Sharing Circle

Water Spirit Missamashoe which is found on the Goulais Bay reservation. (by Craig McKay)

When my husband and I met, one of the things that we talked about was that although neither of us were of the “first peoples” or Native Americans, that we had a tremendous respect for Native Americans and their cultures and ways of seeing the world.

That respect, and admiration, was one of the reasons why this website came into being.

I noticed in the log that people had come here looking for the “seven teachings” which of course, until now, they did not find.

Gaani Aki Inini (Dave Courchene Jr.) is an Ojibway (Anishabe) Elder who shared the following seven teachings with the world on the webpage of the turtle lodge.

Follow me on the flip and you’ll see that this timeless wisdom still offers us a great deal to strive toward today.  (more…)

Sharing Circle

It is my understanding that in first nation traditions, (Native American and other indigenous peoples) that one of the things they would do is to come together in a sharing circle. A sharing circle is an opportunity to come together and talk about what is on your mind and heart, what you want the community to know, and things of that nature. These sharing circles doubtless brought and kept their communities closer together. In modern mainstream America, one of the things that are said again and again in surveys is that people feel isolated and they feel no sense of community. That is what this website, I think, is about…to give people a chance and space to share their feelings, thoughts, and their knowledge.

But a “sharing circle” was not the only kind of circle that some first nation peoples held.

(more…)