In Order to Heal-We Must Remember

A message came today to me from Sherwyn Zephier that I would like to share with you.

Lavanah,
I have notified my family and we will be there with our Sacred Pipes, eagle feather head dresses and ceremonial attire. I have notified some of my friends on facebook as well, to get the word out to the public. Things will move as they should for this event. We will come with three Chiefs for certain. There may be more from the Yankton. Sherwyn

The pic below is of two of Sherwyn's brothers and his grandson (in black) who is yuwipi medicine man on the Yankton rez and they will be attending the ceremony.

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Reminder from Lavanah to all who may attend: These are SACRED BURIAL GROUNDS to be treated with honor and respect as such. This is a peaceful gathering on sacred grounds.

____________________
Lavanah,

I added this, to the original....

Rene'e

Regarding the healing ceremony and what to expect--dress code; I have received the following messages from Sherwyn Zephier and Tokala Two Elk:


It is good that you want to make a ceremony program, but for the most part, it's not the normal way to do a ceremony. It's not like church or any other kind of structured prayer. We don't know what song will be sung or how the prayers will go, but we can talk about the reasons for why it's important to hold the ceremony.
Generally speaking: The ceremony is usually started with songs that will clear the air, Protection from thoughts of people who are carrying harmful thoughts in their minds. Then there will be prayers to make regarding the 'Main Reason/Purpose' for the ceremony. Then, they will call the Spirits through song to be there, songs will be to ask for the Spirits to hold Council and Heal those that are requesting help for healing. There will be Thank You songs, then Send the Spirits back Home song. That is generally how it will go. Maybe Takala can help with any other particulars that you may want to put on the program. This is all that I can say about the ceremony.

Sherwyn

From Tokala Two Elk:

I am the founder of "Journey to Healing" for our Western communities on the Rosebud that were exposed to the use of alcohol from a local liquor store in Norris SD. This alcohol use broke up and destroyed a "good Lakota way of life'' to our Lakota families that were living a alcohol and drug free life, with good energy, and good intentions. Journey to Healing began in 1991 and continued on until 2003. A three-year grant from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, called Lakol Wicoun Project, funded this project. It was administered by Sinte Gleska University.

We gather at four directions, away from the liqour store (23 miles the furtherest) every first Saturday in May, and we walk towards the center. During our walk, we stop three times and pray. The fourth stop is in the center of a circle North of the liquor store, in a community called Corn Creek. We did this through consultation from my family of medicine men and elders. We explained why our walk must be done this way. We were dealing with spirits that were injured and killed from the use of alcohol coming from the liquor store. Alcohol ruined our communities and families. Through the teachings of our Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) were taught these ways to bring healing, peace, and harmony to our people.

For Canton, I am already preparing, with family, and ceremony, on how we are going to conduct this rite.

For the Program, the location of where ceremony begins will be where we park our cars, and it will be our first pause of four in our journey to visit our ancestors who have passed on. We will be bringing a loaded canupa and spiritual food from our homes, so respect must be shown by all, proper attire, men must wear pants, women must wear skirts, no shorts,

At this Insane Asylum, all who are buried there were exposed and treated worse than our relatives, the wamakaskan (animals) when they are captured, and sustained in a closed environment. All of our relatives buried here believed in our "Canupa Wakan" (Sacred and Holy Pipe) that the Pte San Win (White Buffalo Calf Woman) brought to our Oceti Sakowin, from our Creator/God and our star relatives. Our relatives who have passed on, were placed here because they did not want to believe in a forced religion that the government and the missionaries conspired in to force all Native Americans to beleive in. If a Native American was not baptized in one of the two churches, (at that time in "Dakota Country"), Catholic or Episcopal they were considered a savage, a heathen, AND BE SENT TO HELL.

