PERU It is difficult to look inside ourselves, especially when we see conflict or confusion. During times of conflict we need to realize that we are talking to ourselves about our thoughts. This conversation is printing in our subconscious and forming our beliefs. During times of conflict we need to ask the spirit to control our self-talk. Only through finding that inner place and going there during troubled times will we ever find happiness. Great Spirit, You are my peace and you dwell within me. Let me look for You within myself. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* 'THINK on THESE THINGS' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler "Though we speak with the tongues of men and angels and give our bodies to be burned, if we are irritable or hard to live with, it all accounts for nothing," wrote Margaret Widdemer. Wouldn't it be a blessing to ourselves and to others if we could be as gentle and considerate in temper as we expect others to be? It is not a good thing to keep pent up then emotions that rules us so continually, but neither is it good to be too quick and too constantly blowing off steam. It may serve as a tension reliever to us, but it can soon ruin our relationships with others. And without our realizing it, we can soon become chronic complainers. Worry, physical ailments and weariness can cause a short temper that we think others should understand. And most have a way of knowing if that is the case, but prolonged impositions on other people will wear that tolerance very thin. It takes two to have an argument, but it takes only one to start it. The need to forgive and to be forgiven should never be overlooked. To pass over a disagreement quickly without thought to the damage we've done can take the shine off any friendship. There can be no merit in forgetting if we cannot first forgive. There are two voices in this world that will be forever unpopular. One is the voice of self-pity, the other is the voice that yells all the time. One declares itself to be the victim of great injustices, the other yells to demand justice. Those who believe themselves to be the victim of injustice - those who believe they are meant to suffer - will always find conditions to prove they are right. And those who yell, "Look what I've sacrificed," and always with the theme, "What I've tried to do for you," have slowed another's progress and stopped their own. True victims of circumstance are easily recognized, and do not care to be noticed as such. And those who yell their merits have received their rewards, so there aren't any others. Both have their attentions turned inward, but to the sorrow of most.... Their voices are not. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 18 - Daily Feast

January 18 - Daily Feast Talk to your body, talk to your mind, and give support to your spirit. These are your friends, your life mates, your agility, your harmony, and your joy. Degrade them and they will fail you - not out of revenge but because it is you who keeps the in working order, who supplies them with the strength and well-being they need. Tell your legs and feet and knees how strong and steady they are, and tenderly clean the mind of trash you may have inadvertently thrown there. When something is out of order, call it back into place - and give thanks for the privilege. These are precious things, never talk negatively to them or condemn them - because you will be condemning yourself. ~ The Indian thinks of places and sends his prayers there to win help and blessing. ~ DAKOTA WISEMAN - 1800s "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 18 "Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind and spirit." --Charles A. Eastman (Ohiyesa), SANTEE SIOUX Be still and know. All new learning's, all ideas about new things, creativity, daydreaming and mental effectiveness come to those who learn about silence. All warriors know about the power of silence. All Elders know about stillness. Be still and know God. Meditation is about the place of silence. This is the place to hear God's voice. We can find tremendous amounts of knowledge in the place of silence. This is the sacred place of God. Great Spirit, teach me the power of silence. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Perfection delights the soul of the super-orderly person. The perfect relationship, the perfect gift, the perfect time, all these things give the would-be perfect person the belief that everyone and everything should be perfect. Far too often, perfection precludes love. Without love, nothing remotely perfect survives. With love, the imperfect is either lost from view or is so beautiful in its own way that we see it as beautiful. Whatever we give of ourselves with love is the perfect gift. It is given at the right time and in the right way -- and it is free of attachments, such as owing a return gift, having to be without even the least fault, and allowing others the freedom to be themselves. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 17 - Daily Feast

