Spiritual DNA

I think it is important to honor our ancestors and to get to know more about them. Keep in mind that a touch of each one flows through us. We share their blood, their genes, and so to know them, helps us to understand ourselves better. 

I am proud of the people from whence I came. There is so much more I would like to know about them, but these things I do know. My ancestors were mostly Scottish. They landed in the North, but were treated as outcasts, so they came south and found the mountains of Appalachia, which closely resembled their home country. They were a strong, stubborn, independent people. The Celtic tradition is strong through Appalachia. It influences our language, and particularly our music. The fact that even in the the urban and industrializes times of the 19th-20th centuries, Appalachia remained relatively remote, helped to sustain these traditions. When I think of Hillbillies or Appalachian Americans, as my brother calls us, I think of a proud and strong people with a wonderful sense of humor, great faith, and tenacity. I don't see the stupid rednecks portrayed in Hollywood.

I am proud that my great-great grandfather crossed cultural lines and married a Cherokee woman. The culture of the Scottish and that of the Cherokee are greatly intermingled and our language and unique words reflect that.

Image by Sharon Irla

And so I think about what this says about me. I am of the belief that not only do we inherit the genes of our ancestors, but that we also inherit a touch of their spiritual nature. I believe that it is the spirit of my great-great grandmother who has inspired me and opened my mind to the idea of an Earth Mother. It has always been inside me, this connection to Nature. I never could accept that animals were just animals, but that they are kindred spirits. I also have a close connection with the land and water. In my mind they are living, breathing entities. This seems to follow with not only the Native American Tradition but the Celtic Faere Faith/Celtic Shamanism of Scotland and Ireland
. 

The Faery Faith is based upon the belief that everything in this and otherworlds is alive. That each thing is possessed of its own soul or spirit. This belief is called animism and was prevalent in the Western world before the advent of the Christian religion, which insists that only man has souls or spirits and everything else in the world has been placed here for the use of mankind. 

---Tira Brandon-Evans, Moderator, Society of Celtic Shamans

The Cherokee not only cherished nature but the Woman as well. Each year a "Beloved Woman" (Ghigua)

was chosen by the Council of Women. She was chosen for her bravery and other outstanding qualities. Contrast that to the Christian Tradition of the woman existing for only for their men and being owned and purchased like commodities like we find in the Old Testament. 

I simply cannot see God in the Christian tradition in which I was raised. It seems that there is so much more and I refuse to limit myself to that tradition. I realize that upsets some people, but I also inherited the stubbornness of my Scottish ancestors, so I don't let it bother me. Only God deals with me on that issue. 

There are times I wonder if it is not grandmother who speaks to me when I write. I get in a place of meditation when I write about things of a spiritual nature. No television, no radio. Just silence. And I listen and wait. 

And then I hear a voice. Not in the real world, but in my spirit. It is the same as when I am harmonizing when my family sings southern gospel together. I sing either alto or tenor, and I hear which one I am supposed to be singing, and I can't do it differently. I hear harmony and it is beautiful.

In the same way I hear this voice. And I write down what I hear. If it is to be poetry, I hear and feel a rhythm deep inside. It is a very spiritual experience. I feel as if I have touched a greater Spirit and I wonder if I have touched God. Sometimes the messages will continue, and I don't rest until it is all written down. It is rare that I change or proof read anything I write. It is not because I have written something wonderful, but because I honor what I have heard. 

There is one more spirit with influences me greatly. It is my maternal grandfather. He died while I was still in the womb. My mother almost lost me because of the grief. My grandfather was a strong and wonderful force in Mom's life. He built the church that still stands near my childhood home in Walkers Creek, VA. Since I was a tiny child I felt an unusual connection to this man. Part of me feels that the transition between his death and my birth something special happened. I have felt his presence for as long as I could remember. I have felt his love for God and for family. Sometimes I wonder if it is not he who has inspired my great faith, for even when logic says "don't believe", I can't help but believe in something greater than myself. I also wonder if it is not his presence in me, his spiritual essence that brings out the boi in me. I find great peace when I allow myself to be me, and Me is neither male nor female, but both. 

Perhaps it is the blood and spiritual remnants of these two people who have inspired my vision of God as God the Father and Mother Earth. Both come from a tradition of great faith, and I find great comfort in both of those.

Learning about my heritage has explained so much about myself. Things make sense and I find it easier to open my heart and spirit up to the power and greatness of the Divine. And I honor those who have come before me and thank them for their lives that eventually gave me mine.

 Cherokee Prayer of Purification

" Great Spirit (U-ne-qua), whose voice I hear in the wind,

Whose breath gives life to all the world. Hear me; 

I need your strength and wisdom. 

Let me walk in beauty, and make my eyes ever behold the red and purple sunset. 

Make my hands respect the things you have made and my ears sharp to hear your voice. 

Make me wise so that I may understand the things you have taught my people. 

Help me to remain calm and strong in the face of all that comes towards me. 

Let me learn the lessons you have hidden in every leaf and rock.  

Help me seek pure thoughts and act with the intention of helping others. 

Help me find compassion without empathy overwhelming me. 

I seek strength, not to be greater than my brother, but to fight my greatest enemy MYSELF. 

Make me always ready to come to you with clean hands and straight eyes. 

So when life fades, as the fading sunset, my spirit may come to you without shame.