Meditation Journal - Why Jones Gap?

There are those who will be able to create change best on a global level. I feel more suited to a local habitat. Jones Gap is close to home for me. It has grown in meaning and importance in my life over the years. As one from Native American ancestry, I have found tremendous impetus to spiritual growth and change in this particular area I call my Medicine place. It has become a place of visions and enlightenment. It is here where I learned my connectedness to all of creation on a most significant plane of understanding. This beautiful mountain gorge has become a healing place and a school of higher learning. It was here in Jones Gap where I learned I was not the center of all that is. Here I have been able to connect with the ancients as well as the here and now ecology of this environment. Jones Gap is a microcosm of the whole of Mother Earth, and the entirety of the universe.

This is one place I can write about because of my familiarity in both a spiritual and physical way. As I walk the trails, or venture beyond the trails, I can watch the innocence and purity of the great Circle of Life unfold from its primordial birth to its present day and beyond, to the future. It is one place where, perhaps I can make some small contribution toward the wellness of us all.

Caring for a place is caring for the spirit that sustains me from day to day. Nature is honest. It cannot tell lies. All humans lie. There are no masks, no posturing, and no manipulation that has ever come from our Earth Mother. She is honest, pure and true in every aspect. Because Creator’s life giving spirit flows the same through her as it does through all of us, then indeed, the possibilities are endless. Who I can become, becomes limitless. My self-imposed boundaries become absurd. An old Sioux proverb says, Mitaku Oyasin. We are all related.

In my understanding, Creator’s spirit flows the same through you, me, the trees, the animals, water, sky and even the rocks. We are not different from these. We are not higher than these. We cannot live without Mother Earth. Mother Earth cannot live without our responsible care and understanding. What ever we do to her effects us all. We are all related means the birds, the fox, the trees and the rocks are all my brothers and sisters. We are one in the same. We possess the same molecular energy, as well as the same spirit life force within us.

My Cree name was given to me by someone very special to my life. The name, po’wakan maskwa, carries a great depth of meaning: Guardian of all relations. It carries with it a “mantle” of responsibility. That is my medicine. Where better to begin, than where Creator has me, here and now? Jones Gap is my here and now.

Meditation Journal - See As We See

Not long after the initial vision with Little Deer (Awanita) along the hiking trail at Jones Gap, I returned at the behest of a new friend I met along the Red Road. His name is John, a Cherokee and member of the Long Hair clan. John is a flute maker, storyteller and artist. He said I was to bring certain items with me to offer in ceremonial prayer to encourage another meeting with Little Deer. I was to bring a ceramic bowl, white sage, sweet grass and tobacco. I found the right tobacco, while John and his wife, Jean provided me with white sage and sweet grass.

According to my instructions, I needed to find the same location on the trail where the first vision had taken place. However, I arrived that Saturday morning to find the parking lot filled almost to capacity. I knew performing this ceremony along the main hiking trail would be awkward at best with so many visitors around. As I approached the main trail, my attention diverted to a small side trail that went off more toward the mountainside. I felt led to take this trail instead, as I knew it would tend to escape the notice of others.

The near moment after stepping off the main thoroughfare, Awanita was there to meet me. She was small and wore a dress made of skins, as she did when we first met. Her long dark hair pulled back into a single braid that extended well past her delicate shoulders. She quietly walked behind me and slightly to my right as we followed the trail into the woods. I look back toward her a couple of times, to reassure myself. Each time, she looked back up toward me and made eye contact with a soft smile, as if to be reassuring. I continued walking upward along a bend in the path until I came upon an elevated circle of land surrounded by a few large trees and some rocks. Beyond this circle lay huge boulders that climbed the mountainside.

Upon reaching the circle, I unpacked my knapsack to prepare for the ceremony. While following the instructions of my friend, I made a tobacco offering to the four directions as I prayed. Then I lighted the smudge made of white sage and sweet grass. I spoke with my spirit companion and invited her people to be with us. As I did this, I tried to quiet my mind and remain sensitive to who would come. However, I felt no one’s presence, but hers. To complicate matters, the sage would not stay lit. I attempted to light it and keep the sacred mixture burning, but to no avail. As a result, I was unable to quiet my own spirit - so much so, that I was missing what was occurring all around me. I could sense that Awanita was kneeling behind me, slightly to my right. She placed her hand on my back and began to pray. She finally said of my repeated attempts to keep the sage lit, “You do not need to do that. They are here.” I looked up, suddenly aware of their presence surrounding me.

