Last year Mary Luft of Tigertail Productions invited me to collaborate with her organization during the WATER month of events and performances.  She was interested in offering a platform for an artistic interpretation of Indigenous / First Nations worldview of our relationship with one of the classical, fundamental elements:  water.

Many of her inspirations for the projects and themes that Ms. Luft explores, she explained, come to her early in the morning as she wakes up.

INFLECTION POINTS is the title of the spiritual and interactive art installation that I'm curating -- with collaboration from members of the Love The Everglades Movement.

For more information about the event:  ​http://tigertail.org/ _

I found this video clip about Kumu Hina in the New York Times' Transgender Today series.  Here's the link:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/storywall/transgender-today/stories/kumu-hina

Her story is the subject of the PBS/Independent Lens documentary Kumu Hina, http://kumuhina.com

Here's the YouTube channel for more videos:  ​https://www.youtube.com/user/KumuHina

Here are some articles that came out in the past year which features the voices of my friends and I from the Southeastern Two Spirit Peoples group, and our friend from the Northeast Two-Spirit Society.

Miami New Times, by Deirdre Funcheon, November 18, 2014.
This was a profile on my work with the Love The Everglades Movement, and features information on my participation in Two-Spirit communities.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/a-gay-or-two-spirit-miccosukee-man-fights-for-the-everglades-6553043

South Florida Gay News, by Nicole Wiesenthal, September 24, 2015
Here the writer featured the voices of David Webb and Will Davis of the Southeast Two-Spirit Peoples, and Sade Heart Of The Hawk of the Northeast Two-Spirit Society.
http://southfloridagaynews.com/Community/the-rise-of-the-two-spirits.html

Earth Island Journal, by Jim Harper, October 28, 2015
This interview is not specifically focused on Two-Spirit matters, but I include it here to demonstrate that as Two-Spirit people, we are concerned with a holistic relationship with our communities, our environments, and our responsibilities as residents of the Universe.
http://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/elist/eListRead/in_conversation_houston_r._cypress_yahaletke/

Excerpts from a unique fashion show
especially commissioned for the
40th Anniversary Celebration of the
United South & Eastern Tribes, Inc. (2009).

Artifacts.  Images.  Imagination.
A journey beyond time.
Cherished stories and songs re-told beneath the moon.
A society of clans.

Great-Grandma said:  "Here, take these:
These songs, this medicine, this way of life and love."

And beneath a moon like this
You'll look across the fire --
At friends and family -- 
And you'll understand
How easy it is to hear the rhythm
And dance.

Grandma's favorite dance
Is the Chicken Dance
She makes it look so easy
Hopping around on one foot
In balance with her partner

They say you look a lot like Grandma did
In her youth --
She was born in wartime
Grew up in the swamps
And lived her entire life --
105 Summers --
Without having, once, to step foot
On the White Man's Road

PERSISTENCE OF VISION

Grandpa would go hunting
Before the ceremonies began
Singing songs to find the herbs
Singing songs to hunt the deer
Singing songs of happiness
Happiest when flipping the ball
High up at the goal
During the stickball games

PERSISTENCE OF VISION

She was raised by her grandparents.
And my friends are always shocked,
When she starts up long and detailed conversations
In the Miccosukee language.
She talks like an old lady.
And she's only 6.  Or 5.  Or 4?
Her favorite word is:  Hapooshekaaye,
It means "Mint."
Grandma taught her how to throw it in
With certain meals:
To jazz it up.

PERSISTENCE OF VISION

So now we need you
To speak on our behalf.
You will take our message
Beyond the horizon.
You will have to pick up the pen,
And speak foreign tongues.
You will have to tread rough paths,
That shimmer in the heat.

PERSISTENCE OF VISION

"I'm so glad to have her back.
After High School she traveled the world.
Can you believe she actually went to Indian? --
A place called Varanasi --
to spend time with orphans there.
Helping out, teaching, bringing supplies.
She's got some kinda heart, huh?"

