Sustainable WNC

Dear Friends of Long Branch,

The rains and snows of late fall and early winter have brought some of the creeks back to life and have been a great blessing to all the living beings here in the mountains!

As many of you know this is the second year in a row that we’ve experienced diminished precipitation, so every time a little falls from the sky we give thanks!

And we do have so much to be thankful for this year!

A group of Brandeis University students came in February and offered a tremendous amount of help with pruning and transplanting of apple trees, Heritage variety red raspberries, blueberries, Wineberries, thornless blackberries, and native Blackcap raspberries.

Student groups from Appalachian State University, Asheville-Buncombe Community College, Wofford College, University of Florida (2 groups!), Phoenix Outdoor (a Wilderness Therapy Program), Evergreen Charter School, Asheville School, Davidson College (many, many different groups on several different days with us!), Woodlawn School of Davidson, NC, and Western Michigan University all contributed mightily to our work here!

A wonderful group of interns showed up this year with cheerful dispositions and a contagious enthusiasm! Della Elich from Colorado, Jenn Baldwin from Greensboro, Paul Davis and Heidi Brill from Oregon, Jamie Kremmel from Illinois, Rosaura Butron from UNC-Asheville, James Wudel from Davidson College and Winston Salem, Steve Cosgrove and Vanita Chauhan from Florida, and Jonathan Baxter from Washington State.

We are certainly grateful for all their enormous contributions to our projects here!

The 52 different heirloom varieties of apple trees, Heritage variety red raspberries, blueberries, Wineberries, thornless blackberries, and native Blackcap raspberries all made up for last year’s freeze-diminished crops by overwhelming us with their generosity!

Literally hundreds of folks came out with their families to enjoy the berry picking, hiking, and cloud watching!

The apple trees produced an incredibly bountiful crop and we conducted several cider pressing workshops much to the delight of everyone!

Mark Banker (Warren Wilson College grad) and students from the Webb School in Knoxville, Tennessee planted some of our back-crossed hybrids of the American Chestnut tree for the Clearfield Community Land Trust (CCLT) along with the Just Connections group and Vision in Action group in East Tennessee.

Marie Cirillo of CCLT said that the Webb students had a “life changing experience” in planting these American Chestnut trees!

For those of you who aren’t familiar, the land around these folks in East Tennessee has been severely strip-mined for coal over the years, and now a wood chip mill is causing the remaining forests to be stripped from all the surrounding mountains.

In spite of this extraordinary adversity, they still project great courage and great heart!

And now they want to plant more American Chestnuts, so they’re coming back at the end of December to help us dig them for more East Tennessee transplanting!

The Chestnuts are helping us to rediscover our deep rooted connections to the mountains themselves!
When I wrote Marie back I shared these words:

“It may be that some little root of the sacred tree still lives.
Nourish it then, that it may leaf and bloom and fill with singing birds.
Hear me, not for myself, but for my people; I am old.
Hear me that they may once more go back into the sacred hoop
and find the good red road, the shielding tree!”
– Black Elk

Our Long Branch Board member and solar designer extraordinaire Walt Clark helped us with two solar domestic water heater (SDHW) workshops this year.

The first one we built for our Community Center was an Integrated Passive Solar Water Heating System (IPSWH), also known as a Batch System, Breadbox Solar Water Heater, or Integrated Collector and Storage System (ICS). It featured the use of 3-40 gallon water heating tanks plumbed in series that are able to generate 175 degrees F. on a sunny day and provide 80% of a residence’s needs.

For our second workshop, we installed an active, flat plate solar collector system on the Orchard House here at Long Branch. We organized the workshop for the Asheville Green Opportunity Corps, who attract and train local, disadvantaged youth for promising, green-collar careers through environmental service projects and apprenticeships with local green businesses.

We once again hosted the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association’s and Appalachian Farm Stewardship Program’s Farm Tour here at Long Branch at the end of June, and over 120 folks came for the tours and the berry picking – a great day!

The Best Buy store in Asheville adopted Long Branch for the United Way’s Day of Caring in September and we were extremely grateful for all their help.