I was at peace now, and settled into a gentle meditation to receive come what may. Briefly, during this time, I saw an image I was not at all expecting - the face of a bear looking out from the hollow of a very large tree. I was somewhat concerned because he was starring at me rather intently. He seemed to be studying me very closely, measuring me. There was nothing aggressive about him. Still, I could not escape his presence, which exuded so much power and strength. My two perceptions of this remarkable animal were that he was a protecting and guiding spirit of these people, and that might become the same to me by extension of my relationship with the people.

As these events transpired, the young woman continued to rest her hand on my back as she prayed. I could feel she was imparting something into me. I found myself nourished in my spirit by her prayers and by her touch. After what seemed to be about one half hour of time, I felt directed to look up. As I did, the view of the forest and the mountains around me illuminated with a warm, life giving light from the unseen world. Everything looked different somehow, more special - more my own. Awanita spoke.

“See as we see.” That was all she said. It was all she needed to say. To quote Black Elk, an Oglala Sioux medicine man:

“And while I stood there I saw more than I could tell, and I understood more than I saw; for I was seeing in a sacred manner the shapes of things in the spirit, and shape of all shapes as the must live together like one being.” From Black Elk Speaks - John Neihardt.

See as wee see. This meant so many things to me - not only to see the tragedy that befell these people through their eyes, but everything; Jones Gap, the Earth Mother, all of life, and the spirit world. This revelation was both wonderful and hard to swallow. Soon, the illumination in the forest dimmed, and all was as it had been. I basked in the sweetness of what had taken place, but soon realized it was time to leave. I packed my gear and proceeded back toward the main trail. Awanita walked behind me, slightly to my right, as before. Once again, I glanced back and she made eye contact with and smiled.

Finally, as we approached the main trail about fifty feet ahead, I sensed she had stopped. I turned and looked back. Awanita stood in the middle of the path and raised her right hand, palm facing out, signaling me not to approach. Without speaking words, she said goodbye. She turned and walked away. I stood and watched, amazed, as her steps became a slow trot. Suddenly, the illumination returned to the forest, lighting everything in a magical way. As Awanita jogged up the trail and began to turn with the path, she looked back toward me one last time. In my spirit, I could hear her reminder. “See as we see.” Then her image faded into thin air as she ran off into the woods.

An important transformation was taking place in me. I stood there undone, only to begin anew - a new path - a returning to the deep inner longings of my youth being touched by the mysteries of the Earth and her Creator.

Post script: While driving home from Jones Gap that day, I entered a valley that sits peacefully before the mountains. I have driven through here possibly fifty times before. However, this day I happened to see a small, barely noticable sign posted next to a tree. It simply read, Awanita Valley. Coincidence?

Meditation Journal - The Old Woman's Gift

As I contemplated the call to write what would become Jones Gap Chronicles and attempt to share the story of the lives of these beautiful people, I realized there were problems to overcome. I became deeply concerned that I would not have, within myself, what it would take to write the story Little Deer (Awanita) wanted me to tell. One evening I sat quietly and began the practice of emptying my mind in meditation to seek my answers.

An old Indian woman sat across from me with her eyes closed as I prayed. She was chanting a song. I sat paralyzed - partly because I was surprised with the vision I was experiencing during this meditation time, and partly because I felt held fast, apprehended by a power outside myself.

The chanting came to a stop. The old woman opened her eyes and looked at me. I looked into her eyes as she picked up a blowgun and aimed it directly at me while placing one end of it into her mouth. She blew into the slender wooden tube and a kernel of corn exited the open end of the blowgun. The kernel traveled slowly toward me and entered me between my eyes. I briefly felt its energy as it made contact with me, penetrating my mind and my spirit. The old woman seemed pleased. Then she vanished.

I understood these three things from this vision:
1) The kernel of corn was a seed of spiritual value.
2) Between my eyes was symbolic of my third eye.
3) That I had been given a gift; the gift I would need to tell their story.

