Presence: for our Ancestors

Thank you for the sacrifices you made, / when you did what you had to / to help us make it, here. Here we can use language, / tradition, dances, and food / to root us in ancestral power.

We offer up prayers for protection, / so that our people can always live / lives that are full. Our hearts sing the beats of drums, / united in rhythm as we dance around the circle / of the Creator's sacred arena called life.

We sing your songs until they become part of us. / We stand tall like juniper so our children know / what it means to reach towards the sun’s sweet nourishment. We know that all / our relations answer the call to dance proudly, / our gifts guiding the path we call presence.