October/November 2008

Hau kola na tiyospaye (Hello friends & extended family),

Welcome to all new Circle members! Each section of the Circle of Nations newsletter is written 'facing' one of the four sacred winds, beginning with the east, then the south, west and finally the north. This is to honor the old ways. It is to teach and to help us to focus and find the center. I have designed the Native Circle website in the same spirit. I welcome you all to the Circle....

EAST - Wiyohinyanpata - Yellow (Four Winds)
Every month, for the last ten years I have sat down to share my thoughts with you all through this Circle of Nations “Newsletter”. I put quotations around ‘newsletter’ because in truth, this is not really a ‘newsletter’ in the traditional sense. More accurately, it is a collection of thoughts for this moment in time from one Indigenous point of view. It is one voice, calling out from the stillness, power and wisdom of ancient places and old ways, reaching out to anyone who longs to come back to that sacred place on the ground, near the heartbeat of Mother Earth and close to the Spirit. It is one small voice, whispering to the hearts of many around the world who sense deep inside that there is more to this life than cosmetic beauty, artificial thrills and material gain. Through these words which are sent out like feathers in a strong wind, people from all over this earth have found a message of peace and spiritual power that resonates with the truth of their own heart. From this humble monthly offering sprang forth the Circle of Nations Global Community, The Mending Medicine Retreat, and a silent but impressive movement of outreach to heal the world, end starvation and find a way to live together on this planet with respect and in peace. The Spirit is good! Over the years I have given much thought to many of the pressing concerns and issues of our time. I have shared the summation of many of these thoughts in this letter. Always, the Spirit has led me to the conclusions I offer. This month, I want to shed some light on what has motivated me to continue sharing this letter each month for what has now been a decade. To begin, the world is in desperate need of a great healing. As a very young boy, I would sit for hours and contemplate, seeking to understand some of the mysteries of Spirit and the true meaning of life and death and all that exists in and around and throughout and within. Even in school, as the other kids were listening to the teacher in class, my spirit would often wander to places far beyond the boxed-in confines of schoolroom knowledge. There in that far away state, the spirits would teach me, inspiring and instilling in me the profound wisdom and truths which have guided my life path to this day. Often I would be jolted back to the coldness of the classroom by the sound of the teacher calling my name in an effort to snap me out of my ‘daydream’ and embarrass me into paying attention. On more than one occasion, notes on my childhood report cards indicated I ‘daydreamed’ too much in class. I have long since determined that what they called ‘daydreams’ were actually my spiritual contemplations, and I am happy to say that I have continued with them to this day. So I have spent my life giving prayerful thought and consideration to the complexities of the world we live in, and what, why and how life is. As I said, the world is in desperate need of a great healing. And so I serve Wakantanka in whatever way I am called upon to help in the mending of the sacred hoop. Through these monthly letters, I offer the fruit of a lifetime of my spiritual contemplations to any who will receive, that they may turn and offer the fruit of their own gifts to others, and like a pebble tossed into a placid pond, these fruits may cause a ring of love and healing to ripple out across the world, and quietly, humbly, one heart at a time, we will heal ourselves and our planet. Yes, a great healing is needed. And indeed, a great healing has begun....


SOUTH - Itokagata - Red (Red Earth)
A word from Peggy....

Hello friends:
Today is cold. The first cold day we have had in the Ozarks. It is overcast and John mentioned this morning how he likes these overcast days. Mostly we have sunny days here in the Mountains. I for one am actually looking forward to the Winter. I am in need of a little hibernation.
It has been a very busy summer and fall. What is left for this year as far as Concerts....
We have three left…. Nov. 29th will be a John Two-Hawks and a Badlanders concert at the Inn of the Ozarks in Eureka Springs. A week later, Dec. 6th John will perform his annual Christmas Concert in Eureka Springs at The AUD to benefit Heifer International. And we are planning a very special New Years Eve Concert and evening with John Two-Hawks in Rogers Arkansas at the Rogers Little Theater… all tickets are available online at www.johntwohawks.com

Hurrah! Christmas and Holiday Specials!

Only $12 for All single Two-Hawks CDs! ON SALE until DEC 20th…. GREAT GIFTS at BOTH WEBSITES!