All in all, we have been extraordinarily blessed this year with everyone’s generous help and nature’s incredible bounty!

We know that your end-of-the-year charitable contribution plans are probably well underway, but we do humbly invite you to consider making a tax-deductible donation to Long Branch if your budget allows.

May everyone enjoy a bright and cheerful holiday season, and may everyone’s good thoughts, good feelings, good words and good deeds create a peaceful and harmonious New Year!

Thanks to all of you for all the good will and support you’ve so kindly offered us this year! Please come and see us when you can!

Closing Words, adapted from the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address ….

We have now arrived at the place where we end our words.
Of all the things we have named, it was not our intention to leave anyone or anything out.
If someone or something was forgotten, we leave it to each individual to send such greetings and thanks in their own way.

Now our minds are one.

With much gratitude and appreciation,
Paul

For conservation and sustainability,

–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
E-mail: paul@LongBranchEEC.org
Web Site: www.LongBranchEEC.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community,
and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Hi folks,

We’re going to be pressing (with our new cider press!) some fresh organic apple cider from 1030am — 6pm! on Sunday Oct. 19 in honor of the turning of the seasons and the exquisite beauty of the fall colors!

Bring your jugs, picnics, and families and friends to celebrate the harvest of abundance!

Our Blueberries are still coming in, and the Heritage Variety Red Raspberries are ripening their fall crop too!

For conservation and sustainability,
Paul
–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
E-mail: paul@LongBrancheec.org
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
Web Site: www.LongBrancheec.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community, and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Hi folks,

CIDER PRESSING AT LONG BRANCH SUNDAY, SEPT. 21 1030AM!

We’re going to be pressing some fresh organic apple cider from 1030am on Sunday, September 21 in honor of the Autumnal Equinox!

Our hand-crank apple cider press will be ready for a good work out!

Bring your jugs, picnics, and families and friends to celebrate the harvest of abundance!

Our Blueberries are still coming in strong, and the Heritage Variety Red Raspberries are beginning their fall crop too!

Thanks for helping us spread the word.

For conservation and sustainability,
Paul
–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
E-mail: paul@LongBrancheec.org
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
Web Site: www.LongBrancheec.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community, and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Dear Relatives,

Hope everyone will help us spread the word!
thanks!
For a Solar Future,
Paul

Hands-on Workshop: Building a Solar Water Heater

The Long Branch Environmental Education Center is sponsoring a hands-on workshop with inventor Walt Clark on Building a Solar Water Heater September 6-7, 2008 from 9am to 5pm at the Center in the Big Sandy Mush Creek Community in northwest Buncombe County.

The design is an Integrated Passive Solar Water Heating System (IPSWH), also known as a Batch System, Breadbox Solar Water Heater, or Integrated Collector and Storage System (ICS).
It will feature the use of 3-40 gallon water heating tanks plumbed in series that will be able to generate 175 degrees F. on a sunny day and provide 80% of a residence’s needs.
The design is the essence of simplicity: Put water holding tanks in an insulated box, with glass on the side facing south and fill it with water.
No moving parts, nothing to break down, free fuel and no pollution.
This user-friendly design is extremely practical for homeowners, students and novices.
No prior building skills necessary, though architects, engineers, and building contractors are welcome, and everyone is welcome to bring along their carpentry and plumbing tools.

Workshop leader is Walt Clark, a solar designer, inventor, and builder with over 35 years of experience who holds an international patent on a unique solar device.

Issues to be covered include:
• Introduction - defining passive solar water heaters, classification of types
• A History of IPSWHs - U.S. history of first solar water heaters and first commercial solar water heaters
• Basic Design Principles - radiation, available solar energy in various parts of U.S., emmitance, absorption, reflection, transmissivity, reflector types, conduction, convection
• IPSWH Design - placement, performance related to slope and orientation, color, heat retention, glazing layers, shutters, shades, insulation, reflectors, sizing, hot water needs, backup system, construction, concepts for virtually free solar water heaters, concepts for advanced solar water heaters
• Operating an IPSWH - reflector adjustment, open lids, conservation or staging of hot water use
• Backup Heating - wood stoves and heaters, gas, electric, flash heaters
• Building Your Own - step by step guide to designing and building your own solar water heater including safety considerations
• The Future is for IPSWHs - energy costs keep rising!