Meditation Journal - The Vision for Jones Gap Chronicles

A couple of years ago I made an afternoon trip to Jones Gap by myself. I just wanted to spend some quality time alone in nature. I often feel this internal hunger for the out of doors and to reconnect with my own true self. The woods and the mountains seem to be the only place I can accomplish this. It’s always been an internal drive I could never quite explain.

On this day, as I walked along a path, my quite time and space was invaded by an awareness that I wasn’t alone. I began to hear the fleeting sounds of children, running and laughing as if at play. Then, out of the corner of my eye, with peripheral vision, I saw several young children running down through a small hollow, through the trees. I could only see them for a second or two before they vanished out of sight. A moment later and there - I saw them again; and again. Each glimpse lasted only seconds before they once again slipped from view. What caught my attention the most about them was that they were obviously Indian, or Native American as the current popular term goes. I felt a little turned around, as they were never in the same place twice. Kids rarely ever are.

Obviously, I was both perplexed and concerned. Yet both feelings gave way to calm and then anticipation that someone else was coming near. As I stopped again and faced the side of the mountain before me; the direction from which I sensed the arriving presence, I was immediately startled by someone standing on my right. I looked to see a younger Indian woman, a Cherokee, standing next to me. I knew I was experiencing a vision, or apparition of sorts, as she was more translucent than solid in her physical form. She began talking to me and I stood dumbfounded and stunned. I cannot remember all that she said, other than to say she spoke of a tragedy; an injustice to her people. She said, “They are here now.” I looked back up to the mountainside and saw person after person scattered throughout the steep incline, in between the trees. Young men, some with painted faces, women and elderly all looking at me. Some looked through eyes of anger, others through eyes of sadness. You could not escape the fact that there was much hurt and pain. But, I still understood nothing of what I was experiencing here. The woman told me to write about what happened here; that they wanted others to know.

I looked back up to the mountainside and no one was there. I looked back toward the woman and she was gone. The experience, the moment, was over; the presence I sensed was gone. I stood trembling, looking around me in all directions only to realize I was once again on a path in the woods all alone. I went home changed, touched somehow, and sad. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know what she was describing to me. I thought, if I am to write about what happened there….what happened there? She gave no details that I could recall. I was left with thinking I was either crazy, spiritually inept, or she / they simply mistook me for some other guy. My choices were dwindling fast as I considered another possibility. I could not walk away from this experience without considering the possibility that this was true and that what was being asked of me was a part of my destiny that had to be fulfilled.

My Medicine Place in Jones Gap

Here, I listen to the rocks and the trees. Here, Raven calls my name into the spirit world, and I worship Creator in a Temple His hands have made. I have only to touch the rocks and the trees to hear His words of love spoken over me. The waters of the Saluda bathe my spirit in His goodness. The ancient ones come to me here and offer me visions of the past, the present and the future. They are all one. There is oneness. It is here where I have witnessed the tragedy of the Cherokee people and the richness of their lives before they were cut down by Lt. Colonel Archibald Montgomery and his men. I saw the time when their children played with complete abandon among the hollows that run along the river.

It is here where Little Deer said to take my place among my people where I belong, and to “see as we see.” It is in this place where I am learning of my role as both patriarch and healer. This is my Medicine Place, where my spirit grows and has been nurtured by the Great One, the Great Mystery of the universe, the Spirit that moves in all things. He is both gentle and wilder than a raging storm. He can not be tamed by human kind. He will not be manipulated behind closed doors. This is my religion, my life, and within, my purpose for living.

In my Medicine Place, I have learned to shed notions of separateness, dominion and superiority, preferring to call Earth my mother, and all of creation, my sisters and my brothers. Nearly nine years ago, as I looked upon the hills and mountains that surrounded my new home, Creator spoke two very clear words: "Paradigm Shift." Nothing has been the same since then. Now the journey begins to find my way back to the land of my people. They are of the Algonquin family of tribes and languages. They are the Metis' (Cree and Ojibwe). Perhaps, I'll never have to travel further than my Medicine Place, because I have come to feel so akin to the Cherokee, and they are here. This has yet to be revealed to me. I can hardly wait to see how Creator pulls this one off.