Even though we, the Oceti Sakowin, lived a daily life that was "spirit-based" and we glowed from the sacred-holy energy living it daily, we were so sacred, and holy, that we respected each other's sacredness by not having eye contact with each other, and by calling each other by relative terms, and much more. We were so sensitive to life here on Mother Earth, we cried when Mother Earth was injured, this we still do, she is our 6th direction, our sixth pinch of tobacco, when we Lakota-Dakota-Nakota pray and load our Sacred and Holy Canupa, with our seven pinches of tobacco. In translation of prayer, to English, when we say "let us pray", in Oceti Sakowin language we mean let us "cry".

They, our Grandfathers and Grandmothers, felt very hurt, physically-mentally-spiritually, for being placed in a locked down situation, never to see their relatives, never to practice our good way of prayer, or to visit our sacred, and holy places, especially where "LOVE" comes from, the womb, our "HOME", and those relaives, that live in that home, and in the community. Our elders have taught and showed us "to have pity for one another" - "Unsikcila Unpo". They told us not to fight amongest each other for it creates violence and hatred. We use the teachings of bravery (Woohitika) to address something that needs change. Today, we are addressing a great spiritual "WOUND" that has created fear of "mental institutions", distrust to the medical practices of the government. We are using Woohitika-bravery to come forward today, to take part in this ceremony of HEALING, for our people, and for "those who do not know". I want to thank my relative Lavanah for stepping forward, and picking up this tremendous weight of LOVE and Hatred, that Harold Iron Shield has left behind for us to carry on to find Peace and Love as a resolution for those families who have suffered here, body-mind-spirit, and the younger generations still coming.

The second and third stop will each be a pause in life that we make in respect for the life energy we have in our bodys, with the forth and final stop at the burial grounds. At this time I want All relatives to release tears of pain for those Sisters, Aunties, Brothers, Uncles, Grandpas, Grandmas, for their suffering (Wokakija) without anger.

Mitakuye (my relatives) we cannot change history. History has come and gone. What we can do, today, as we breath, we can all, first make peace, first to ourselves to address the huge weight of ANGER that we carry daily, and how we show to our young through the use of alcohol and drugs, and need to make amends, first to our selves, our body-the physical state, our mind-the mental state, SPIRIT-the Spirit state. Then, to our relatives, friends, tribes, and nations.

My Brothers and Sisters, walk a mile in my ancestors moccasins, and you will know how we feel today.

Love You All.

MITAKUYE OYASIN (ALL MY RELATIVES)

WAKAN TANKA PIDAMAYA--FOR SENDING THE FOUR WINDS TO THIS CEREMONY AND SENDING OUR MESSAGE IN THE FOUR DIRECTIONS TO TOUCH THE HEARTS OF THE RELATIVES AND TRIBES OF THOSE WHO ARE BURIED AT THE HIAWATHA INDIAN INSANE ASYLUM. FOR THIS WE ARE TRULY BLESSED.

MITAKUYE PIDAMAYA! FOR MAKING THIS CEREMONY A BEAUTIFUL EVENT.

It has been almost a month since the ceremony took place. More people came than I had expected. Some of the people who attended were:

Tokala Two Elks, Ceremony Leader from Rosebud
Loren "Chief Black Spotted Horse" Zephier, Yankton Sioux Traditional Healer and Leader
Sherwyn "Chief Blue Star Eagle" Zephier, Teacher, Ihantonwan Community College
Estellene "Walks with New Beginnings" Zephier (wife of Sherwyn)
John "Chief Walking Staff" Zephier
Edward Valandra, Professor, USD, Native American Studies
Elizabeth Bowling, Mayor of Canton
Canton Historical Society
Dr Val "Sunshine" Beeck, "Sunshine" on Oyate with 3 of her 9 adopted Sioux children
Dennis Quigley, Eagle Staff Carrier, Veteran from Sioux Falls Oyate
Alan Blackburn, Star Knowledge TV from CA
Adele "Good Morning Star Woman" Zephier and sister Sarah Zephier
Preston "Walking Bear" Preston, Oklahoma Choctaw Reservation

Many thanks to the Zephier family for whom I am most grateful for making this a beautiful event possible; and many who go unnamed but whose presence contributed to the positive healing forces present.