January 17 - Daily Feast Tender gifts come to us all - gifts from some deep inner space that is priceless and stirs our most creative sense. A beautiful, personal revelation is like touching electricity without its harmful effects. But this is something to be kept in the heart and not talked about to others. If others have never known the touch of a shooting star nor felt the awe of being given spiritual knowledge, their response is incredulity and disbelief - which makes us question our own sanity. Protect the gift, treasure it, love it. The time will come to use it. ~ They are clean to a fault....they keep their stock in good order, and are hard working, painstaking people. ~ AGENT THOMAS JORDAN (ABOUT THE NES PERCES) SEPTEMBER 6, 1881 "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 17 "In our story of Creation, we talk about each one of us having our own path to travel, and our own gift to give and to share. You see, what we say is that the Creator gave us all special gifts; each one of us is special. And each one of us is a special gift to each other because we've got something to share." --John Peters (Slow Turtle), WAMPANOAG We are all equally special. We need to focus on what is right for ourselves. As we focus on what is right for ourselves, we will start to see our special gifts. Then we can see how to share our special gifts with others. If we focus on what's wrong with ourselves, we will not be able to see our gifts. Then we will think we have nothing to give others and we become selfish and withdrawn. The more we focus on our good, the more we see the good in others. The more we see the good in others, the more we see the gifts they have to share. What you sees is what you gets! My Creator, today, let me use the gifts You have given me. Let me use them wisely. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler When two people walk together in the deep woods, everyone has to be a good bush-partner. Walking the path ahead of someone requires holding the strong green branches until the other is clear. Life must have its good bush-partners to shelter each other in the rough places, to walk together with the idea that we are each to help the other. Less breakage, less injury to heart and hand and spirit. We could do a great service by simply thinking before we speak, to control our thoughts before we put them into words. Circumstances will always present themselves and can cause heartache and turmoil, but if we are good bush partners, we will make it easier by watching out for others. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 16 - Daily Feast

January 16 - Daily Feast Use your imagination for its intended use - to create beauty and happiness and justice. If you use it for unfriendly reasons, it will eventually steal your wings and your feet. The Cherokee way of saying it is di gu yi s gi, the paymaster, the returns based on how it has been used. Do not envy another person, for your own imagination has grand gifts for you. Great suffering has been the lot of many who used their talented minds to bring hurt and pain where there should have been harmony. ~ There was nothing between him and the Big Holy. The contact was immediate and personal. ~ CHIEF LUTHER STANDING BEAR - LAKOTA "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 16 "If people are going to get back into balance, one of the things they have to do is seek the truth. They have to start really speaking the truth themselves, and that's a difficult thing to do. The way it is now in the world, we don't mind lying." --John Peters (Slow Turtle), WAMPANOAG Well, everybody's doing it. Do unto others before they do unto you. If it wasn't for back luck I would have no luck at all. These are excuses and rationalizations for giving up accountability. Be true to yourself. Seek the truth, The Great Spirit is the truth. The truth shall set you free. This is the truth. We cannot be free if we are dishonest nor can we live a balanced life if we are dishonest. As we grow, we need to start taking stands. All warriors take stands. The warrior's belief is constantly being aligned to truth. The warrior will always know where he/she stands. Great Spirit, help me today to seek Your truth, not my truth. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Vision to see, faith to believe, courage to do. With these things we improve living every day. Vision to see what we do want instead of visualizing all the wrong things. Faith to believe that good overcomes the bad. We give strength to whatever we believe in -- good or bad. It we let our doubts rule us and our fears control us, then we are believing in the wrong things. We need courage to go do the right things -- the thing we know is right regardless of what someone is trying to suggest to us. Courage to be oneself, to have faith, to believe in good, to see beyond what seems to be and then to work toward what we are capable of being. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 15 - Daily Feast

January 15 - Daily Feast The pond reflects a day of mist in gray tones. When the sky is blue, the pond is blue. Patterns like ice webs spread across the frozen surface in the middle of winter - so like we are when we take on the moods of others. Hills and lakes and fields are touched by the actions of the sky and wind. In the night season and all though the day changes take place. Sometimes the sky glitters with wings - sometimes it is softened by snowflakes. Man's soul has a light like that of a lantern that is untroubled in the turmoil of wind and storm. But we must know what we are reflecting. ~ My Grandchildren, be good. Try to make a mark for yourselves. Learn all you can. ~ SITTING BULL - SIOUX MEDICINE MAN AND CHIEF "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 15 "It's all spirit and it's all connected." --Grandfather William Commanda, ALGONQUIN If everything is connected, we cannot disconnect. To disconnect is not a real choice. This is why we are always spiritual no matter what we do. Every alcoholic is spiritual. All our brothers and sisters are spiritual. We may not be behaving correctly, but nevertheless, we are spiritual. Our choice is to live out of harmony with spiritual ways or in harmony with spiritual ways. Everything is spiritual. Great Spirit, give me the knowledge to be in harmony with the spirit today. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Recent nights have had splendid moons -- so bright the whole land is visible. The deer stay to the shadows and even the owls seldom call when it is so light. Cherokee people use the moon to show how everything is in the round. The shape of our eyes are curved toward round, the world is round and so the moons and stars and many other things. But the best is the circle which is infinity -- life everlasting, no beginning and no end. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 14 - Daily Feast

