This is Our Family Jewel
Updated: Dec 21, 2022
The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people
when they realize their relationship, their oneness with the universe and all its powers,
and when they realize that at the center of the universe dwells the Great Spirit,
and that this center is really everywhere, it is within each of us. ~ Black Elk
I've had this song "We Are Family" playing in my head for the last week. Most likely because I love all Earth's Family and I feel we have the ability to come together in new and honoring ways. I wanted to share some of the lyrics with you, which I hope you will enjoy as well:
We are family - I got all my sisters with me.We are family - Get up everybody and sing.
Get up everybody and sing. Everyone can see we're together, as we walk on by and
we fly just like birds of a feather.
I won't tell no lie - all of the people around us they say can they be that close -
just let me state for the record - we're giving love in a family dose.
Living life is fun and we've just begun, to get our share of this world's delights,
high hopes we have for the future, and our goal's in sight - no, we don't get depressed
here's what we call our golden rule - have faith in you and the things you do.
You won't go wrong, oh no.
"Families are like branches on a tree.
We grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one."
Reading about your family jewel instantly took me back to the summer I spent at my grandparents’ farm, where an old silver locket rested in a wooden box beside the fireplace. My great‑aunt had given it to my grandmother on her wedding day, and it was passed down through three generations before I finally wore it on my own wedding night. The locket isn’t valuable in a monetary sense, but every time I open it I see tiny photographs of my parents as children, my grandparents smiling, and a tiny pressed violet that grew in the garden where I first learned to ride a bike https://www.deakin.edu.au/ That simple piece of metal held stories, laughter, and even a few tears, just…