Gaa Mnokmet Ked: The Spring Wisdom Teachings (CPN)

 By Minisa Crumbo Halsey

WE ARE THE FARMERS, HUNTERS, COOKS, FISHERMEN, TAPPERS, STORYTELLERS, GATHERERS … OF OUR LIVES.

Spirit Horse Ranch Studio

And now, it is the sunrise of the world, called SPRING — the eastern, mental and yellow direction of the Medicine Wheel. It is the sunrise or dawn of the year. The stronger Gizes (Father Sky Sun) is pushing back the winter dark while warming and awakening Sekmekwe (Mother Earth) to yet another season of sprouting, rooting and growth. Just as the night of winter protects all things, it makes visible our star relatives Withik Negos … the Constellation of Ursa Major the Big Dipper. The hibernating kche mko, Big Bear, emerges, as do we two-leggeds, from the root homes of the mkowango (den), bringing new life, vigor and vision of plant medicine. Now, soon, comes the selection of back yard raised bed garden, windowsill or larger field. Prayers to the long history of chosen seed beings are offered to our Mother Earth, in gratitude, with planning thoughts, song, drum (de-weben), and perhaps a pinch of asemma (tobacco), cornmeal or fat. Now, we are purifying and humming to our highest and most sacred frequencies … preparing ourselves to initiate the digging, plowing, the mindful dropping of seed and first watering … as FARMERS OF OUR LIVES we continue to connect and fuse ourselves with all living things and with the heart of the sky and the heart of the earth. AHO!

These things we do to honor all new and emerging life, the inner lives and outer lives of all animate and inanimate beings. Now, we begin to prepare for the many ceremonies of the renewal that may be recalled, heard, told and created afresh with song, dance, painting or craft, by other works, prayer and feasting … for this new year … indeed for the young of seven generations ahead … do we offer these works to all of us … of the eighth fire prophesy.

Each of us, the long hairs, the newborns among us, the children and the elders, teens, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, grandparents, husbands and wives and all of our relations … we are each and every one of us drawing and receiving our first conscious breaths and remembering that we are “breathed alive by the Creator-Mamogosnan” into a living world of heartbeat, breath, movement and blood memory. This being so, we have a sacred charge to reach out, participate in and to support ourselves and our people … and to not forget who we are and what we have … through enduring connection to Mamogosnan and all of the others … heal us God, by the WAYS OF THE AIR … By these and other seasonal ways do we recognize ourselves as “farmers of our lives.” The GAA MNOKMET KED demonstrate the flowering mystery in our deepest recesses. These and many other things are learned as we set our moc-sin (moccasin) feet to walk yet another year upon and with, the renewed sacred path of SPRING – MNOKMET … one of the most beautiful and enduring gifts from the Creator that we might know life “in a good way, now and forever more.”

Getegemen - Garden

 

Potawatomi ‘Garden’ Vocabulary:

Basket = gokbenaben
Bees = amoyuk

Beans = koje'suk

Bloom = jijen

Butterfly = memiki

Cabbage = e'shobuk

Cherries = siwswe'mnen

Circle = waye'yak

Cloud = ngwankot

Corn = ndamen

Cucumber = kokobe'

Dance = nimedi

Drum = de'we'gIn

Earth = sugmuk

Feast = wewesnakewin

Fire = shkote'

Flint Hill Grounds = shokinkik

Flower = washkone'to

Food = wisnawen

Fruit = washkbak
Full Moon = nibakises

Garden = Getegemen

Good Rain = mnogmowIn

Gourd = shishigwIn

Grapes = siwnwen

Grass = mIshkos

Honey = amo

Hot Peppers = wasgagIn

Indian Tobacco = nInse’ma

July/Month of Young Corn = We'shkitdaminkesis

Lightning = sawasmo

Milkweed = nInwezhe’k

Moon = tpukises

Mother Earth = Kumde’kwe’

Muddy = winkiwIn

Onion = shakwesh

Outside = sagec

Peace = e’tokmite’k

Plenty Potatoes = topeka

Plum = pokma

Potatoes = pInyak

Prairie = mskoda

Pumpkin = wapkon

Purple = we'je'pwate'k

Rain = kmowen

Sage = wabshkukbyag

Spider = aspeke' e'e'buk

Stars = nagosuk

Strawberries = demen

Summer = E'mnokmuk

Sun = kises

Sunset = e'pkishmok
Sweat Lodge = mdodmogumuk

Sweet Corn = wishpumnuk

Sweetgrass = wiingaashk

Sweet Potato = wishpupnyak

Thunderbirds = cigwe’k

Toad = mamkeci

Tobacco = se’ma

Trees = mtugwe'nIn

Turtle = mshike’

Very Dark (Outside) = gispuknya

Very Light (Bright Sunshine) = waseya

Warm Wind = shawnash

Water = mbish

Watermelon = ashktamo

Well-Being = matsowIn

Whole Kernel Cooked Corn = pakswayuk

Wild = pkoc

Wild Rice = pkocnomin

Wind = notin

World = otake’

Worm = mose