REFLECTIONS FROM DELIA TAMEZ - SENT JAN. 20
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From: Kathe S.
Date: Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 2:06 PM
Subject: Reflections from Delia Tamez - sent Jan. 20
ID: 266838

Delia has sent the following reflections on Constellations of Hope to be shared with the group. She chose to respond to several of the prompts. (You may choose to focus on only one.)

~Your insights and reflects gained about self and others~

I believe that the retreat enabled us to accomplish different things, according to where we are in our life journey and mission. It also helped us to have a brother understanding of what is going on outside of our life; what our sisters are doing; and how we can help each other and what we need to do in our own life in order to help others. Sisters were able to connect with sisters on like missions and help each other. Those that are on different missions but parallel paths were able to evaluate what we are doing and if what we are doing fits into the larger picture. If at present it doesn't we now have the opportunity to make necessary adjustments in order to fit, if we chose to do so. Sort of like we are each part of a huge puzzle. But some of the puzzle pieces have been damaged and no longer fit into the puzzle so the puzzle pieces that are damaged need to be repaired so they can fit in their proper place in the big puzzle so the picture can be completed.

~What ideas, inspirations, pictures or visions came to you about collaboration or co-creating?~

There were reactions to segregation and the sharing sometimes got emotional. But I believe that it was necessary for us to be segregated into groups in order for experiences and emotions that had been buried in us long ago to come out to the surface so they could be healed. Especially things that happened to us when we were children and programming from our families resulting from their buried hurts and programming. We each bury things that hurt us as a child. Now as adults we can look at things differently and we can heal the hurt through looking at the situation through adult eyes rather than child's eyes. And as we heal these things it will heal our family and ancestors.

We can also look at situations and determine if we are carrying the emotional swords of our ancestors, friends, family members, or our own. So often we get caught up fighting other peoples battles or emotionally involved in someone else's troubles and battles without knowing the complete facts of what happened. Sometimes the original situation has been lost and a modified version of the original situation or ideal has become the grounds for the battle. We put out so much energy and emotions to continue to fight the battle or make a statement instead of using the energy progress and healing. If we don't heal these inner wars and battles how can we join each other as a collective to bring peace on earth without sacrificing the rights to be heard and to have equality. Too often we are doing things from ego and emotion instead of from Spirit, love, joy, happiness and peace.

Listening to our Canadian sisters express how they felt like outcasts by the non-Canadian "white" sisters brought a totally different perspective on my own feelings of being an outcast because I was a "brown" sister (especially as a child) when I was among the "white" sisters and the "red" sisters and "black" sisters because I was different or because I could not relate to their experiences nor they to my life experiences. It was interesting listening to the "red" sisters and the "black" sisters and "yellow" sisters as well as the "white" sisters. It helped us to see that we each had suffered feelings of rejections at one time or another by other races. It also showed us that we were still rejecting others ... perhaps we reject because we are afraid that we will be rejected. We tend to segregate ourselves from others and group among our own "like kind" because it is easier to communicate with our own kind because we have like experiences. But, now we have seen that our "sisters" each have parallel experiences and they are doing the same thing we are. Flocking together for safety. But now it is time to let go the programming we received as children from our ancestors and from society and we must heal the hurt we have buried and we must put down our weapons and we must unite as one large group based on love and understanding in order to bring peace and joy to the world. It is time to extend the "flock" to include all races and beliefs. If we were effective in our own little flock imagine how much more effective we will be when all the flocks unite as one.

~How do powerful, insightful thoughts or feeling still linger in your mind, heart or spirit?~

I am amazed at how Creator works...how effective if we just go with the flow. [All my way over there I asked Creator to help me be humble and to enable me to be as crystal clear channel and chalice for Creator to use to accomplish my part of the Retreat's mission. For many, many years I have practiced "mirroring"...which is to recognize that everyone and everything that comes into your life is a mirror that either reflects a part of you or magnifies a part of you that is being gone unnoticed due to it being so small either as a result of one consciously shrinking it or because it was shrunk by someone else. So wherever I go I look into the mirror. In discernment I look closely on what I like or don't like in the people and things that come into my life then proceed to find these things in me and either work to make them more a part of me or find a way to transform them so they stop being part of me.] When we had segregation I had to chose between my bloodlines...English, French, Spanish, Apache. I had not lived on the reservation so I couldn't share that experience with my Native American sisters. As a child I had been rejected by many White sisters because I had Spanish blood; rejected by Latin American sisters because I had grown up in North America and could not relate to their experiences/suffrage; and by Native American Sisters because I was not a pure bred and I had not grown up on the Reservation. Like me many other like flock sisters and brothers had formed the Chicano flock. It was interesting to reconnect with that part of my childhood. It enabled me to heal a lot of old hurt and to accept that part of me.

When Vivian spoke of Tribal people resenting the White people coming to take their medicine ways and then making profit from them. It brought back old wounds. It also reminded me why I studied the ancient ways of many cultures and wherein I found similarities. It is good that she brought up the things that she did and also that there was emotional stuff and disharmony that occurred for a short time. For one, it enabled me to as a channel do toning which was mean to heal and bring peace but also to activate those that were ready to be activated via the tones. The activation is to awaken in us who we are and what our mission is on Earth. It also enabled me to see how many of us picked up weapons and were ready to fight for Vivian's "rights" causes. Yet tunnel-visioning the rights and causes of others. Like I said all this were great mirrors for me and my mission. It brought to mind how often I get caught up on my Spiritual mission and losing track of time and not giving my non-Spiritual Mission part of my life equal time. And often taking up other folks' allotted time .... is this our ego. As medicine people we must be careful that we are coming from Spirit and that we let Spirit know ahead of time that we only have a set allotted time, since Spirit exists where there is no timeline, so we are fair to all that are part of a ceremony, event, retreat. An perhaps when planning an agenda we need to allow more time than we estimate will be required...perhaps if we are allotting 15 minutes per person we plan that there be an additional 15 minutes between persons. Sort of like we breath in and we breathe out.

~How will you implement your new found knowledge about diversity, dialogue across cultures or leadership styles experienced?~

I am more aware of the world beyond my experiences, and I have already started looking at reaching across customs and ways of life in my teachings.

~What ways do heightened awareness connect you to land, air, or water in your own neighborhood?~

I am becoming an activist. To be heard and to take a stand. To find out what the laws and regulations are and determine what can be done legally to heal the environment and to bring awareness to the world.

~Has the meaning of community expanded in your context or spheres of influence in any way?~

Yes, wishing and hoping doesn't accomplish much. We have to take a chance and step out into the unknown and be heard.

~What insights have you gained about doing your personal work or your organizational work or your relationship to family and community?~

Most importantly to budget equal time for all especially for the mission; and to respect money as energy and allow it to come to me for use in the mission. ~In listening to our life narratives, what are the elements critical to the Culture of Peace?~

We have to find peace inside ourselves first; then live in peace with all by respecting and honoring everyone and everything.

~What you learned about separation and unity. ~

It is important to separate in order to truly identify oneself but it is also important to unite in order to create a stronger impact. There are things that cannot be accomplished by one person because the desired result is too big for one person; however, united we can accomplish everything. We simply have to have a meeting of the minds and a unification of our skills and powers and function as one whole rather than a unit that is attempting to go in many directions that simply accomplishes stress and strife.