Cost for the workshop is $50 and will be limited to 15 attendees. Participants are asked to bring their own lunch.

Please call or email Paul Gallimore at 828 683 3662 or paul@longbrancheec.org to ensure a place and get directions.

Dear Relatives,

Thought you might enjoy this one from the late 60s!
Here are a few of my favorite lines:

“Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.

Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.”

May All Beings Be Happy!
Paul

*******************************************

Manifesto for the Mad Farmer Liberation Front

Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.

And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.

When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.
So, friends, every day do something
that won’t compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.

Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.

Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.

Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.

Listen to carrion — put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.

Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?

Go with your love to the fields.
Lie down in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.

As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn’t go.

Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.

– Wendell Berry in the Whole Earth Catalogue, 1969, Page 25)

For conservation and sustainability,

–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
E-mail: paul@LongBranchEEC.org
Web Site: www.LongBranchEEC.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community,
and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Dear Relatives,

Who could ever tire of reading this one?
May it always, all ways put a big smile on your face!

All Good Medicine,
Paul

SMOKEY THE BEAR SUTRA

Once in the Jurassic about 150 million years ago, the Great Sun Buddha in this corner of the Infinite Void gave a discourse to all the assembled elements and energies: to the standing beings, the walking beings, the flying beings, and the sitting beings –even the grasses, to the number of thirteen billion, each one born from a seed, assembled there:
a Discourse concerning Enlightenment on the planet Earth.

“In some future time, there will be a continent called America. It will have great centers of power called such as Pyramid Lake, Walden Pond, Mt. Rainier, Big Sur, Everglades, and so forth; and powerful nerves and channels such as Columbia River, Mississippi River, and Grand Canyon.
The human race in that era will get into troubles all over its head, and practically wreck everything in spite of its own strong intelligent Buddha-nature.”

“The twisting strata of the great mountains and the pulsings of volcanoes are my love burning deep in the earth.
My obstinate compassion is schist and basalt and granite, to be mountains, to bring down the rain.
In that future American Era I shall enter a new form; to cure the world of loveless knowledge that seeks with blind hunger: and mindless rage eating food that will not fill it.”

And he showed himself in his true form of

SMOKEY THE BEAR

A handsome smokey-colored brown bear standing on his hind legs, showing that he is aroused and watchful.
Bearing in his right paw the Shovel that digs to the truth beneath appearances;
cuts the roots of useless attachments, and flings damp sand on the fires of greed and war;

His left paw in the mudra of Comradely Display — indicating that all creatures have the full right to live to their limits and that of deer, rabbits, chipmunks, snakes, dandelions, and lizards all grow in the realm of the Dharma;

Wearing the blue work overalls symbolic of slaves and laborers, the countless men oppressed by a civilization that claims to save but often destroys;

Wearing the broad-brimmed hat of the west, symbolic of the forces that guard the wilderness, which is the Natural State of the Dharma and the true path of man on Earth:

all true paths lead through mountains –

With a halo of smoke and flame behind, the forest fires of the kali-yuga, fires caused by the stupidity of those who think things can be gained and lost whereas in truth all is contained vast and free in the Blue Sky and Green Earth of One Mind;

Round-bellied to show his kind nature and that the great earth has food enough for everyone who loves her and trusts her;

Trampling underfoot wasteful freeways and needless suburbs, smashing the worms of capitalism and totalitarianism;

Indicating the task: his followers, becoming free of cars, houses, canned foods, universities, and shoes,

master the Three Mysteries of their own Body, Speech, and Mind;

and fearlessly chop down the rotten trees and prune out the sick limbs of this country America and then burn the leftover trash.

Wrathful but calm. Austere but Comic.

Smokey the Bear will Illuminate those who would help him; but for those who would hinder or slander him…

HE WILL PUT THEM OUT.

