BY STORM WONIYA HEREDIA
In this era of American society, it might feel like what has happened before is happening again, a form of déjà vu. For how familiar this feels, it presents its own unfamiliarities to the living mind, jamais vu (the illusion that the familiar is being encountered for the first time).
Our climate thickens with emotional disturbances, and they are steeped with actions that threaten our wellness. Fear offers much to feel worried for—speaking on behalf of anyone who feels like the “other” in mainstream society.
We as a people must remain mindfully aware. Anger, frustration, sadness, exhaustion: These are perfectly human sensations. Yet, these feelings can sway us to not act within our best interests.
Again, our people face uncertainty in the present paradigm. Yet here we stand woven together like the baskets of our grandmothers, enduring time and place, carrying within it our resilience. A resilience that perseveres through our shared suffering and molds into our embodiment of healing and love.
Systematic oppression plays its part in pulling at our roots as if we are weeds, but they don’t understand the material used in basket weaving. The white root, for example, ingrains itself so deep within mother earth that it becomes difficult to get the whole of it. Just like white roots we are implanted in our environment, ready to do our part in sustaining wellness through resilience.
Resilience has been defined as “the ability to face change or disruption without being fundamentally compromised.” Our belonging, interdependence, mastery and generosity all reside within that superpower. Tethered in our roots, resilience plays a huge role in our ability to maintain community/cultural cohesion. Our ancestors are famous for their Indigenous resilience. We still are.
The system probes our values, principles and wellness with its tactics of legal maneuvers and actions. Although many of us have experienced the negative effects of that, we should remember to focus our collective consciousness on what we can control: our communal knowledge, traditional wisdom, cultural ingenuity, spiritual strength and physical willingness. Every individual can reshape the smoke screens of political hardship into a refreshing outpour of motivation to resist fear, to spread love and to care for one another.
By relying on one another to create safe spaces for shared experiences, free-flowing information and cultural practice, we can ingrain our foundation of health and well-being. That is how we nourish our indigenous wellness. It begins with what we can control, our individual selves. From the mindful practice of self-regulation, we can help others to do the same.
People who are emotionally capable will not be so easily manipulated. Trust in your individual resilience, and collectively we will bear through the toughest, interwoven like the basket, united in our ways.
People who are one with their mind, body, heart and spirit are impenetrable in nature. We are bold as the Sierras, sturdy like oak, vibrant and beautiful like poppies. We are both our ancestors and our descendants. We are people who can take care of ourselves. To possess faith in one another, is to believe in our rights to live a good life; as a people, with creator and with creation.
You are smarter than what those in opposing power perceive you to be. You are capable and worthy. Let us continue to practice and share that good medicine the universe so graciously gifted us: Participate in ceremonies, drum at powwows, sing our songs with pride, harvest berries and roots, braid our hair, bead our fashion and simply be.
Practice the art of letting go of what you cannot control. Be your best self amid chaos. Spread love and positivity when and where you can. Inspire hope in those who need it most. Be resilient. Our entrenched roots will sustain and cultivate our healing. We are our grandmother’s baskets. Stay well relatives.
The author acknowledges the insight of relatives and others in the development of this commentary. These words are not mine, but ours.
Here are a few comments from leaders in our community.
“The answers are within our community. Each of us has a gift to share. By sharing our gifts we can ignite the fire of hope and that fire can grow with our willingness to connect and share.”—Ruben Garcia
“Our youth have a right to be educated. It is a process. Change begins with them. It’s what we do today to understand how to help our families, our teachings. Keep everything else in place. Don’t give up. Expand more on what you have to offer.”—Delaine Bill
“Don’t wait to take matters into your own hands. Don’t allow oppressors to convince you that standing in community is a weakness. Those beliefs could hurt us in the long run. By talking about difficulty, we become a frontline, a barricade. Brick by brick we come together. This is what we have to do now.”—April Blair
“‘Rarely, if ever, are any of us healed in isolation. Healing is an act of communion.’ This quote from bell hooks reminds us that healing happens in community, not in isolation. Our ancestors understood this profoundly, marking life’s most significant moments with ceremonies and gatherings that brought people together to support, celebrate and heal as one.
“Today, we can honor those traditions by continuing to share space, uplift one another and recognize the value we bring. We all have a purpose, even if the journey to find it is challenging. But with the support of others, that path becomes clearer, and we are reminded that we are never alone in our healing or our purpose.”—Serena Cuevas
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Storm Woniya Heredia is of ojibwe lineage from Red Lake, Purepecha from Michoacan and of Spanish descent. He is currently working as a suicide prevention, intervention and post-vention peer mentor at the Fresno American Indian Health Project. He has an AA in anthropology from Fresno City College and is currently looking to get back into school at Fresno State. He is strongly in tune with the community and cares for the people he works with. He is also an active amateur fighter in both Muay Thai and boxing holding three amateur belts and looking to secure one more before turning pro, and he loves to write.
