April 13 Daily Feast, Elder's Meditation, THINK on THESE THING

April 13 - Daily Feast

The quiet companionship of a comforting person is like balm to the soul. Like Mother Earth, she absorbs the shock of pain and erases the wounds, and even the scars, with time. These kindred spirits seem to be able to take our hand and walk with us through the difficult places they have already traveled. They keep us from the loneliness that pervades our experiences, waiting for a word that we have passed through safely. And best of all, they never bring it up again but let the past take care of the past. Their eyes are on tomorrow, their hands on the present time so that we never hear empty echoes and are never reminded that we were unhappy. And then, we in quiet ways, can reach back and take someone's hand.

~ I take you by the hand with all my heart....you have spoken comfort to us. ~

LITTLE BEAVER'S WIFE

'A Cherokee Feast of Days', by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Elder's Meditation of the Day April 13

"Once you make a friend, a friend never leaves you, even to death. So a friend is really hard to find."

Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

Once, an Elder told me he made a decision to be my friend. He said this friendship wasn't based on my behavior or how I acted; he said the friendship was based on his decision. He decided to be my friend. This friendship has happened like he said. Even if I don't see him for a long time, or if I get mad at him, he has never changed his decision. This is true friendship.

Great Spirit, I'm glad you are this kind of Friend.

'THINK on THESE THINGS'
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Henry David Thoreau, whose love for simplicity often took him into solitude, also wrote of the sensitive side of human nature. "The finest qualities of our nature, like the bloom on fruits, can be preserved only by the most delicate handling."

How easy it is to destroy the only approach to our true selves. And how often communications are broken down by the brutal force of "getting the point" and speaking "frankly."

The only time an agreement has been reached by the frankly routine is when two people already believe in the same thing. And it is a most infrequent occasion when two people can meet head-on and believe the other honest because that person is direct and wordy.

More often, there must be some thought given to the sensitivity of the other person. First, that person is a human being with human dignity; feelings and thoughts, strong likes and dislikes. And it is a considerate person who has the sensitive perception and insight into the heart of another, and because of that thoughtfulness can be more honest and direct and progress by it.

Nevertheless, if one has to be constantly on the outlook to keep from offending a friend, then that person is not really a friend. It isn't difficult to be a friend to someone who is endearing to everyone. Indeed it is a pleasure to be counted among the person's friends. But it is another thing altogether to be a friend to someone who finds little friendship anywhere.

Other people seldom see us as we are. In fact, who we truly are is lost somewhere among our daily contacts. We react differently to nearly every person we meet. Their personality and ours may blend beautifully or they may clash horribly. And we can rather tell where the fault lies when we balance out the blends and the clashes. Are we easy to be friends with, or are we merely acquaintances and nothing more?

If people have to dodge around so many issues in order to keep us sweet, we need to hear some truth about ourselves. If we can't do it, it may have to come from a friend. Then, we must remember the words of Thomas A. Becket, "Better are the blows of a friend than the kisses of an enemy."