Thus his great Mantra:

Namah samanta vajranam chanda maharoshana Sphataya hum traka ham mam

“I DEDICATE MYSELF TO THE UNIVERSAL DIAMOND MAY THIS RAGING FURY BE DESTROYED”

And he will protect those who love the woods and rivers, Gods and animals, hobos and madmen, prisoners and sick people, musicians, playful women, and hopeful children:

And if anyone is threatened by advertising, air pollution, television, or the police, they should chant SMOKEY THE BEAR’S WAR SPELL:

DROWN THEIR BUTTS

CRUSH THEIR BUTTS

DROWN THEIR BUTTS

CRUSH THEIR BUTTS

And SMOKEY THE BEAR will surely appear to put the enemy out with his vajra-shovel.

Now those who recite this Sutra and then try to put it in practice will accumulate merit as countless as the sands of Arizona and Nevada.

Will help save the planet Earth from total oil slick.

Will enter the age of harmony of man and nature.

Will win the tender love and caresses of men, women, and beasts.

Will always have ripened blackberries to eat and a sunny spot under a pine tree to sit at.

AND IN THE END WILL WIN HIGHEST PERFECT ENLIGHTENMENT

…thus we have heard…

(may be reproduced free forever)

BY GARY SNYDER

Dear Relatives,

In honor of the Full Moon, an Elder’s Meditation of the Day from White Bison.

“So we are connected to the moon.
That gives us power, a connection to
the earth and the moon, men don’t know about.”

–Cecilia Mitchell, MOHAWK

The Elders tell us that the Woman has access to special powers.
The Earth Mother gives her love in a special way to the Woman.
The Moon also gives special powers to the Woman.
She uses these powers to nurture, heal and guide the people.

/Great Spirit, today, give a special Blessing to our Women. /

Contact:

White Bison, inc.
6145 Lehman Drive Suite 200
Colorado Springs, CO
80918 E-mail us:
www.whitebison.org
info@whitebison.org
Phone : 719-548-1000
Fax : 719-548-9407

The Organic Heritage Variety Red Raspberries at Long Branch are now RIPE!
Sweet, juicy and luscious!
High in anti-oxidants for healthy eating!
Bring the whole family out for some big fun picking and red-faced grinning!

Suggested donations go to support our environmental education activities and appropriate technology demonstrations.
Picnic tables available, solar demonstrations, waterfalls, hiking trails up to Big Sandy Mush Bald, 5,152 feet elevation!

We’re open by appointment, usually Monday through Sunday, 9am until dark.
Please call 828/683-3662 or email for directions.

Thanks for supporting your local organic food growers and watershed protectors!

For conservation and sustainability,

–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
E-mail: paul@LongBranchEEC.org
Web Site: www.LongBranchEEC.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community,
and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Dear Relatives,

This one comes to us from Standing Elk.
May All Beings Be Happy!
Paul

(Maitreya is the Future Buddha, Star Nations Avatar due to return when the Star
Nations return officially.)(He has nothing to do with the
“Maitreya”-impostor hoax fronted by Benjamin Crème of London.)

MAITREYA

Steadies Evolution Through Grace and Strength

I am Maitreya, a servant teacher for the Peoples of Mother Earth.

Human destiny must be steadied for there to be transformations in
Grace.

Balance is an energy equilibrium which you find when you are at
Peace.

Therefore, O my Peoples, let there be Peace!

The Giving Hand of Compassion is the wide road to peace and balance.

Compassion is the power which will bring Humanity to steady movement in
Sacred Balance again.

Compassion is the Life Force which feeds your very cells (selves).
To be alive in the true sense of Life, you must feel the communion of all,
you must give to the benefit of one another.

It is for this reason that I have sent forth the directive:

All peoples must be fed, clothed and sheltered.

This action of humanity is the beginning place of Compassion. This
great victory for human kind is more than possible now. It has been
possible all along. This action in itself, to provide for the needs of the
People, will steady human evolution and awaken that destiny in the Glory of
Creator’s Light.

If you do not have the means to provide for another, then send forth
your prayers, give the Healing Touch, bring through the Energies of Purity.
All of these are the same as feeding and clothing and sheltering the people.

Pray for the People. Give the People the Touch of Healing. Be the
example of Purity. Express your gifts and know that your small part will
unfold greater and greater Compassion.

