Returning to the Spirit Lodge

Preparing your death song. The Wise Elder has long ago come to terms with his death. He has learned this lesson from a lifetime with the Mother. She teaches of birth, life, decay, renewal and regeneration. In Ceremony, each of us sees these lessons But do we truly understand what we see? The Wise Elder has learned that all things spring from the source And will return to that source, Only to rise again in the circle and spiral of life. The death song of the Wise Elder is not a sad one. It is filled with the understanding of the Mother's love And the coming and going that is the nature of all. Therefore the Wise Elder sings of understanding and acceptance, And he lives forever.

(Excerpted from Quiet Heart by Sleeping Crow, a collection of Native spiritual teachings based upon life with a small, Pacific Northwest Native American nation.)