As Clan Mother for my family, I begin my teachings with this:
There were 500 + Indigenious Nations when the whites first came to this country. To call us Native Americans is to take away who we are and meld us together. We were not Indians. We were The First People - Indigenious to this great land. My family is a blend of Cherokee and Pottawatomie. Because the ways were maternalistic, we follow the path of the Cherokee. It is difficult to watch the nations teachings be blended and the people only be known as Native American.
This, I was taught. The Cherokee move counter-clockwise in Circle because we hold the balance. We do not walk the red road - we walk the white path of peace.
In the circle stand and face the east.
East.................Red (Ah-gee-guh-gay)
East = Di-ka-lv-gv-i (Dee-kah-luh-guh-ee)
This morning I turn to the East where the color is red and I make a new beginning this day. I say siyo Edoda Wado and honor the Eagle, (Awohali)
who, is the Animal of the East gate.
North.................Blue (Cha-koo-nay-guh)
North = Tsu-yv-tsv-i (Choo-yuh-chuh-ee)
I am Tsalagi, so I turn to the North, where the color is Blue and the Bear is the keeper of the Dreamlodge. It is the place of the Frozen Pond and where the Ancestors speak to me. It is unlimited potential that they speak to me of. The Ancestors tell me, it is my own heart that can warm what is locked in the frozen Pond and release this unlimited potential. I ask them for guidance and they send me to the West.
West....................Black (Guh-hnah-gay-ee)
West = Wu-de-li-gv-i (Woo-day-lee-guh-ee)
It is in the West where the color is Black and it is in the West where I find the spirit and animal guides, the teachers and lessons of the Darkness. There I discover the Owl watches there because Uguku sees things in the dark that nothing else does. I recognize that if it were not for the Darkness, I would not understand the Light. By that, it is a Light unto itself. It is in humbleness and humility that I move through this place and on to the South.
South..............White (Yoh-nay-guh)
South = Tsu-ga-na-wv-i (Choo-gah-nah-wuh-ee In the South, the color is White and Awi, the Deer teaches me of the sweetness of innocence. She is curious, she is tenacious, she can endure hard winters, she is swift to exit and preserve when danger is present. I give thanks and continue on the Wheel of Life.
We walk this path together and honor the Ancestors who walked it before us. It is all about Relationship. From there, the needs of the many are first before the needs of oneself.