Canton is building a museum at the old railroad depot and plans to dedicate part of that to the Hiawatha Indian Insane Asylum. The mayor expressed a desire for this history to be taught in the schools and would like more middle school children to attend at next years healing ceremony. I thought this a wonderful idea and plan to present it to my tribes middle/high school teachers. Interest in our history must be seeded in youth or as adults it becomes more difficult to be become interested, if the seed was not planted.

The ceremony including the post ceremony lunch gathering was about 4 hours. It was a good time for healing as many non white attendees expressed to me that they had not had such a feeling of goodness for a long time.

I hope some of you will be able to attend next year. To those of you who were not able attend and had expressed that you thought of the ceremony all day; thank you for your positive thoughts and prayers, for this too contributed to the spiritual harmony that prevailed throughout the day.

I originally called for an "ALL NATIONS" ceremony and had sent out the flyer to the tribal offices of the Minnesota Chippewa, Montana Blackfeet and Cheyenne, Oklahoma Cherokee's, Choctaw and Potawatomi, Arizona Hopi and Gila reservations and many more. In addition, to every Sioux reservation in Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Montana, and Minnesota. Some posted the flyer to their websites.

I must thank the Lakota Times for posting the flyer, TaTanka.com, Native Village and many of you who posted the flyer on Facebook. You all contributed to making Harold Iron Shield's legacy and work a good memory that will continue never to be forgotten.

If I have failed to mention those of you who contributed and helped, please forgive me--Wakan TaTanka has not forgotten you.

Attached are some of the pictures that were sent to me by the Canton Historical Society. The photographer respected his limitations to photograph particular parts of the ceremony and we are grateful. I will be posting more pictures later as they come in. Here are a sampling:


CLAUDE TOKALA TWO ELK FROM ROSEBUD


Claude Tokala Two Elk, Sarah and Adele Good Morning Star Woman Zephier


Beautiful Hair



Back to Front-Rani Yovetich, Edward Valandra, Sarah & Adele Zephier, John "Chief Walking Staff" Zephier , Estellene "Walks with New Beginning Woman", Loren "Chief Black Spotted Horse" Zephier and Sherwyn "Chief Blue Star Eagle" Zephier


Claude Two Elk and Mayor Elizabeth Bowling



Sacred Eagle Staff Carrier and Veteran of Iraq, Dennis Quigley, came from the Sioux Falls Oyate. We are ever grateful for his presence.



Group of approximately 40 people attended this year's ceremony.



Left back-Eva, JoAnah and Joshua Beeck (adopted children of Sunshine-Val Beeck), Liz Bowling, Val Beeck, Rani Yovetich with sage and unknown boy.


JoAnah Beeck and Lavanah Smudging-Liz Bowling



Group Walking Up to sacred burial site


Lavanah, Edward Valandra, Ray Blackburn, Tokala Two Elk, Loren Zephier, Joe Plum, Gary Weddell ?, Sarah and Adele Zephier


Loren "Chief Black Spotted Horse" Zephier and Shannon "Many Lightnings Woman" Campbell



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Sherwyn, Estellene and John Zephier



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Lavanah, Eagle Staff Carrier, Dennis Quigley and Mayor Elizabeth Bowling





Sherwyn and Estellene



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Sarah and Adele Zephier



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Walking to 2nd Phase of Ceremony


Group Circle



On to the 4th Phase and the Sacred Burial site.



Plaque left with ceremony gifts, food and token rocks.



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We all left Canton and caravaned back to the Yankton Rez (Greenwood) to finish two leftover 3 ft long Subway sandwiches and attend the sweat lodge in the evening. Sarah, Adele and I visited the Greenwood Cemetery and thought we should try to clean it up a bit. We did the following Tuesday.

All in all, it was a perfect day and an honor for me to be a part of this ceremony.

Lavanah