*HAMIS TASOQJAMI (One Dream)

03-20-08

*HAMIS TASOQJAMI
(One Dream)

Should I live for another ten years I will feel very fortunate (I cannot expect to live for a hundred snows), but it was not long ago, at the time of European intrusion into this hemisphere, that indigenous upon this entire continent lived a balanced life for 300 snows or more. I was born on the northern half of this western hemisphere. At that time the Elders among us were few and scattered. The diaspora (scattering) and genocidal tactics used against indigenous that began at first contact with evil assault plans birthed upon the European continent and transported here in multiplying multitudes, continues unbridled in the year 2010 and there is no solution upon the horizon that will allow this thought to recede, fade, or vanish: Divide and Conquer. This tactic promoted the invasion and assault of the world, by various Kingdoms demanding gold. In the instance of the initial invaders assaulting this hemisphere, gold in sufficient amounts allowing the Spanish Crown to purchase an army. That activity of “finding” this hemisphere was first an accident. Soon it grew to become a discovery and land-claim by fearless adventurers, then was fed to the warped allegiance of Historians by “the power” to manipulate history and continue the justification of The Doctrine of Discovery, authorizing sovereign right to destroy humanity while seizing land. Next, emerging from a news editorial (which was catapulted into Doctrine status), Manifest Destiny forgave the atrocities committed by the invading forces which encouraged a new fever in indigenous destruction and indigenous homeland grabbing by other waves of invading “citizens.”
When I was in grade one, beginning my academic journey, I explained to my Elders how Columbus “found” us. A Grandmother looked long at me then asked. “Did this person find the sun, too? This land was never ‘lost’ any more than the sun was lost.”
Should one explore “discovery” and “doctrine” in a worthy dictionary and with a clear mind, s/he will find that the Doctrine of Discovery means that two people can happen upon anything and the first who claims to see it first is the discoverer. In the instance of the western hemisphere, the “discovery” was a vast continent inhabited by 800-million indigenous beings. For the “doctrine” to bear legitimate fruit, one must assume that the millions of indigenous inhabitants upon this western continent were blind! One “civilized” way to fortify this societal accusation of myopia is to change the languages of the indigenous and distort their habits and world-views through the process of assimilation/acculturation, an alteration that damages indigenous children as much as cannons, bullets, swords and poisons.
The history of the penetration of pirates from the European continent into indigenous homelands, written by the invading pirates is accepted by too many scholars, both foreign and indigenous. That poorly reported and often fabricated chronicle must be questioned, most certainly by the indigenous scholars.
There are strange, intruding language-forces yet dominating this hemisphere and the indigenous beings upon this hemisphere, causing one indigenous camp to look askance at the other. The strange languages are English and Spanish. The arrogance of the English language reinforced by the presence of God, and the power of the Spanish language reinforced with the strength of the Pope and the Catholic Church, are formidable structures to confront. These structures present an immense division among the indigenous. By employing this strange formula, the English-speaking native and the Spanish speaking native often hold each suspect of being foreign! An English colonized English-speaking native from the north will hold the Spanish colonized Spanish-speaking native from the south in the “foreign” arena even though the Spanish speaking native is a full-blood-native Spanish-speaker and is to a greater degree original native than the English-speaker making the crude and hasty judgment.
This confusion is accomplished by distorting the native languages and world-views. This distortion promotes and protects the assumption of “truths” residing in the act of assimilation, and invites indigenous loyalty to strange beings and their strange habits, actions that continue to erode the gentle spirit among indigenous peoples everywhere. Those invading and foreign habits devoid of protection and promotion would, like an autumn leaf, dry and fall from the present to be raked and discarded in the abyss of uselessness.
Our ancient ancestors that learned from their ancient ancestors who studied this hemisphere and cherished the life-forces said,

* “Hamis hatiji (One heart),
hamis Aw’te (one people),
hamis himal (one mind),
hamis ahti (one blood),
hamis telamji (one spirit),
hamis tasoqjami (one dream), from tip to tip”

(meaning, from the tip of South America to the North Pole). In order for the indigenous inhabitants of this western hemisphere to appreciate the boundless love of our ancient beings and to conduct our lives and its purposes issued to us as an undamaged dream, this generation must lift the curtain of Apartheid/Democracy (identify them as twins) smothering our instincts, cast them off, and follow the foot steps of our ancestors, for that path leads to the dawning of our respect and responsibilities as original indigenous dwelling upon this earth. Too, that path will reveal the necessity of our understanding. It is a good path. This path awaits our happy laughter, our delicate songs, our dedicated dances. Hayyaw, (younger brother) Enunja (little sister), Hisnawa (young warriors), it is a dream of Pukemuka (wonderful wise beings who walked earth before us), therefore it is tijtawa (genuine).

Gedn’ch’lumnu (This must be so).

* The language of my Grandmother and Grandfather are not the same. Here I weave both languages to complete the necessay thought.

Sul’ma’ejote
2010