"In the distance of my years I cover myself with time
Like a blanket which enfolds me with the layers of my life.
What can I tell you except that I have gone
nowhere and everywhere?
What can I tell you except that I have not begun
my journey now that it is through?
All that I ever was and am yet to be
lies within me now this way.

There is the Young Boy in me traveling east
With the Eagle which taught me to see far and wide.
The Eagle took his distance and said,
There is a Time for Rising Above
So that you do not think
Your small world too important.
There is a time for turning your vision toward the sky.

There is the Young Girl in me traveling west
With the Bear which taught me to look inside.
The Bear stood by himself and said,
There is a Time for Being Alone
So that you do not take on
The appearance of your friends.
There is a time for being at home with yourself.

There is the Old Man in me traveling north
With the Buffalo which taught me wisdom.
The Buffalo disappeared and said,
There is a Time for Believing Nothing
So that you do not speak
What you have already heard.
There is a Time for Keeping Quiet.

There is the Old Woman in me traveling south
With the Mouse which taught me my limitations.
The Mouse lay close to the ground and said,
There is a Time for Taking Comfort in Small Things
So that you do not feel
Forgotten in the night.
There is a Time for enjoying the Worm.

That is the way it was.
That is the way it shall continue
With the Eagle and the Bear
With the Buffalo and the Mouse
In all directions joined with me
To form the circle of my life.

I am an Eagle.
The small world laughs at my deeds.
But the great sky keeps to itself
My thoughts of immortality.

I am a Bear.
In my solitude I resemble the wind.
I blow the clouds together
So they form images of my friends.

I am a Buffalo.
My voice echoes inside my mouth.
All that I have learned in life
I share with the smoke of my fire.

I am a Mouse.
My life is beneath my nose.
Each time that I journey toward the horizon
I find a hole instead."

---- Nancy Wood

Resonates... Thank you...

Always welcome, Storm..

-------------------------

"Humility is probably the most difficult virtue to realize."

---- Thomas Yellowtail, CROW

"Each of the four directions has special powers. These powers or Grandfathers are there to help us. The powers are from the East, the South, the West, and the North. To call upon the power we need to stand in the center and face each of the directions and honor all forms of life in each direction. Facing the East we honor all the two legged, four legged, winged ones, plants' nation and the animals. We repeat this prayer in each of the four directions.

This allows us to become centered. When we are centered, then we are ready to call the helpers. It is said, when the student is ready, the teacher appears. If we are to be ready, we need to remember to always get quiet first. We do this by honoring and praying to the four directions."

---- Elly Blue Ridge

"...when faithful human beings or other creatures called upon them for help, they [the Powers of the Four Directions] must send their powers..."

---- Fools Crow, LAKOTA

"When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home."

---- Tecumseh

"Show respect to all people, but grovel to none."

---- Tecumseh

"When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living.

If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself."

---- Tecumseh

"Live your life.., that the fear of death can never enter your heart."

---- Tecumseh

"Words hypnotize and deceive everyone at one time or another, but these hypnotic words cannot last long in the hearts of true warriors."

---- Barney Bush, SHAWNEE

"We are a part of an interconnected system. Words in themselves have no meaning. It is the spirit and intent behind the words that really show the meaning. We are connected to each other at the center of the atom which makes up the air and our body.

The center of the air's atom system is connected to the center of our body's system. I am connected to you and you are connected to me in the center of our being. If my words have no meaning, you can feel this through the center of your being."

---- Elly Blue Ridge

This was/is a great man.., in my own pathway... I use a lot of his quotes in here.., but it is even more so, about what he did and does.., that makes him so very special to me..

Phil�mayaye, Grandfather..

Frank Fools Crow

Frank Fools Crow (circa 1890 - 1989) was a deeply ��respected Oglala Lakota civic and religious leader. 'Grandfather', or 'Grandpa Frank' as he was often called, was a nephew of Black Elk who worked to preserve Lakota traditions, including the Sun Dance and yuwipi ceremonies. He supported Lakota sovereignty and treaty rights, and was a leader of the traditional faction during the armed standoff at Wounded Knee in 1973. With writer Thomas E. Mails, he produced two books about his life and work, Fools Crow in 1979, and Fools Crow: Wisdom and Power in 1980.

Fools Crow was born near Porcupine Creek on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota on either June 24 or 27 between 1890 and 1892. His father, Fools Crow, who was also called Eagle Bear, was the Porcupine District leader. His mother was Spoon Hunter, who died four days after giving birth to him. She was the daughter of Porcupine Tail, for whom the community was named. His paternal grandfather, Knife Chief, fought with warriors who defeated Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn, and his great–grandfather, Holds the Eagle, was a medicine man and holy man, or Wičháša Wakȟáŋ.

Raised in the traditional way by his father, aunt, and stepmother Emily Big Road, he did not attend "the white man's school" as his father did not approve. This is why he did not speak fluent English. As a young man he traveled around the United States with the Buffalo Bill Cody Wild West Show. He spent much of his life serving his people as a medicine man, healer, and teacher. [1]

His first wife, Fannie Afraid of Hawk, died in 1954. His second wife, Kate, died in October 1988. Fools Crow died on November 27, 1989 near Kyle, SD.

He is believed to have been 99 years old.

(EDITED IN LENGTH)

---> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Fools_Crow

"What could be greater than to be Wakan-Tanka's mind, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, arms, hands, legs, and feet here on Earth?"

---- Fools Crow, LAKOTA

"Whenever you take anything from the Earth, remember to leave an offering."

---- Joe Coyhis, STOCKBRIDGE-MUNSEE

"In order for the Creator to do His work on this earth, He needs the human being to do it. How He guides us is through our eyes, ears, hands, nose, mouth, arms legs and feet. We are instruments of the Creator. We are His keepers of the Earth. We are the keepers of our brothers. We are to teach His children.

We are to respect the things He has made. We are to take care of ourselves and treat our bodies and our minds with respect. We are to do respectful things. We are to walk the Sacred Path. We should have good thoughts. We should do only things that we think the Creator would have us do. What an honor to be a human being. What an honor that He would talk to us and guide us to perform His wonders."

---- Elly Blue Ridge

"We need to look at nature and its inhabitants as our brothers and sisters. Whenever we pick plants or herbs, we should leave an offering of tobacco. We should talk to the plants and ask their permission to use them.

The plants will feel honored to be of service for each of them knows they are here to serve. Each of them knows they carry a special medicine and this medicine is about continuing the cycle of life. We need always to be grateful to our brothers and sisters."

---- Elly Blue Ridge

"Every animal knows more than you do."

---- Nez Perce

"For me, the essence of a medicine man's life is to be humble, to have great patience, to be close to the Earth, to live as simply as possible, and to never stop learning."

---- Archie Fire Lame Deer, LAKOTA

"IN THE BEGINNING were the Instructions... The Instruction was to live in a good way and be respectful to everybody and everything."

---- Vickie Downey, TEWA/Tesuque Pueblo

"...in Tunkashila, there is no time. Everything moves in the blink of an eye. It's as fast as thought. So there is no speed there. There is no time in between."

---- Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA