Winking at a Snake in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

 

I was on a solo journey to Chaco Canyon August 11, 2012, taking a favorite walk from the Great Kiva Rinconada to the mesa above the kiva and the ancient site of Tsin Kletzin.  The subterranean Great Kiva was once utilized for religious activities and ceremonies.  It had 39-foot passageways from the underground structure to above ground levels. Casa Rinconada is one of the many buildings in the Chaco area that have documented astronomical alignments.  Many know the Great Kiva for the archeoastronomy event that occurs on summer solstice. PBS video

On the walk all was silent save for the wind, whipping around me in a deafening roar. Suddenly I encountered two large deer, or possibly elk.  There were two farther on.  How they survived in this harsh environment could be a lesson to us all in this time of global climate disaster.  I felt blessed by their wild animal presence.  Back in camp, I sat in mottled shade of the nearby low growing cliff bushes and created prayer sticks for friends facing challenges as well offerings to my home.  Knees bent, “feet standing,” I silently wound colored yarn, feathers and other found objects into the sticks.

These “ofrendas” were a meditation practice given to me and others long ago at the LBGTQ Spirituality Gathering at Lama retreat center north of Taos, NM by Maria Elena.  Maria Elena was of Mexican Huichol ancestry and had the gift of being a “dream healer.”  She could enter into the dream world of a person and offer help and interpretation.  As a young child in Los Angeles where her Mexican parents had immigrated, she occasionally found herself in that dream world, seemingly floating above her bed and having other unusual experiences.  Experiences that her parents did not want her to have, as they had immigrated to the U.S. to forge a new and hopefully more prosperous life.  So, they put her in parochial school to help her forget the old ways.  But Spirit will have its way, no matter where we are.  At school, Maria Elena said made friends with an African American maintenance man and together they went out to the desert and did prayer and ceremony, helping to further deepen her healing abilities. This secretive time in ceremony and prayer helped her make sense of her natural talents. Maria Elena said that if she had been living in her Huichol community in Mexico, the elders would have recognized her gift and taken her to be trained in the ways of their people.  Fortunately for me and many others, she did not lose that gift and indeed was willing to share her healing ways.

cute <b>snake</b>&#39; Sticker | Spreadshirt

The ofrendas had also become a part of my healing and prayer practice.  As I sat there quietly making prayer sticks, slowly sliding out of the low bushes emerged a two-foot snake that just as quietly made her way under my legs, stopping briefly among the colored balls of yarn and feathers to give me a quick glance, then travel on her merry way.  For some indigenous cultures, the snake is the most sacred of animals as it travels with its heartbeat closed to that of Mother Earth.  I was both in awe and gratitude for this silent serpentine gift.

Earlier in the day driving into Chaco, the cell phone buzzed with a message from work at the public schools in Santa Fe.  As I listened, I recoiled and contracted, wanting to be as far from an increasingly difficult work situation as possible. But soon thereafter I heard this interiorized message:  “Say yes! to all that does not compromise you or your core values…keep your spirit shield firmly in place, beware delusional thinking, but do not contract in fear of change or letting go to new conditions or requirements or adaptations to the material world.”  Perhaps this was the message the snake was giving me in advance of our special encounter.

And all it took was a quick wink.

Diane Reyna of Taos Pueblo: Reflections on Covid & Other Matters

REFLECTIONS ON COVID AND OTHER MATTERS
Interactive Online Earth Walks
Monday, June 28 2021 6 p.m.
Free or by Donation

Limited Enrollment

From anxiety and stress to inspiring courage and spiritual strength, Diane Reyna, Taos/Ohkay Owinge Pueblo artist, shares a series of drawings that reflect her thoughts on the events and situations that occurred during the COVID-19 lockdown last year.  With pen and paper, hope, faith, and love, Diane created the drawings between March 16, 2020 and March 16, 2021. The ink drawings embody her experience in all its dimensions, including the cultural traditions that helped her navigate the year. She will guide participants through a hands on activity that will offer an avenue for individual insight and possibilities for the future.

Due to the nature of this event, there will be a limited number of participants. Register as soon as possible by contacting:  info@earthwalks.org  There is no charge, but a donation is appreciated. Everyone is welcome!

Diane was raised at her father’s village of Taos Pueblo in Northern New Mexico; her mother was from the Pueblo of Ohkay Owingeh. She is an experienced facilitator, college instructor, and trainer. She retired from the Institute of American Indian Arts in 2015, where she provided comprehensive support and services to first year students. Prior to working at the Institute, she spent 20 years as a videographer, producer, and director in the field of video news and documentary production. She directed the PBS documentary, “Surviving Columbus”, which was awarded the George Foster Peabody in 1993. She has spent most of her adult life in engaged in the arts, education, and facilitation.