And check out the NEW Lakota Inspirations Cards…they make great Holiday Greeting Cards
We still have some JTH Signature Insignia Flutes left… but not many so get yours today!
JTH Signature Medicine Wheel Flutes are also more than half gone… so don’t wait until they are totally out…
get one today… great bargain for an awesome flute at $220
The John Two-Hawks Signature Flutes

Did you notice that the 2009 Mending Medicine Retreat is a Reunion Celebration and the cost has been reduced to only $100… that is because we want you all to come! Our friends overseas, and across this US… the people who have attended the last eight years and many more friends, so get your registrations in now… and what a GREAT Christmas gift for someone you love. A weekend in Eureka with John Two-Hawks and all our great Circle of Nations family members.
The Retreats

Well so much for my letting you all know what is going on with the business side. Now a little personal stuff....We just got back from Salt Lake City visiting our grandsons, that was great fun. We went trick-or-treating with a football player, a monkey and a banana. So cool… Hey, there is a great Indian store in Salt Lake City called The Native American Trading Post... tell em we sent you. We are excited about the future and have much hope for today because of all of you!!!
love ya,
Peace,
Peggy
Red Earth of Native Circle
The Official John Two-Hawks Site


WEST - Wiyohpeyata - Black or Blue (We are STILL Here!)
I am Lakota. Oglala Lakota to be precise. Ikce Wicasa to be even more precise. I am happy to be Oglala Lakota. I am one Lakota voice. My story is a Lakota story. And yet, it is only one story, and not the whole story of Lakota people. To hear the whole story, you would have to hear all the stories of all the people. You would have to look into every set of Lakota eyes and hear every voice speak, telling what they have seen, who they are and why. Lakota people are as three dimensionally human and complicated as anyone else. And yet we Lakota are a beautifully unique and distinct people. We are incredibly strong and perseverant. We are fierce guardians of our timeless spiritual and cultural customs and traditions, and our resistance to those who wanted to destroy us was legendary. As a result, we are still here, and despite a century-long onslaught of attacks on our culture, we succeeded in not only surviving, but in preserving a great many of our cultural tenets. Even so, we lost much. So much, it is hard to even begin to fathom. Many Lakota still feel anger about all that has been destroyed or stolen from us. Others feel sadness, pain or even hopelessness. All these feelings are very real, and have contributed to many problems within our communities. Problems which do not have simple solutions. And yet, there are also Lakota people who have channeled these feelings into a fiery passion for cultural preservation and restoration. We are not a defeated people. We have risen up from the ashes of a fire so wicked that it threatened to consume us all and everything we knew, stood for and believed in. In this we are victorious. Some have written in books that the fighting ended for the Lakota on December 29th, 1890 at Wounded Knee, but they are wrong. For you see, the battle goes on, and the fight continues. In every home or classroom where the Lakota language is taught.... In every place where an Elder teaches a youth a skill or a lesson from our Lakota ways.... At every wacipi.... At every sacred Lakota ceremony.... In every creation from a Lakota artist.... In all these expressions, the battle continues, and we fight on in our legendary resistance, holding on to who we are in a world that often prefers to forget us or pretend we don’t exist anymore. Yes, we are still here. Tattered and weary remnants of our former selves perhaps.... but still standing. We remain. I remain. We are Lakota. Look into the symbols and expressions of Lakota ways, and you will catch a glimpse of our story. You will hear the whisper of our voices, past, present and future, speaking of who we are. Our story is ancient.... Our story is alive today.... Our story is still being written....

Lakota Inspirations


NORTH - Waziyata - White (Words of Wisdom)
Some thoughts from my contemplations....


Long before money, the world went around just fine....

It does not require many words to speak volumes....

Let faith, not fear, show you the way....

Greed is the hunger of the spiritually bankrupt....


May Wakantanka encircle you and yours with faith to believe, hope for the future, and love for all....

As always, in the spirit of mending the sacred hoop of the nations of the world
Your Oglala Lakota friend and brother,
John Two-Hawks
http://www.nativecircle.com
http://www.johntwohawks.com
Reprinting of this Circle of Nations newsletter is encouraged! All I ask is that it be printed in its entirety, with no changes, and that I be given proper credit, unless I have otherwise okayed it. Wopila (great thanks)!