I have met a lot of mixed blood people in my lifetime who feel angry and cheated because their parents and grandparents chose not to walk the "Red Road." But if they hadn't done what they did, many of us might not be here today and the knowledge might have been forever lost.

We are the 5th generation removed from the ones who walked the Trail of Tears. It is our job to help bring back that ancient sacred knowledge for our children and grandchildren as the prophesies tell us that it will be the 7th Generation who lead us into the 5th world. Bringing it back isn't going to be easy as much of the knowledge has been lost, but enough of it remains for us to understand the basic wisdom of the ancient teachings. The trick is to figure out where to go to learn this stuff.

Books and movies are where most of us start, but they are often far from the truth. And it is the truth that we must learn - not the cobbled up "airy fairy" teachings which abound today. Gathering with other people who share the same heritage is good and there are many tribes and bands forming now which purport to follow the ways. But it is often hard to know if their leaders are genuine or just taking ego trips.

Here are some guidelines that might help. First - everything you need to know is already inside of you, it's just a matter of learning to listen to the still small voice. Beware of any "Medicine Man" (or anyone else) who tries to tell you what you should be doing on your path. If you are seeking to know your clan - listen to what your heart says. The same holds true with dreams. I could make a fortune interpreting dreams. But the truth of it is that dream symbols mean different things for different people. If I dream about a snake, that might be very good medicine for me. If you dream about one it might not be a good thing for you. The whole point of having dreams is to spend time meditating and figuring out what it is you are telling yourself.

We have become an instant society. We want instant food, instant entertainment, and instant pain relief. But spiritual growth takes a lifetime of hard, diligent work to achieve. Beware of Instant Indians.

I was taught that when a person is ready for a teacher, one will appear. I've seen it happen many times where the same opportunity for spiritual growth has been presented to a group of people. One will take it and 19 will run over him to get to a powwow. But this is how it should be. It isn't so much the destination that is important as much as it is the journey. Go slow and enjoy the trip.

© copyright 2003-2004