Watch Surviving Columbus online
Late one afternoon in May 1539, the world of the Indigenous Pueblo people changed forever when Estebanico – a Black slave from Morocco – and his 300 retinue of Mexican Indians marched into the Zuni city of Hawikuh. Through wild tales and exaggerations, Hawikuh would be transformed into one of the fabled Seven Golden Cities of Cibola, and a year later, Coronado and his soldiers would wreak destruction and violence on this peaceful world in search of non existent gold. Surviving Columbus is a search for the Pueblo people’s view of these first encounters with European civilization, told exclusively through the voices and visions of the Pueblo people themselves..
Due to the nature of this event, there will be a limited number of participants. Register as soon as possible by contacting:  info@earthwalks.org  There is no charge, but a donation is appreciated. Everyone is welcome!

Pueblo Culture and tradition–a Unique Opportunity

Helping clear the fields and gardens

 

 

 

EARTH WALKS TO JEMEZ PUEBLO, NEW MEXICO   June 20-22, 2019

Join hearts and hands at Jemez Pueblo with the Flower Hill Institute farm, tending the land, planting heritage seeds and experiencing traditional cultural values, sponsored by Earth Walks of Santa Fe, New Mexico.  We will be joined by the summer Pueblo youth camp, elders and other community members.

Roger Fragua, director of the Institute farm said, “Farming with nature (the root of organic farming) lies at the heart of practices used by native farmers in the Southwest for millennia. Traditional cultural farming can teach us a great deal about how to build a resilient and regenerative agriculture.” A children’s butterfly pollination dance will celebrate the fields.

A special part of the gathering will be with Abbess Hosen guiding the group in the practice of mindfulness in action as we assist in the beautiful organic gardens at the Zen Center.  Meditations in the zendo are an option as well. Lodging is dormitory style at Bodhi Manda Zen Center where there are relaxing hot springs alongside the Jemez River. 

Cost:  $375 (two nights lodging and meals)  A limited number of private rooms are available at additional cost.     Volunteer for one both days only at no cost except for meals. 

 Registration/information:  info@earthwalks.org  

Register for Earth Walks to Canyon de Chelly October 19-22, 2017

Spider Rock Canyon de Chelly

Includes:

Guided walk on trails into the spectacular red sandstone canyon (equipment brought by truck; transportation option for those who choose)
Two nights camping (final night motel/optional camping)
Traditional sweat “bath” (lodge)
Day of solitude at Spider Rock
Day of service on a weaver’s family farm in the Canyon
Cost:  $615   Does not include: transportation to and from Chinle, AZ, last night in motel (free camping option available), meals outside the canyon, gratuities to guides

To register:  Deposit to save a space for you on this journey is $200 (trip is limited to 14 participants).  Remainder is due September 19, 2017.  Make checks payable to:  Earth Walks/PO Box 8534/Santa Fe, NM 87504.  (A limited number of partial work exchange scholarships may possibly be available.)

Information:  Contact info@earthwalks.org

Itinerary:
Thursday, October 19  travel by carpool from Santa Fe, past Shiprock, NM

From there cross the Chuska mountains to the town of Chinle.   Dine (Navajo) friend Daniel Staley and his family will guide us into the spectacular red sandstone canyon to his family land where we will be camping.  Those who wish will hike to the site; others can ride vehicles which will be carrying our camping gear.  The first evening we will participate in sweat lodge, a powerful way to begin our stay in this land which has been sacred to local people for so many generations. (Those who wish can stay outside the sweat and assist with the fire and prayers.) Meals in the canyon will be a group activity (preparation and clean up.)

Friday, October 20 we travel by truck to the Spider Rock for contemplation and time exploring the spectacular area around Spider Rock in the quiet of the canyon.

Saturday, October 21  we visit Kathryn Pemala who has been a long time weaver on her family farm in the canyon.  An important element of every Earth Walks is “service learning”–learning about traditional cultures while we offer service and “return the gift” of living in this great land.  We may be clearing weeds from farm land and orchards, helping with the animals, doing repairs or a variety of other activities.  Kathryn will share her method and meaning of weaving with us and we will share lunch together as well.

Kathryn Paymella, Dine (Navajo) Weaver

Our final evening, participants have the option of staying at the Sacred Canyon Lodge near the entrance of the canyon.  There is free camping available adjacent to the Lodge. We depart on Sunday, October 22.

