Friday, September 24, 2010

Native American Day, Haiku My Heart Friday, 09/24/2010





Haiku My Heart Friday was created by my dear friend Rebecca. To find out how you can participate, or to see more photos and haiku, go to her blog, recuerda mi corazon


Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico sits along the Rio Grande River close to the Elephant Butte dam. The man-made Elephant Butte Lake is the largest in New Mexico, and even though the water levels are low from years of drought and captured, stolen water upstream, the river still flows and the lake survives. A little further downstream, about ten miles, there is another dam and the created body of water is called Caballo Lake.
The area along the entire reaches of the Rio Grande in New Mexico are a migration route for waterfowl, but did you know that the Golden and Bald Eagles fly here and spend much of their Winter? The cactus here are world renowned as well, featuring yuccas, century plants, ocotillos, cow tongues, prickly pears and more in actual cactus gardens. All of this can be experienced in Caballo Lake State Park.
It was before sunrise, with the Eastern sky brightening over the Caballo Mountains where the Haiku photo was taken. Click on it to enlarge and see the lines of formated geese, wings beating strong, flying against the back drop of azure brightness. They stick close to the water and will inhabit this area for a while. The eagles come later in October and November.




Winging their way South
Relentless ever moving
Sun tipped wings in flight

I love the clear skies that are prevalent here with the average of 308 days of sunshine per year. I have camped at the Caballo Lake State Park in mid Winter over the years. I can count on a beautiful sunrise almost daily, as the photos below, of this particular bright and beautiful day, will attest.

It's getting light

Gonna be a good one

Almost here

Pretty soon

Ahhhhhhhhh

I love the natural order of life. Seems the human beings are the only ones that don’t have a seasonal ritual any longer, at least most don’t. Some do, as seen on these pages with references to the full moon each month, the solstices and equinoxes.  The indigenous tribes did until the Columbus holocaust started. Today, the fourth Friday in September, is Native American Day and the traditions and cultures of the original people of our land are to be honored.
Seems that before things changed for these people, they were nomadic, like these birds, and would change locations with the seasons. They would return when winds and game were favorable, and repeat the cycle yearly as the weather would dictate. Each season had a significance. Every full moon had a name. I look back and see the significance of this connection between the four legged, the swimmers, the crawlers and the winged ones and wonder how the two legged can adjust to the natural world once again. Maybe the answer is in the wisdom of the ancient people. Maybe we can return to some sort of balance if we listen.
To honor the Native first inhabitants of our land and their teachings, I want to say this prayer out loud and share it with you. This prayer, which starts my day, everyday, is a key and keeps me somewhat balanced. 
Creator 
Thank you for the light of day, another day, this new day     (Sunrise, the East)
Thank you for the rest you’ve given us     (Sleep, darkness, the West)
Thank you for the coolness that gives us comfort from the heat   (Cold, North)
And thank you for the warmth that gives us comfort from the cold  (Heat, South)
Thank you for making this Sacred Circle  (The Four Directions)
And thank you for bringing my life into this Sacred Circle
Thank you for listening to the prayers of the people
And thank you for listening to my prayers today
Today I pray for the health and happiness of the people
Peace to all

13 comments:

joco said...

...and thank you for making me come across this post...

Glad I enlarged enough to catch the geese strung out over the light. Very satisfying range of sun-ups.

Mel said...

What a beautiful prayer. And what a gorgeous sunrise to be graced with. Absolutely stunning.....

(((((((( Spadoman )))))))))

Peace to you, sir.

EG CameraGirl said...

Delightful skies. I wish we had more sunshine here in Ontario!

rebecca said...

thank you spadoman for ringing in the morning.
for reminding us to S L O W down
to
sacred.
always you take me to soul nourishing destinations.

may we all walk in beauty and peace.

paper-n-soul said...

The answer IS in the wisdom of the ancients, those who have walked before and who have entrusted us with remembering.

Breath-taking sunrise photos. Soul-stirring words that offer a beautiful homage, as always.

Peace~
Deb

Noelle Clearwater said...

Spadoman,
Beautiful photos of a Sunrise Prayer as all sunrises are prayers in themselves are they not, rising toward heaven, seemingly from beneath the mountains, to kiss the sky and the creator's cheek one more blessed day. Thank you for this lovely haiku and your journeys and days in New Mexico and for honoring the Indigenous people who should not only have a day but a lifetime.
xo,

Noelle

foxysue said...

I was transported on a journey along the river in a strange and beautiful land through your eyes and pics, wondrous!

Thanks for commenting on my Haiku post too.

Ms. Moon said...

Oh, Spadoman. You have the gift.

Spadoman said...

Thank you for stopping here, and thank you for the kind words. I appreciate this very much.

joco... Glad you liked the photos. Mr. Linky made it possible to find eachn other. Thanks to Rebecca for the idea and organization. Thanks for dropping by.

Peace.

Mel... I am so glad you like the prayer. I've wanted to share it for some time. Thanks for being you.

Peace.

EG Wow... We've had a spell of no sunshine since Wednesday! Maybe some will brighten our day today they tell us. Hope you get some too. Thanks for stopping by.

Peace.

Rebecca.. I never would have thought I'd be writing haiku on a regular basis. You may not realize how inspirational you are. I appreciate you coming here, thank you.

Peace.


Paper-n-Soul... You have a fine spirit and soul and I appreciate your words. Theybare true to my beliefs, we are the entrusted ones. So much I could say about this concept. Thank you so much.

Peace.


Noelle Renee... You are absolutely correct, every sunrise is a prayer, and so is every thought, every word spoken.. I spoke at a small event last night that honored the Native people on Native American Day. I started the speech by saying that it is designated as Native American Day, but we should be honoring all people every day of our lives. So, as you suggest, a lifetime devoted to honor and peace. Thank you for coming here.

Peace.


foxysue... Thank you so much for the kind words. Glad this post gave something to you. I appreciate you stopping by Round Circle.

Peace.


Ms. Moon... You are way too kind to me. Any gift I have was given to me by a power greater than myself. Your gift to me was to say that and I appreciate your visit here and the thought.

Peace

Meri said...

A veritable dive into the sacred. I feel blessed.

Spadoman said...

Thank you Meri.. I enjoyed your visit here.

Peace.

Nanka said...

Lovely Haiku and the picture of the geese in flight...Fantastic...Stunning picture of the sunrise well captured.

Lorelei Lane said...

Thank you for posting such a beautiful prayer. I was in need and now I am fulfilled.