Bright Star's
Cherokee Heart Page
Dedicated toWhite Cloud", my
a-gi-du-da (grandfather)
O'siyo (hello) and blessings to all who
enter,
My name, given to me by my grandfather, is Bright Star.
This is a page created from the heart in honor of my Cherokee ancestry. However, it is
designed for people of all cultural backgrounds that share the common bond of preserving
Native American history, beliefs, and traditions. It is also a page written in respect of
my father for genetically contributing the Tsalagi (Cherokee) blood that flows so strongly
through my heart, and in gratitude that he and my grandfather are proud of our heritage.
My Grandchildren, be good. Try to make a mark for
yourselves. Learn all
you can.~Sitting Bull~
We begin life's journey with an undying
curiosity, an attachment to all those around us, and a natural underlying joy of just
being alive. Unfortunately, the stress of everyday life often interferes with our
well-being. Not just our physical health, but our emotional, psychological, and spiritual
as well. When we quit learning and learning to live, we cease to live and begin to
exist.We lose touch with who and what we are, the fundamental "matters of the
heart".
"In my early days, I was eager to learn and
do things, and therefore I learned
quickly."~ Sitting Bull~
For true harmony of mind, body, and
spirit, we must resolve these "matters of the heart". My quest for this harmony
has been assisted by the wisdom of those who have gone before me. I have come to believe
that to accumulate knowledge is a privilege and to incorporate this knowledge throughout
our lifetime is a responsibility. In turn, we must be instrumental in teaching the next
generation the road to follow in life.
My friends, your people have both intellect and heart;
you use these to consider
in what way you can do the best to live. ~Spotted
Tail~ Sioux-1800's
Wise words, "intellect" and
"heart". As true as these words were 200 years ago, they are all the more so
today. We must learn to be wise enough to learn from all living things around us and to
listen to our heart. It is my desire to continue to learn all I can about the Ani
yunwiya,"The First People", my ancestors, the Cherokee, and to share as much
information as I can. Historically, some of this information is tragic; traditionally it is inspiring; and spiritually, it is tremendously
healing.
When we look into the history of our race, we see some
green spots that are
pleasing to us. We also find many things to make the
heart sad.
~John Ross~ Cherokee Chief
It is time to make peace with our hearts, to follow our destiny, and to pursue knowledge in order to educate those that we will be elders to in the future. Historically, the Cherokee have a logical belief in regard to the red road to adulthood.
I hope this page is beneficial to you. I
would appreciate any feedback that anyone has to offer.
Dohiya (peace),
Bright Star
Visit the Official Site of the Cherokee Nation
We the people composing the Eastern and Western
Cherokee Nation...by virtue
of our original and inalienable rights do hereby
solemnly and mutually agree...
to one body politic...the Cherokee Nation.~Sequoyah~
In recent years, a controversy has arisen in native communities regarding the percentage of blood one must have to be a considered a Native American. Labels, such as "wannabe" are frequently mentioned in chat rooms on line. The only validity that I can see for terms of this nature is if someone is seeking to prove their native descent for reasons of ill-gotten gain. For those of mixed-heritage,as myself, the word has no meaning whatsoever. How can you want to be someone you already are? There is no "part" Cherokee according to traditional belief. Being Cherokee is a heart decision and a spiritual awareness of self.
Just as impossible as being "part" Cherokee, is the idea that anyone had a Cherokee "Princess" for a grandmother. For whatever reason, many children are told this by their parents who probably heard it from theirs, and so on. This fact, among many others, is one that I found interesting and very important when I first began to research my heritage. At that time, there was a book by the name of "Cherokee Proud that answered many of my questions about a multitude of Cherokee topics. The book was written by Tony Mack McClure, Ph.D. who recently released another book, "Cherokee Proud, A Guide for Tracing and Honoring Your Cherokee Ancestors".
I greatfully acknowlege the assistance that Coug2wolfs has given me with this page. He provided me with the Midi file, "Country Roads" for this page. A song that is very dear to my heart and appropriate for this page dedicated to my grandfather who lives in West Virginia. Coug2wolfs' web pages have spectacular graphics and are both informative and enjoyable. Currently, he is changing servers. I will put a link here as soon as the new one is available.
Warmest appreciation to Wolfsong for the very creative graphics used for this page. Please visit this beautiful site with many Native American links to web design, poetry, gifts, etc.
Please e-mail me for any comments or suggestions for
this page.