ABOUT THUNDERHANDS



About Me: "Wakiya" (Thunder)
I am a Tribal, Musician, Writer, Artist. I try to walk the path and have studied the tradition of the "Wisdom keepers" like Lame Deer, Fools Crow, Black Elk, and Rolling Thunder from the tribes of this region, and Lao Tzu, Buddha, Bodhidharma, Yeshua, and other enlightened ones from the many various tribes of the earth. I understand the worlds religions and belief systems, and realize the division this can cause by the lack of understanding the "real message" from the Masters. My intention, and life's prayer is to try to live in harmony with Grandmother Earth, Grandfather sky, (Nature) and "the spirit that moves in all things," and help in any way I can to build a bridge between all men and tribes so they can walk their path in a manner that will benefit themselves, the Earth and others. I open up, and ask Great Spirit, The creator, The Tao, The Universe, to work and direct healing and positive energy through me by different means, like the Flute, drums, Words, Prayer, and Touch. I try to be loving and accept others from the heart, and practice forgiveness. I honor all people, the winged one's, and four legged ones considering us all equal, not one being above another. I honor the bountiful Harvest from Mother earth in the form of plant life, water, air and herbs which sustain our oneness with her. I pray all tribes should re-unite as one, so we may protect the planet and live in harmony. Within you, without you.

Mitakuye Oyasin
( all my relations)
Wakiya

Saturday

"Free Spirit"

"The lone Wolf"

I have often been accused of, and have declared myself as being a "Free Spirit." This can be a blessing or a curse depending on how you look at it. The dictionary defines free spirit as the following: –noun a person with a highly individual or unique attitude, lifestyle, or imagination; nonconformist.

That being said let me try to expound on what being a free spirit means to me, and or how others view it. First, people that are free spirits may have at one time been oppressed or beaten down and vow never to be controlled again. Free spirits may listen and learn from Masters, but as Jet Li put it in the movie War, "I have not betrayed my Master, because I have no Master." The only master they have is the highest one, the flow of life, the universe or the "Tao" because it puts no demands on them, and is non-judgmental and so therefore allows them to be their own master. This means there is no belief in an angry unmerciful type God or entity ready to hail down fire and brimstone. Your concept is more of a higher power or creative force. Your Morality may seem different because of this, because guilt feelings imply bondage, and most likely come from a manipulative attempt.

Creative people are usually free spirits and again maybe people that have been oppressed in the past. You can't trick a free spirit through manipulation, Drama, or any other means because since they are free, they see through the Bullshit. Sometimes they have studied every means of manipulation you can imagine, including hypnotherapy, religion, and other forms of control like drama from certain relationships, just so they can avoid it.

Now being a free spirit has certain issues that must be recognized. First and foremost is the accusation that they are selfish and care for no one but themselves, and that they are cold. Nothing could be further from the truth. Being a free spirit doesn't mean you don't have compassion for other peoples problems or suffering. As a matter of fact you see these things quite clearly, but prefer non-attachment. How much better it is to help others from that perspective then to get involved in the drama. Being a free spirit means seeing the bigger picture and helping from that view point.

Being a free spirit means that at times you find it to the benefit of all concerned to just walk away, or to say no. In the martial arts this is called "The sword of no Sword" Saying no is ok! It's a good thing sometimes. People get mad at free spirits when they walk away or say no because they no longer have control. There is a lot of control issues going around these days. The Government wants to control, religion wants to control, your mate, lover, family and so-called friends may want to control, and most times this is done supposedly for your own good. "Free spirits" realize this isn't always true. They usually see the ulterior motives. They listen evaluate and make a decision.

Sometimes being a free spirit allows you to see where other people are in bondage to a way of thinking, and may prompt you to try to help free them in some way. This is the hardest thing of all to a free spirit. Sometimes you are almost willing to sacrifice your freedom to help them, but when push comes to shove if your help or words fall on deaf ears there is nothing you can do except withdraw to keep your own free spirit intact. This doesn't mean you don't love them, in a sense it means you do, because you finally realize they must walk there own path to free spirit status.

After all how do you become a free slave, without having been a slave.

Below are a few things I found on a website to help you get along or be compatible in a relationship with a free spirit. I laughed at some of the things, but others made some sense so I included them below, after all if it will help them to understand me and others of this ilk then I'm all for it. (laughs)

1) Get to know the person inside out. Study their tendencies, their quirks, their deepest desires, and their worst fears. Always be accepting and open-minded. Knowledge is power. The better you know this person, the less you'll feel the need to control them. Moreover, he or she will sense this and feel like you're the only person who truly knows them and thus, the only person they can be their uninhibited selves around. To a free spirit, this is the jackpot.

2) Give them the benefit of the doubt. A person who values his or her independence will truly test your ability to trust. You need to determine early on whether or not you trust this person, and then trust them completely. Sure, you might get burned, but you also might capture the heart of a person that no one else could touch.

3) Get in touch with your own free spirit. Don't sit at home, wondering what he or she is doing, or when they're going to call. Get in your car and take a road trip. Visit an old friend. Watch a new movie. Taste a different kind of food. Your free spirit will respect you for it, and feel a sense of kinship with you when you both get home and recount your adventures.

4) Appreciate their free-spiritedness. The number one condition that all free spirits demand of their relationships is acceptance. If you don't accept the free spirit, the free spirited person takes that as an assault on his/her freedom. If you accept them exactly as they are and place no expectations/conditions on them, then they can trust you. And only in trust can a relationship develop. Just remember that independence is something to be appreciated, not just tolerated, you'll be giving a free spirit exactly the kind of nourishment that it needs.

5) Free spirits don't like the idea of being judged. Once you start judging them, they feel it's a personal attack and will back off and may even vanish so be careful with your words and actions. But once you meet him/her on the same level (learn to accept them) they can become the most extraordinary individual you ever met.

6) Don't try to change him or her. This is a classic mistake, in any kind of relationship, but especially when you're dealing with a rugged individual.

7) Give them time to themselves and to their projects. Independent individuals tend to have a burning need to progress alone - sometimes you have to let them go down a path by themselves and just let them know you'll be there for them when they get to the end.

Disclaimer: This article is to be taken as points for consideration, and is not to be to be taken personally by anyone who may or may not know me, or any free spirit for that matter.

-Wakiya

5 comments:

DebbiEnjoys said...

Great article, Thunder - many thanks; and I'll pass the perspectives onward.

"Wakiya" (Thunder) said...

Thanks....feel free to e-mail me (sidebar). I Like to get to know my readers. Just talked to someone from Beijing.
Wakiya

Unknown said...

i am a youth worker and i am living and working with a young native boy whom his school teachers are having difficulty controlling. i dont know if there are any real solutions for them or him in this situation as most schools by nature are killers of free spirits. i found your website interesting and am encouraged by what i read as i look for wisdom to guide this old soul into his future.

Unknown said...

i am a youth worker and i am living and working with a young native boy whom his school teachers are having difficulty controlling. i dont know if there are any real solutions for them or him in this situation as most schools by nature are killers of free spirits. i found your website interesting and am encouraged by what i read as i look for wisdom to guide this old soul into his future.

Unknown said...

Hi, thank you for this great article. I was wondering if you could tell me how to say Free Spirit in your Native tongue?