SHERRI MITCHELL

Sherri Mitchell on Indigenous Wisdom for Our Times

by Linda Sechrist

Author of Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change, Sherri Mitchell (Weh’na Ha’mu Kwasset) has been an attorney, spiritual teacher and indigenous rights activist for more than 25 years. Born and raised on the Penobscot Indian Reservation, she draws upon her ancestral knowledge to address environmental protection, social justice and spiritual change, offering a set of cultural values to help preserve our collective survival for future generations.

Why is a deeper understanding of the foundational laws of creation so important now?

What people really need to understand about the laws of attraction and manifestation, which are foundational laws of creation, is that humans have been manifesting the reality they’ve been living in for a very, very long time. Connected by the laws of entanglement, whatever we are giving life ing to the law of motion, this is going to stay in motion until it meets with an equal or greater force. That force is us. We need to stand in the path of the energy we have created and actively stop its movement. We need to transform the energetic pattern of it and shift it in another direction. to, whatever we are thinking, speaking and breathing out is creating the current that What is colonization? is manifesting the storm we are currently It’s difficult to talk about colonization in living. We are co-creators of this reality, and sound bites because it’s a complex subject. it is time to move beyond the kindergar- With regard to history, colonization was ten-level of the law of attraction and take about taking over lands occupied by an conscious responsibility for what we are ac- indigenous population. The romanticized tively creating, whether we intend it or not, myth of colonization, the settling of the because we are creating and putting things Americas, was unsettling. The language into motion all the time. We, as spiritual surrounding colonization makes it sound beings having a human experience, need to as if it was a wonderful thing, when it was begin taking grown-up responsibility and actually disruptive, destructive and filled move beyond the childlike dependence that with violence and domination. colonization has imprinted within us. Moving into and taking over an

Human beings have set in motion all already occupied area to gain and maintain the ideologies and beliefs that are currently control over resources is an act of congoverning and manifesting the reality that quest and domination. We are not living we step into, moment-by-moment. Accord- in a post-colonial era. Colonization, like 28 Morris, Union, Sussex & Essex County Edition NaturalAwakeningsNJ.com capitalism, reaches what appears to be an end point, and then it turns around and begins cannibalizing itself. For example, we’re seeing colonization of the commons—companies taking control of the majority of the Earth’s drinking and potable water and making a statement that human beings don’t have a right to that water. Water should be part of the commons and available to everyone equally.

Cannibalization by ongoing colonization is also happening to our air through the Paris Agreement. Trading for shares of clean air through a carbon credit program is the greatest smoke-and-mirrors scam of our time. We are in the midst of the “Dance of the Cannibal Giant” with colonization and capitalism as key players.

What is the Dance of the Cannibal Giant?

It’s an indigenous extinction story for the human species. There are a number of them relevant to the times we are living in. In the Wabanaki tradition, Giwakwa, the cannibal giant, lives deep in the forest and only awakens to the Earth mother’s distressed cry. This lets Giwakwa know that humans are consuming faster than she can produce and harming her faster than she can heal. Awakened, Giwakwa plays music on his flute that dances people into frenzied, mindless, faster and faster consumption until they consume themselves off the planet, giving Mother Earth the opportunity to heal and renew. These indigenous extinction stories are active now across the globe.

The only way to put the cannibal giant back to sleep is for us to wake up fully to the fact that the Earth is being damaged at a rate far greater than she can heal herself, and that there are many species on the verge of extinction. We are one of them. People must be incredibly discerning now. They must get grounded in their center to listen and heed the direction of their inner compass that will guide them in a right direction.

For more information, visit SacredInstructions.life.

Linda Sechrist is a senior staff writer for Natural Awakenings.

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Stand Taller and Return to Balance by Edward Hemberger

The presence of or increase in connective tissue, known as fascia, held physical pain may appear to be the key to structural re-balancing and sudden, however, the road to from this a more aligned, energized person physical body constraint begins at birth. would emerge. These soft-tissue mobilizaThe culprit is gravity. tion techniques realign the body so that it

Dr. Ida Rolf recognized that the earth’s returns to its natural posture. gravity exerts a continuous influence on This means patients get taller. the balance of the body, locking into place Pilot studies conducted by Dr. Thomas any of the distortions caused by injury, Findley with patients at the VA hospital poor posture or post-surgical scarring. in East Orange found height increased Systematically manipulating the pliable by .5” on average after 10 Rolf Structural

Integration sessions. Additional pilot studies found even greater increases up to 2”. The premise is simple: when all body parts are in perfect alignment and compaction is released, the effect of gravity is minimized on the spine and other parts are less compressed. The patient is then able to stand taller which leads to an overall height increase. Balance between the inner core and the outer sleeve is reestablished with an accompanying increase in vitality and vigour.

This is a scientifically validated process of restructuring the body through movement, touch and education. It is a process of treatments (usually but not always a 10-series process) to correct imbalances brought on by years of poor posture, improper use of the body (such as carrying heavy loads on one side), stress, injury, trauma and other factors. As the body moves away from the debilitating effects of muscular imbalances with their associated tension and pain, movement becomes more fluid and effortless, bringing longterm relief to aches, pains and other problems related to the body’s structure. Ease in movement shows up in everyday activities as well as in sports and the performing arts. A number of well-known sports people and dancers credit this approach with enhancing or extending their careers. Consider Structural Integration Rolf Method to get back to where you belong.

Edward Hemberger, LMT, is a Certified Structural Integration specialist based on the Rolf Method, with additional training with Advanced Rolfer Dr. Thomas Findley. Additional therapies include (ART) Active Release Therapy, Muscle Release Therapy, and Neuromuscular Therapy. He served as a massage therapist in the 2002 and 2004 Olympics, and has worked with the Navigators Pro Cycling team, Rutgers football team, New Jersey Jackals, and started the New Jersey Sports Massage Team, as well as served as a Board Member for the AMTA.

Location: Offices in Boonton and Montclair. For more information, contact Ed at 973-462-3112 or ed_hemberger@verizon. net. HembergerStructuralIntegration.com. See ad, page 33.

Thankful

by Isabella Dussias

While teens are frustrated with the fact that this virus is taking its time to dissipate, we want to remain thankful for what we have. Over the past nine months, many adjustments have been made to our way of life—a new look for school and sports, cancelled milestone events and an adjustment to our new “virtual world”. We’ve had to learn to be flexible in this fluid environment. It is easy to become frustrated, yet we have found a new appreciation for things we may have taken for granted before: an appreciation of health, certain conveniences and scheduled activities.

While sometimes we can get caught up in what is annoying or inconvenient, we cannot be upset with the fact that some things take longer to accomplish now because of precautions.

When I recently polled my peers about what

Isabella Dussias they are thankful for. The answers they shared are similar to the ones expressed before the pandemic. Teens are grateful for their health, their families, their friends and their schools. Teens are generally hopeful, and still thankful beyond the frustrations. We just want to learn and laugh with our friends, spend time with our families and do so safely as we look to our future.

Here’s to a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!

Isabella Dussias is a 17-year-old singer-songwriter/ composer from New Jersey. She enjoys writing about issues that are important to today’s youth, and she believes music is an important outlet to connect people and share messages through the creativity of lyric and melody. For more information, please visit IsabellaDussias.com.