Bodewadmin Longhouse Message

Good morning ... mno waben aanii ... good day friends ...
I am expanding this mailing in order to initiate important plant talk into our fall and winter gestational honor seasons, whereby we recognize and honor those seeds with which we sat and prayed last winter in the Bodewadmin Longhouse. As with the natural world or a tended, intentional garden, part of the growth can be predicted or shaped and part cannot. At this time we all, here on Turtle Island, find ourselves coming into new awareness and balance with the Great Mystery. The inner and outer landscapes are shifting. This offers so much opportunity for not only sacred choice to the exercised but also a vastly expanded view of Medicine Wheel teachings and disciplines by which to institute these choices ... then bringing these ones into the inner longhouse for growth and endurance prayers. 

This time of harvest is when the serious work of the next year's harvest begins ... praying over the seeds of this year. 

Now, some of this year's harvest produced undeniably questionable yields. To these things we might ask, who are you and what do you want? We always have the right to ask these questions ... and should ... in the interests of connection, honoring, knowledge, life, right livelihood and growth. The question is: do we want to know? Whether we do or we don’t is okay ... that’s the way it is with us ... however, these are our growth points or seeds, if you will. Harvest is the time to select the strongest and most desirable seeds to BEGIN bringing forward for the new season.

With these things in mind, a plant TEACHER AND HELPER  will be offered to assist renewed, or initiated, unity in our Earth Walk as we approach  a very important new vision quest season. The opportunity and indeed necessity to make and renew authentic approaches to our Earth Walk as Two-Leggeds is apparent to each of us.  Let us endeavor to make these Walks in harmony and balance with the Creator and Creator’s first, most beautiful and enduring gifts to us of our Mother Earth and our Father Sky-Sun.

Here is a great healing herb to become aware of that also happens to grow abundantly in our Oklahoma area ... Prunella Vulgaris. This program comes to us highly recommended, on YouTube from the Herbal Jedi. I invite you to visit and surf his site for many other important winter study considerations. 

Personally, I find that a tea of this plant journeys immediately to calm not only the solar plexus but the entire system ... especially the mind. Balance is felt in the liver and kidneys ... seats of anger and fear by the system of Chinese Medicine. These are two emotions that can be ‘doctored’ by self heal or Prunella vulgaris. Each person will have a personal experience to sensitize, honor and remain aware of its effect, should you feel guided to ‘make medicine’ with this or any plant being. When the mind is then calmed, endeavor to notice and remain fused with this plant blessing, as long as possible ... it will not last long ... but long enough to give us a ‘leg up’ toward reaching and maintaining a higher quality of life, a measure of equanimity ... and TIME  by which to ‘seat’ these ephemeral blessings. Do not expect this period to last longer than 20 minutes or so ... hold the focus and make the most of the gift.

In support of these new ‘relations’ a good WAY to pick will be offered as part of the fall (dwaget) and winter (pon) studies. For now, begin thinking of making an approach to this being and leaning into ‘coming to know’ this beautiful being.

The picking season is actually mostly past but this gives us the opportunity to Begin - coming into balance - with this little, mighty self healing plant for the coming gathering season, next  May-June.

Now, if you live in this Oklahoma temperate zone and have a full sun growing spot, this third week of August is the final planting window for seeding a winter garden. The autumn sun soon softens its vigor so planting any time after this does not support a completion growth cycle ... the plant can make a strong start but cannot grow strongly into November or in the case of some greens like collard greens, all winter. This can be one of the driest months so keep the ground well watered and do not allow the seeds or small plants to dry out until the rains begin.

Bama mine.
Be well.

Much love,
Minisa
Dawn Woman
CPN