Compassion is the energy of being with one another. Human beings
are this way naturally.

So heal the wounds of racism, wipe away the scars of war, cry the
tears of abandonment, and release these forever.

Embrace the Peace of serving one another, of sending forth the
thoughts and understandings of Purity. This is the true strength of Spirit
and it is the Grace of our Holy Mother.

Pray every day for one another. Prayer opens the doorways for
Spirit to enter into your life, to transform your personal world and to lift
you into the Realms of Understanding.

Touch one another with the Touch of Healing. It is the same as the
Touch of Love.

And know that when you touch one another the Creator is there.

Touch enlivens and resurrects the body, heart and mind. Touch
connects the whole of the being to their great Starry Origin. Touch opens
the Sacred Heart and allows the Holy Waters of Life to flow. This is the
compassion that you feel.

The practice of Purity is the balm of life. For, to enter unto the
Gates of Paradise, you must enter in Purity. The energy of Purity opens our
Mother Earth’s heart. And She heals, and feeds, and shelters, and clothes
us all.

I am Maitreya. I am here in the Office of World Teacher, to serve
humanity as a brother, as a friend.

My first teaching is the Teaching of Compassion. If you have the
means, then provide food and clothing and shelter for your Brother and
Sister.

Everyone, “Pray!” “Heal!” And teach us what it means to be pure!

These practices are the very ones which steady your growth and give
you the key to doors of adventure. The gates will open to you and paradise
will be yours.

I am ,

Maitreya
Your servant this day and always.

Mitakuye Oyasin
Standing Elk/Golden EagleChief/ChiefBlack Spotted Horse

standingelk1111@…
www.star-knowledge.net/
www.earthstarcreations.com/

For conservation and sustainability,

–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
E-mail: paul@LongBrancheec.org
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
Web Site: www.LongBrancheec.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community,
and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder

Dear Relatives,

I share this message from the Whale Nation, relayed by Ihantowan Dakota Star Altar-Keeper Chief Golden Eagle. It is said that the Whales are a highly-intelligent species with origin from the stars.

MOON OF THE WHALES

HOGAN IYOTAN TANKA OYATE

Heals Emotional, Physical, Mental and Spiritual Imbalances

We are the Whale People here with you this evening. We are Earth Keepers fulfilling our duties as asked by Creator. We are here to share some of those responsibilities that you share with us.

For all imbalances are result of failure to fulfill Sacred Responsibility. It is Universal Law that Movement and Balance must be One. Evolution is a delicate walk.

On our great journeys through the Ocean Realms we travel to many sacred power places. We allow our Song, our Thoughts, our Feelings to harmonize with these Chakra energies of Mother Earth. This gift and practice is within our DNA; as it is within human DNA.
In order to move forward in Cosmic Harmony, you must balance all of your activities. This means that you must follow your spirit every moment. The very Wisdom of Spirit is anchored within your biology.

Thus, follow your intuitions, express all of those things you consider “silly”. Sing with Mother Earth, and dance when you feel it. Restore the Power Places upon the land; and then you won’t feel so ridiculous when you dance a sacred dance in a mall, in a city, or sing a song in church that seems to be of different persuasion.

We Whale Peoples change our world very little; we see the Beauty and the Sacredness that is already there. We seek to resonate and then to live with the Holy that is already.

If you human beings will slow down your urges to create materially, you will remember the Sacred Ways.

Indeed, in order to balance yourselves, you must move less in the physical and more in Realms of Heart, Mind and Spirit. As the Grandfathers teach; look ahead to the Seven Generations before you make a change in anything.

Wisdom is thinking about these things before you act. Thinking first and feeling fully will prevent many of the imbalances which you experience. Besides the things which you must undo, and those things which you will think better than do, foremost, look within. How can you understand your World if you do not understand yourself?

This Sacred Law of Movement and Balance can heal you.

Yet, understand that its course is like a tight wire.

One that is plenty easy to travel if traveled patiently.

One that is dangerous to those who seek to speed along.

There is a practice known among Original Peoples that is key to balance.

It is observation. It is attunement with nature.