Contact Earth Walks for registration details and information: info@earthwalks.org

Walk in Beauty!     Doug Conwell/Earth Walks

Earth Walks Director Doug Conwell

Walk in Beauty

In September 2016, Earth Walks traveled to the spectacular Canyon de Chelly with 12 participants.  It was a deeply memorable time, which included camping in the canyon under a blanket of stars, Dine (Navajo) friend and guide Daniel Staley playing his beautiful flute music to the echoes of the notes and his  ancestors and a day of service on the family farm of Kathryn Pemala.  Canyon

 

Our canyon campsite was on Daniel’s grandparents’ land where he maintains a fruit orchard and a traditional hogan.

daniel-with-apples-canyon-de-ch-2016One magical evening found us around the campfire with Daniel playing his flute and singing traditional Dine chants in his native language.  One participant had just acquired her first drum and she sent it around the group, asking each person to add their own drum beat, song or words to empower it for future drumming.  The group spent a day of solitude near the powerful Spider Rock.  That evening the group participated in a traditional sweat lodge.Spider Rock Canyon de Chelly Our final day in the canyon was spent in a service activity on the family farm of Kathryn Pemala, long time weaver, who has lived her entire life in the canyon.  As she weaves, she hears the voices and stories of her ancestors which are woven into the fabric of her work.

Dine (Navajo) weaver

Dine (Navajo) weaver

The group help harvest corn and plums, pulled weeds and enjoyed conversation with Kathryn and family members.  It was all too soon that we had to leave.

Helping Harvest Corn

Helping Harvest Corn

One of our participants, Sallie Bingham, is a writer and published author.  Her blog on the journey is well worth the reading.  You can view it at:  https://salliebingham.com/the-beauty-way/#comments 

Earth Walks plans to return to the canyon in the fall of 2017.  We will also travel to Chaco Canyon, NM http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/353 in late May.  This coming spring, we will be based at Bodhi Manda Zen Center in Jemez Springs, NM http://www.bmzc.org/ helping with an organic farm in Jemez Pueblo http://www.jemezpueblo.com/  as well as making traditional flutes with Pueblo resident Marlon Magdalena http://www.aluaki.com/

If you would like to join us on these or other journeys or create a special Earth Walks for yourself, family, friends or business please be in touch.  Meanwhile, Happy Trails and may we all Walk in Beauty!

Earth Walks Director Doug Conwell

Earth Walks Director Doug Conwell

Solitude at Spider Rock, Canyon de Chelly

Spider Rock is one of the most awesome and sacred places in Canyon de Chelly, Arizona.  Earth Walks will be there on the next journey, September 8-11, 2016 and there are only a few spaces available for those interested.  On the second day of our journey, we will travel through the red sandstone canyons, past groves of green cottonwood trees and a trickling stream to Spider Rock where there will be time for solitude and meditative time at this place of awesome beauty.

Spider Rock Canyon de Chelly

Spider Rock Canyon de Chelly

Spider Rock is the home of Spider Woman who is highly honored as a deity among the Dine.  Some say she chose the top of Spider Rock as her home and is the teacher of weaving.  On our final day in the canyon, Earth Walks will spend time helping with a variety of needs on the family farm of long time weaver Kathryn Pemala.  Kathryn will share the practical and mystical meaning of weaving for the Dine.

Kathryn Pemala, Dine Weaver

Kathryn Pemala, Dine Weaver

We will camp in the canyon on family land of our Dine guide who will lead a sweat lodge.  The final evening, participants have the option of staying at the Sacred Canyon Lodge near the entrance of the canyon.  Free camping is available adjacent to the Lodge. We depart on Sunday, September 11.

Cost: $420  Includes guiding fees, meals while in the campground, sweatlodge preparation and materials, transportation in and out of the canyon.

Deposit:  $140 due  August 8, 2016.  After this date, deposit is nonrefundable due to obligations with guides and those making arrangements from out of New Mexico.  Remainder of fee due August 22.

Not included in cost:  Carpooling to and from Canyon de Chelly, personal snacks/food, last night at motel ($113 per room, double occupancy–each person paying half of this amount; single supplement available); last night meal

Contact Earth Walks for registration and information.

Only a few spaces available!

 

 

Happy New Year from New Mexico

Feliz Ano Nuevo from New Mexico!  This is New Year 2015 and this is a totally new blog.  Please visit the pages listed above including the slide show of all the events and activities of EarthWalks over the years.  Thanks to those who made this site possible as well as those who have been “EarthWalkers” over the years.  Here’s to many more in the years to come.

If you are not a blog subscriber and would like to be, please fill out the form at the bottom of the page.  I promise not to overwhelm you but would love to send out a few thoughts and resources from time to time related to multi cultural health and healing principles in the American Southwest and Mexico. If you are interested in creating a special EarthWalks, contact me, Douglas Conwell, at info@earthwalks.org  Thanks for letting others know who might be interested in EarthWalks and related information.

I spent my New Year’s eve at a favorite placs in this part of the planet, Bodhi Manda Zen Center  http://www.bmzc.org/ Although not a Buddhist, I am a meditator and welcome the opportunity Bodhi extends to us all on this special evening as well as throughout the year.  May you have a wonderful 2015 filled with wonder, gratitude and the simple gifts of love and friendship. Here’s a few photos from the event:

Bodhi Justin 2014 IMG_0701 IMG_0695 IMG_0699

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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