And Another Day...
(Sun Dance. Thursday, 8 August 2013)
It's been two days of the Dance, and we're just done for the day. There are things I can't talk about in any place where it might be read by the outer world, but there are some things I can talk about. The Wakinyan just tuned up to give us our blessing for the day. If you might describe the weather here at Sun Dance this year, it might be worded as "partly cloudy with a chance of purification." We avoid using the "R" word. The Spirits are listening, and some of them apparently have something of an antic sense of humor. However the bands of wet stuff seem to have passed, a right proper swift drenching, and now the west is brightening and we might very well get to see the Sun before sundown. But a part if me is rather aware that they held off until the Dance rounds were done before coming to visit, that tells me that they were keeping an eye on us. Washte aloh.
The Drum came together in a good way toady, sounding good and getting in sync. The Dancers and the People have been appreciative, and have been giving us good feedback. Mark, our drum leader is running a tight ship and has been pretty fantastic. He's an incredible talent and has really devoted himself to the songs and the sacred lore that goes with them. Sometimes I feel like he makes my level of obsession seem like slacking. But it just means that there is always more to learn and absorb out there. He's managed to organize his life so the he can get out west to support ceremony, and learn from other singers and elders. Every year he brings back amazing and wonderful things. One thing that I know with absolute certainty, is that whenever I sit at a drum with good singers, I get better. I learn more and get better every year.
When I first got on the Canka Luta, the Red Road, early in the game I had the opportunity to share ceremony with Walace Black Elk. He facilitated a Sweat Lodge for the community at Ananda Ashram. He brought a young man with him named Richard Dreamwalker who sang for us in the Lodge. When he sang the Vision Song, and that voice came ringing out of the darkness, I could feel the ancestors lining up for generations uncounted to listen. All the hairs on my body stood up and I thought to myself, "I want to do that!" I've been hooked on the songs ever since. Despite being trained as a Fire Keeper and a Water Pourer, waking with the Pipe, I identify myself as a Singer. When I am singing the sacred songs, that's when I feel closest to Spirit.
Waste aloh.
I'm also exploring a journal at Dreamwidth. http://samuraiartguy.dreamwidth.org
It's been two days of the Dance, and we're just done for the day. There are things I can't talk about in any place where it might be read by the outer world, but there are some things I can talk about. The Wakinyan just tuned up to give us our blessing for the day. If you might describe the weather here at Sun Dance this year, it might be worded as "partly cloudy with a chance of purification." We avoid using the "R" word. The Spirits are listening, and some of them apparently have something of an antic sense of humor. However the bands of wet stuff seem to have passed, a right proper swift drenching, and now the west is brightening and we might very well get to see the Sun before sundown. But a part if me is rather aware that they held off until the Dance rounds were done before coming to visit, that tells me that they were keeping an eye on us. Washte aloh.
The Drum came together in a good way toady, sounding good and getting in sync. The Dancers and the People have been appreciative, and have been giving us good feedback. Mark, our drum leader is running a tight ship and has been pretty fantastic. He's an incredible talent and has really devoted himself to the songs and the sacred lore that goes with them. Sometimes I feel like he makes my level of obsession seem like slacking. But it just means that there is always more to learn and absorb out there. He's managed to organize his life so the he can get out west to support ceremony, and learn from other singers and elders. Every year he brings back amazing and wonderful things. One thing that I know with absolute certainty, is that whenever I sit at a drum with good singers, I get better. I learn more and get better every year.
When I first got on the Canka Luta, the Red Road, early in the game I had the opportunity to share ceremony with Walace Black Elk. He facilitated a Sweat Lodge for the community at Ananda Ashram. He brought a young man with him named Richard Dreamwalker who sang for us in the Lodge. When he sang the Vision Song, and that voice came ringing out of the darkness, I could feel the ancestors lining up for generations uncounted to listen. All the hairs on my body stood up and I thought to myself, "I want to do that!" I've been hooked on the songs ever since. Despite being trained as a Fire Keeper and a Water Pourer, waking with the Pipe, I identify myself as a Singer. When I am singing the sacred songs, that's when I feel closest to Spirit.
Waste aloh.
I'm also exploring a journal at Dreamwidth. http://samuraiartguy.dreamwidth.org