To understand the world around you, you must feel every facet:

From the Little Crawling One to the Great Flying One,

from the inner movements of things to the Wind that blows,

the human mind is capable of all of these perceptions.

The Human heart is able to understand the way that things flow.

You must use your talents and perception before you act so foolishly. Know the Truth before you act. The Heart is where this storehouse of perception and understanding lies. To open these gifts, go and sit with your Relations in the forest, in the mountains or by the sea.

We will teach you how to move in balance. When you learn to move in balance, all difficulties which you experience within your body, heart and mind will be wiped away.

The Universe does not wish to punish Human Being. The Universe teaches in the most graceful way. Your restrictions are your lessons. So learn how to walk in balance again.

We suggest the Gift of Song be employed, celebrated with this Sacred Law. When you seek to clear imbalances, human song enables this. Song vibrates the physical. It opens the Heart. It clears the Mind. It calls the Spirit.

So when you call upon the Whale People, call to us through your Song. For we are in tune with all Song upon this planet. Our Mind and our Heart are there when anyone sings a Sacred Song.

The Whale People have guarded the secrets for Human Being. For we are older brothers and sisters to you. Our song will awaken your memories and will bring healing to you.

If you can remember the whale song, then try to sing with us. If you desire a healing from Our Nation, then sing your songs for four days. And we will be able to come to you and give you Wisdom through the Ways of Water. We will heal your Hearts. We will awaken your Mind to the memory of the Cosmic Ocean.

Human Beings have seven major roles as Earth Guardians. All of these tasks are important for this Walk in Balance.

The first gift is the Gift of Song. Know that your words are song, too. If you have nothing good to say, then honor the Sacred Silence. Within Silence is a music which human beings must remember.

Get still and listen to Our song which echoes around Mother Earth.

The second gift is the Gift of Sight and Vision. This is your connection to the Sacred Light of Spirit.

Through their thoughts, human beings feed the life around them. The Stones, and the Plants, and the Animals, therefore, need nourishing light. Human Beings must think nourishing thoughts!

The third gift is the Gift of Action, Love is action. Touch your world with joy and with gentleness. Your touch is a healing balm to all of the Relations.

The fourth gift is the Gift of Choice. Use your will, your energy to bring life, to create in balance with Our Mother’s Heart. Will not that which is your own. Use your power to help your Mother. Mother Earth is the Creator, the Goddess, of this sphere. Use your power to honor Her.

The fifth gift is the Gift of Creation. It is the Wellspring of your knowledge. It is that Creative River called imagination and the power to bring forth life.

The sixth gift is the Gift of Sacrifice, the gift of giving away to one another. And, in death, you will be reborn to New Life. Lay down your will that Universe may prosper. Find your Will as the Universe unfolds.

The seventh gift is the Gift of Your Connection to Creator, the Gift of Holy thought, being and feeling. It is the gift of Starry Nature. Nourish your connection to your Soul Star. Life will then be truly abundant.

The Whale People wish for human beings to ponder on these seven gifts and to look within to learn how to honor life through them. Learn to walk with these seven gifts. Honoring all life is the way to balance; not just for yourselves, but for everyone.

So stand, Human Being, as we the Whale People continue to teach you every moment through our Song and through our Thought. Stand as Guardians of Mother Earth. Stand up and take up your Sacred Responsibilities. Honor the Wisdom within you and reclaim the Holiness that you are.”

Mitakuye Oyasin
Standing Elk/Golden EagleChief/Chief Black Spotted Horse

standingelk1111@…
www.star-knowledge.net/
www.earthstarcreations.com/

For conservation and sustainability,

–
Paul Gallimore, Director
Long Branch Environmental Education Center
POB 369 Big Sandy Mush Creek
Leicester, NC 28748
E-mail: paul@LongBrancheec.org
Tel. 828/683-3662 Fax: 828/683-9211
Web Site: www.LongBrancheec.org
www.paul.sustainablewnc.org

“To restore the land one must live and work in a place.
To work in a place is to work with others.
People who work together in a place become a community,
and a community, in time, grows a culture.
To work on behalf of the wild is to restore culture.”
– Gary Snyder