2025 CPN Family Reunion Festival

CPN Family Reunion

Watering The Vision Quest Season of Autumn-Dgwaget🍁

Bozho and Greetings, Dreamers and Vision Questers,

In four days one's life can be changed through a personal, dedicated Vision Quest Ceremony.

Water was one of the first elements that the Creator 'breathed life' into what would become the first, most beautiful and enduring of Mother Earth's gifts, followed by light and fire. These gifts became the cultural foundations of many creation stories and the framework of the medicine wheel. Earth, air, fire and water emanating from an enduringly vital center point ... with which we are all invited to discover and perhaps to occupy ... a point which some would view as a 'sacred flowering tree'.

As in so many internal 'creation stories', there may be an unpredictable combination of past, present and future ... gently known as the 'eternal present'. These elements may appear in the personal gardens we then plant, tend, water, weed and harvest as 'farmers of our lives'. A good vision quest can have a long life. Perhaps as long as the four seasons it takes our mother earth to cycle through ... then again as short as 24 hours or ... four days.

We are the 'vision quest farmers' of our lives. We water the inner gardens and fields with our sacred blood, sweat and tears. Ahh.

Harvest is both a new beginning and renewal. This or any season's seed harvest carries both an ancient provenance and an unpredictable performance for which we must be prepared, for the vision quest is a mystery tour with we see or must be prepared to see 'something that is not yet known'. The Seeds of new life for the plant beings also follow their original instructions and move with 'choice as a sacred choice'.

We pray for our walks to be fused with bravery, courage, forgiveness, loyalty, love and endurance ... for these walks and powers to be with us ... on each, every and all of these, our most sacred and precious life journeys ... nourished by these teachings of the Seven Grandfathers which have guided, encouraged and taught us the 'good ways' to live, from a long time back ... now and forever more, all ways, all days ... Creator, Grandmother, Grandfather and all of the others, named and unnamed, known and unknown ... we offer gratitude for all of the gifts. Chi migwech, wewene chi migwech. Thank you.

AHO!
Bama mine,
Dawn Woman
Citizen Potawatomi Nation

3 Sisters Garden

Potawatomi Garden Vocabulary:

Beans = kojesek (koe-jess-uck)

Blueberries = min

Corn = ndamen (mdom-in)

Earth = sekmek (suge-muk)

Feast = wewesnakewin

Fire = shkode (sh-ko-day)

Garden = Gtegan (get-tuh-gone)

Gourd = shishigwIn

Moon = tpukises

Mother Earth = Sekmekwe (suge-muk-kway)

Pumpkin = wapkon

Red = mskwa (muh-shkwa)

Sister = nwidgeko

Smoke = bkwe (bek-way)

South = we’jgzhate’k

Squash = kwesmen (kwes-men)

Strawberries = demen (day-men)

Summer = Niben (nee-ben)

Three = nswe

Water = mbish

Wild Rice = (meh-no-men)

Wind = noden (no-den)

Potawatomi Sacred Plants Vocabulary:

Cedar = kishki

Sage = wabshkebyek

Sweetgrass = wishkpemishkos

Tobacco = se’ma

Fall Beauty Way

Bozho Jayek and Greetings All,

This season, being one of balance between the solstices, brings us the opportunity to gather in social ceremony to honor our root chakra and internal balances, and to invite in its companion energy of harmony. Our internal balances mirror the external balances in many of the things we say, think, do and feel. Honoring the Medicine Wheel Teachings allows us to remember this ancient WAY by which we may continue to move in conscious fine attunement, discover new aspects and restore balances when and where needed, forged or requested from Spirit, Sekmekwe Mine Gizes ... our Mother Earth and our Father Sky-Sun ...

This is a balance time. A time to move in beauty from our focused center in a physical way, that our teachings may be unique, dynamic and personal ... beginning in the center, moving out and back into an evolved center. The great mystery will unfold for each of us in a way that is compatible with our personal frequencies. Drum a little if you get the chance and have a light feasting meal with water for a conclusion.

I look forward to hearing from many of you. We need one another more than ever, at this time. Let us gather and move on our beauty path together.

Bama mine,

Dawn Woman 

Above is an example of a small, single wall honeysuckle basket from a Brittany Cuevas workshop at the Longhouse. The basket (gokbenagen) was later decorated with red and white buffalo hair yarn.

Autumn Equinox Sunrise

Excerpts from 'Spirit Talk': The animals often associated with [the West direction] are the bear and the deer. However, many people find that personal affinities with each of the directions may reveal themselves differently in time … Personal colors and animals may be added alongside the universal [Medicine Wheel] motifs, as contacts, experience, familiarity, and intuition accrues with the seasons … [West] is a direction of deep return and recognition. The west receives us in our mysterious entirety … links the physical plane—west, with the mental plane—east … With the arrival of Autumn, we reach a culmination of medicines and seasons. Our harvests, the time of gathering and picking is among the most mysterious, gathering these secretive and familial beings, the beings of seed. We can join our essences with theirs—our dualities, singularities, multiplicities, and universalities, unique and connected upon all directions of the Medicine Wheel, but especially the direction of the west in the autumn, twilight of the year. 

Fall Beauty Way

Bozho Jayek and Greetings All,

This season, being one of balance between the solstices, brings us the opportunity to gather in social ceremony to honor our root chakra and internal balances, and to invite in its companion energy of harmony. Our internal balances mirror the external balances in many of the things we say, think, do and feel. Honoring the Medicine Wheel Teachings allows us to remember this ancient WAY by which we may continue to move in conscious fine attunement, discover new aspects and restore balances when and where needed, forged or requested from Spirit, Sekmekwe Mine Gizes ... our Mother Earth and our Father Sky-Sun ...

This is a balance time. A time to move in beauty from our focused center in a physical way, that our teachings may be unique, dynamic and personal ... beginning in the center, moving out and back into an evolved center. The great mystery will unfold for each of us in a way that is compatible with our personal frequencies. Drum a little if you get the chance and have a light feasting meal with water for a conclusion.

I look forward to hearing from many of you. We need one another more than ever, at this time. Let us gather and move on our beauty path together.

Bama mine,

Dawn Woman 

Above is an example of a small, single wall honeysuckle basket from a Brittany Cuevas workshop at the Longhouse. The basket (gokbenagen) was later decorated with red and white buffalo hair yarn.

Autumn Equinox Sunrise

Excerpts from 'Spirit Talk': The animals often associated with [the West direction] are the bear and the deer. However, many people find that personal affinities with each of the directions may reveal themselves differently in time … Personal colors and animals may be added alongside the universal [Medicine Wheel] motifs, as contacts, experience, familiarity, and intuition accrues with the seasons … [West] is a direction of deep return and recognition. The west receives us in our mysterious entirety … links the physical plane—west, with the mental plane—east … With the arrival of Autumn, we reach a culmination of medicines and seasons. Our harvests, the time of gathering and picking is among the most mysterious, gathering these secretive and familial beings, the beings of seed. We can join our essences with theirs—our dualities, singularities, multiplicities, and universalities, unique and connected upon all directions of the Medicine Wheel, but especially the direction of the west in the autumn, twilight of the year.