Nature Connections
By Minnie Kansman
Gratitude all Year The Thanksgiving Address first crossed my path while reading Robin Wall Kimmerer's book, Braiding Sweetgrass. This address is not a Thanksgiving Day prayer, a pledge, or a poem, but rather an invitation of gratitude to be spoken throughout the year. It's root words are thousands of years old, and it is still spoken today by the Native American tribes of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora: also known as the Haudenosaunee Confederacy of Nations. The Thanksgiving Address is an ancient message of peace and appreciation for the Earth, and is used to open and close gatherings, meetings, and ceremonies when two or more are gathered. It is also called The Words that Come Before all Else. Its purpose is to bring the people together with One Mind, from a place of gratitude, in order to tend to the specific matters at hand. At the Onondaga National School in upstate New York, the week begins and ends with the entire school body gathering in the atrium and assigned classes taking turns sharing the address in their native language. It may be said in a long and descriptive form, or abbreviated, but part of its power rests in the length
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of time and focus it takes to send greetings and thanks to all parts of our natural world. Imagine starting a school day, business meeting, or session of Congress where the first priority is acknowledging the gifts from the Earth we are all privileged with. Each section of the writing calls for a group response of, "And now our minds are one," making this a participative recitation. You cannot listen to or read the Thanksgiving Address without feeling wealthy for the bounty of the earth. From the plants, animals, elements, and our teachers, the address displays the abundance surrounding us when we take the time to individually name and honor them. This Address moved something in me that goes even deeper than gratitude. It helps me to see and step into my rightful place in my connection to being a part of this Earthly existence. Acknowledging this throughout the year, helps me to live my life in even more balance with the natural world.