Her favorite metaphor is the River.
She grew up here,
In a River of Grass.
She comes from rivers of generations and culture and blood,
That flow across the land, and through time.
Her favorite metaphor is the River.

Her first documentary, she says,
Will be about Patchwork.
What is the meaning of Patchwork? -- she wonders.
It's a cultural artifact
That began as appliqué.
With color, and shape, and texture,
It evolves throughout the years.
And her anger stems from love.
She's only concerned with that authentic Patchwork,
None of that bogus stuff.

PERSISTENCE OF VISION

PERSISTENCE OF VISION is both a Poem as well as the Concept for a Fashion Show.

The Fashion Show was commissioned by the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, and almost all of the garments were designed by Miccosukee Artist Renée Manyari.

The occasion for this special event was the 40th Anniversary of the United South & Eastern Tribes, Inc. (USET) -- an alliance of indigenous sovereignties that was formed by the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida; the Seminole Tribe of Florida; the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians; and the Eastern Band of Cherokees.  The founding tribes each had the honor of hosting a special event and this was the Miccosukee Night main event.  It was a high honor to assist in this production.

Here's some more information on the origins of the USET:
http://www.usetinc.org/about-uset/history/ (LINK)

www.MedicineSigns.com

Medicine Signs Spiritual Center is a Universalist Teachings Center within the Church of the Way of the Messiahs.  The Light University is the teaching arm of the Church.

What a blessing this spiritual community continues to be in my life.

I feel like growing up in the Miccosukee milieu has prepared me to be a Universalist.  What I mean is that growing up in the Otter Clan, I was taught about the unique healing rituals that we have as Otters.  My family taught me to respect all the other clans in our Society of Clans -- that we each have our own unique customs, lingo, and rites.  As a Tribe, we also come together during ceremonial times and perform our duties at the appropriate times.

So, growing up, it only made sense for me to extend this same respect to all the other spiritual traditions and communities of this world and universe.

When I attended my first Sacred Circle hosted by Medicine Signs, I fell in love with the way that the Opening Prayer welcomed such a broad community of spiritual energies, spiritual entities, and ascended masters.  Our spiritual discussions are very wide-ranging.  We've had deep discussions that explore all the spiritual traditions of this planet.  We've had experiences of Past Lives, encounters with so many teachers in flesh and in spirit, we've had fun with spiritual interpretations of popular culture, and I've even had a blast sharing my Two-Spirit perspectives, as well as Everglades-related prayers on many occasions.

Over the years, I've taken part in many of the teaching programs that the Church has offered and in this way I've been able to broaden my spiritual practice and bring more healing and balance in my life.

The healing is an ongoing process that I'm sure will continue for most of my life.  I continue to learn, and grow, and I hope that this beautiful process never ends.

From Mystery School teachings with the Merkaba meditations - to the language of light and insight that the Tarot provides - and most especially with the simple yet profound questions that yielded the Spiritual Blueprint that I've developed for myself in the Ministry Courses - I've acquired many tools, practices, and teachings that have enriched me so much.

I'm proud that I can call myself a Two-Spirit Miccosukee Universalist.

NUFF RESPECT to our Senior Minister Reverend Doctor Thomas L. Norris whose visions and spiritual guidance has created such a beautiful, spiritual forum and community as this.

NUFF RESPECT to his wife, Senior Minister and Reverend Cathy Norris, whose extensive background in spiritual traditions and healing modalities enriches this spiritual community.

I hope to see you one day at one of our Sacred Circles.

Harlan Pruden of the NorthEast Two-Spirit Society has participated in some interviews lately that shed light on Two-Spirit matters.