Ancient Cree Prophecy ~ The Beginning

There was an old lady, from the Cree tribe, named "Eyes of Fire", who prophesied that one day, because of the white mans' or Yo-ne-gis' greed, there would come a time, when the fish would die in the streams, the birds would fall from the air. The waters would be blackened, and the trees would no longer be, humankind, as we would know it would all but cease to exist.

There would come a time when the "keepers of the legend, stories, culture rituals, and myths, and all the Ancient Tribal Customs" would be needed to restore us to health. They would be humankind’s key to survival, they were the "Warriors of the Rainbow". There would come a day of awakening when all the people of all the tribes would form a New World of Justice, Peace, Freedom and recognition of the Great Spirit.

The "Warriors of the Rainbow" would spread these messages and teach all people of the Earth or "Elohi". They would teach them how to live the "Way of the Great Spirit".They would tell them of how the world today has turned away from the Great Spirit and that is why our Earth is "Sick".

The "Warriors of the Rainbow" would show the people that this "Ancient Being" (the Great Spirit), is full of love and understanding, and teach them how to make the Earth (Elohi) beautiful again. These Warriors would give the people principles or rules to follow to make their path right with the world. These principles would be those of the Ancient Tribes. The Warriors of the Rainbow would teach the people of the ancient practices of Unity, Love and Understanding.

They would teach of Harmony among people in all four corners of the Earth.Like the Ancient Tribes, they would teach the people how to pray to the Great Spirit with love that flows like the beautiful mountain stream, and flows along the path to the ocean of life. Once again, they would be able to feel joy in solitude and in councils. They would be free of petty jealousies and love all humankind as their brothers, regardless of color, race or religion. They would feel happiness enter their hearts, and become as one with the entire human race.

Their hearts would be pure and radiate warmth, understanding and respect for all humankind, Nature, and the Great Spirit. They would once again fill their minds, hearts, souls, and deeds with the purest of thoughts. They would seek the beauty of the Master of Life - the Great Spirit!

They would find strength and beauty in prayer and the solitudes of life.

Their children would once again be able to run free and enjoy the treasures of Nature and Mother Earth. Free from the fears of toxins and destruction, wrought by the Yo-ne-gi and his practices of greed. The rivers would again run clear, the forests would return abundant and beautiful, the animals and birds would be replenished. The powers of the plants and animals would once again be respected and conservation of all that is beautiful would become a way of life.

Their brothers and sisters of the Earth would care for the poor, sick and needy. These practices would again become a part of their daily lives.

The leaders of the people would be chosen in the old way - not by their political party, or who could speak the loudest, boast the most, or by name-calling or mud slinging, but by those whose actions spoke the loudest. Those who demonstrated their love, wisdom, and courage and those who showed that they could and did work for the good of all would be chosen as the leaders or Chiefs.

They would be chosen by their "quality" and not the amount of money they had obtained. Like the thoughtful and devoted "Ancient Chiefs", they would understand the people with love, and see that their young were educated with the love and wisdom of their surroundings. They would show them that miracles could be accomplished to heal this world of its ills, and restore it to health and beauty.

The tasks of these "Warriors of the Rainbow" are many and great. There will be terrifying mountains of ignorance to conquer and they shall find prejudice and hatred. They must be dedicated, unwavering in their strength, and strong of heart. They will find willing hearts and minds that will follow them on this road of returning "Mother Earth" to beauty and plenty once more.

The day will come. It is not far away. In that day, we shall see how we owe our very existence to the people of all tribes that have maintained their culture and heritage, those that have kept the rituals, stories, legends, and myths alive. It will be with this knowledge, the knowledge that they have preserved, that we shall once again return to "harmony" with Nature, Mother Earth, and humankind. It will be with this knowledge that we shall find our "Key to our Survival".

This is the story of the "Warriors of the Rainbow" and this is my reason for protecting the culture, heritage, and knowledge of my ancestors. I know that the day "Eyes of Fire" spoke of will come! I want my children and grandchildren to be prepared to accept this task, the task of being one of the... "Warriors of the Rainbow." Author Unknown