January 14 - Daily Feast Many trails lead away from the right path. Our feet wander far for answers to the same questions our old ones sang about and prayed over in the quiet of their own thoughts. Do we have new problems? No, it is the same one, tsv s gi na, the enemy that tries to rule our thinking and actions. He comes dressed in circumstances that will entice us to his way. But he is still the same old enemy who keeps trying. There is nothing new under the sun. The same devils that tried the souls of ancient men have a new vulnerable generation - and not enough are aware of the danger. ~ From here on I want to live in peace. ~ GERONIMO - APACHE "A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 14 "It is a native tradition to sit in a circle and talk-to share what is in your heart." --John Peters (Slow Turtle), WAMPANOAG The talking circle is also a listening circle. The talking circle allows one person to talk at a time for as long as they need to talk. So much can be gained by listening. Is it a coincidence that the Creator gave us one mouth and two ears? The power of the circle allows the heart to be shared with each other. What we share with each other also heals each other. When we talk about our pain in the circle, it is distributed to the circle, and we are free of the pain. The talking circle works because when the people form a circle, the Great Mystery is in the center. My Creator, give me the courage to share, and the courage to listen. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* THINK ON THESE THINGS By Joyce Sequichie Hifler The weather forecast tells us snow is possible and as hard as it is to get around, the woods are beautiful when snow falls. We can look down and see the floor of the bottomland woods and there are deer walking around searching for tufts of green and a few acorns. They seem to prefer what they can find than to eat from a pile of yellow corn on the west slope. With temperatures down to nearly zero, frost forms on the tree limbs and the morning wind blows thousands of little sparkles into the air and the sunbeams catch and turn them into silver showers. Little gifts from winter makes us appreciate the sights and even more the fireside and the sound of logs shifting in the fireplace. In less than sixty days we will be mapping out the garden. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!

January 13 - Daily Feast

January 13 - Daily Feast So few people are worthy of our tears - only a few. Our personal space is invaded and we are made to think we caused the rift that follows. This is an illusion that is not worthy of the price we try to pay. It is the elders' privilege to look back and smile. They, too, have known the ideal, the magnificent, the ultimate - and they have cried. But a da to li s di, that wonderful grace, provided knowledge of how to hold one loose thread in place by joy - not tears. And then came peace. ~ It is the duty of the brave when injured to lay peace aside....and then to lay down again in peaceful quiet. ~ PUSHMATAHA - CHOCTAW CHIEF, 1812 *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 13 "When you remove love and try to replace it with monetary things, you've got nothing ... Get him to understand that he has to love himself before he can love anything else." --John Peters (Slow Turtle), WAMPANOAG It is said, "Love thy neighbor as thyself." That's the trouble, most of us do. Great Spirit, You are love; You are spirit. Spirit and love are interconnected. I am spiritual. Let me realize what I am really made of. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* 'THINK on THESE THINGS' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler Bad feelings are burdens. When we get to the point of believing the whole world is sour because we don't understand it, we have a lot of self-searching to do. Maybe we helped it to lose its sweetness. Maybe we're the bad apple that soured the whole lot. Our first thought should be to make amends. Sometimes we can't, and when such is the case we need to get out of the way and let time and nature take its course. Life is too beautiful to go on being a bitter pill that insists that everyone swallow it. As in the words of Caleb C. Colton, an English clergyman around the turn of the century, "the man who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own dispositions, will waste his life in fruitless efforts, and multiply the grief which he proposes to remove." We need to unburden ourselves by forgetting our problems and doing something that will put a smile on someone else's face. The quickest way to solve the problem of hurt feelings is to inquire if this situation is important to the whole of existence. Does this particular thing mean more than any of the other things of life? It is amazing how quickly trials fade into nothingness when faced with this question. It places before us the need to decide here and now the meaning of our whole existence. There are not many things in our lives that we can truthfully say mean everything to us. The small things are important and very dear, but the really significant things we count on one hand - life, our loved ones, our good desires, our faith, and our nation. One of the most magnified situations in this day is taking life too seriously. In the stress of too much mental confusion, we seem unable to laugh off so many little irritations. We let personality rule us into making each little problem the source of great anxiety and dramatically lay hold of it until it chokes us. The worthwhile side of this life is too important to let ourselves become involved with things that mean little to us. Too much of the trouble in the world is caused from ego-building important that would never be missed in anyone's existence. *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* Available online! 'Cherokee Feast of Days' By Joyce Sequichie Hifler. Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones......and also for those who don't have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com Elder's Meditation of the Day By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org   *<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>*<<<=-=>>>* If you would like to Subscribe\Unsubscribe, or change your subscribed email address for The Daily Feast email list, visit here: http://dailyfeast.info and fill out the form!