Native Waves Radio:
http://cfuv.uvic.ca/cms/?show=native-waves

Podcast on CBC Radio:
http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/podcasts/bcearlyedition_20150108_71626.mp3

News Article on CBC:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/harlan-pruden-finds-healing-for-lgbt-first-nations-in-tradition-1.2894254?cmp=abfb

CBC Yellowknife discusses the Two-Spirit Community.  This live interview was recorded the morning of Monday, Jan. 12, 2015.
https://soundcloud.com/allisondev-1/celebrating-two-spirit-people

Reporter KELLY MALONE published an article on 8th November 2014 about Two-Spirit Traditions in different First Nations communities.

The article is fairly in-depth and is worth the time to read it.

Link:  http://ckom.com/story/video-journey-indigenous-gender-identity/447504

Quote from an interview in the article:
"We need to get our two-spirit people to get back into our circle and to love themselves. Also to have people within our culture realize that this cannot stand, we cannot keep pushing people out, we are losing them by the day. The amount of suicides attempts and completed (suicides) is so high in the two-spirit community that we are pretty much dropping like flies."



Another quote from the article:
After high school, McAdam attended classes at the First Nations University of Canada campus in Prince Albert where he started learning about the impacts of colonization and the history of two-spirit people for the first time.

"I've started also getting into my culture and attending ceremonies and practicing it more. It’s really helped me as a young gay man to feel more comfortable and free in myself. I'm not ashamed anymore I'm more proud," he said.

The Healing Way Chronicles are a memoir of recent trips
that have been important milestones
on my personal process
of healing & transformation.

There’s an incredible amount of healing work that still remains to be done on a global level to atone for the inter-generational, historical traumas caused by colonization.  In Canada and the United States, the painful legacies of the forced-attendance policies of Residential Schools, or Boarding Schools, in these countries continues to fester within indigenous communities.  Artists of all kinds are using their techniques to effect a sort of alchemical transmutation of these hurtful energies.


At a presentation on the Seven Sacred Rites of the Lakota/Dakota/Nakota and related communities, Chief Golden Light Eagle introduced his friend and colleague Chief Blue Star Eagle by explaining their experiences in a mandatory-attendance Boarding School.   He spoke of how he stood up to the school authorities so that his friends and the younger children could have opportunities to speak their native languages.  Because in situations like this, the policies of the institution boiled down to “Kill The Indian, Save The Man.”  This philosophy was expressed through violence, abuse, sequestration, and dehumanization.  So the fact that these two guys are able to maintain their ancestral link to such sacred rites is a triumph.

The things you do at a Star Knowledge Conference:

You experience a Rose Galactivation with Dr. Dream – an extended, guided meditation and empowerment that utilizes the essential oils of Roses, red laser light beams, and other forms of energy work.

Cultural Appropriation
            Rightly so, a lot of indigenous communities are seriously concerned with outsiders who take information, practices, and other traditions that have been closely guarded because of their holy nature and then publish it, or begin to incorporate these practices in ways that are dishonorable to the original intent.  I’m wary of sharing sacred Miccosukee knowledge in public forums because I know how easy it is to open this wisdom up to parody and satire.  I’m not going to go into detail about Cultural Appropriation because there are others who talk about it at length and do a better job of critiquing it than I could.
            Here’s an example of a great blog:  http://nativeappropriations.com/
            What I find refreshing is the work of Chief Golden Light Eagle and others in the Sundance community who are open about their experiences and the Star Knowledge that they are sharing.  This information is very galactic, very universal, and it is grounded in the ancient traditions of their communities.

Honey Dawn Karima Pettigrew, Ph.D.
Recording Artist, Scholar, Radio Host, Journalist/Correspondent, Child of God.
Winner of the Native American Music Award / NAMMY:  Best Gospel / Inspirational Recording, 2013.

I'd also like to share an Audio Recording of the Two-Spirit Honor Song.

I made friends with some Elders of the Two-Spirit Community and they were generous enough to teach me the song and allow me to record it.  Thanks to Joey Criddle (Jicarilla Apache), Victor Bain (Dine), and Marcus Strong (Osage).

Recorded during the 25th Annual International Two-Spirit Gathering, in Wading River, New York, September 20, 2013.  3m40s.