Words That Saved Many, redux (mostly the music) August 14, 2024
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in "Impossible" People, Books, Changing Perspectives, Dharma, Faith, First Nations, Gratitude, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, Music, One Hoop, Pain, Suffering, Super Heroes, Tragedy, Wisdom, Writing, Yoga.Tags: 988, Benson Tohe, Diné, IllumiNative, Laura Tohe, Mag 7, National Navajo Code Talkers Day, Native American Music Awards, Navajo, Navajo Code Talkers, Raven Chacon, Taboo
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Many blessings to everyone on National Navajo Code Talkers Day and especially to anyone connected to the service, observing the Dormition (Theotokos) Fast, and/or communicating friendship, peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside).
Stay hydrated & be kind, y’all!
“They [Code talkers] came, ironically, from government and parochial schools that forbade them to speak their mother tongue and where they were expected to become Americanized through severe forms of assimilation and punishment meant to erase Indigenous identity and languages. Eradicating Native languages has resulted in the systematic loss of Indigenous languages throughout the United States since colonization began.”
“They returned home without fanfare to continued poverty, lack of economic opportunity, and nonexistent voting rights yet persevered and overcame obstacles that helped change the Navajo Nation and their communities. Approximately 461 Navajo Marines served as code talkers, with 13 killed in action. Upon their discharge, the code talkers swore to never reveal their role in case the code would be needed again. My family and the descendants knew nothing of the unique service the code talkers gave until 1968, when the code was declassified, and the public learned of what my father and the code talkers accomplished through their bravery, resilience, and ingenuity. A language once forbidden became a weapon that was quick, accurate, and never deciphered. Most important, it saved many American lives.”
— quoted from the Humanities (Summer 2022, Volume 43, Number 3) article “Code Talkers Were America’s Secret Weapon in World War II” by Laura Tohe, PhD (daughter of Code Talker Benson Tohe)
Please join me today (Wednesday, August 14th) at 4:30 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Wednesday’s playlist available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “08142022 Words That Saved Many”]
Musical Note: This is the remix that includes compositions by Pulitzer Prize winner Raven Chacon. With the exception of the seventeenth track and the final track, all the music on the playlist features musicians and/or groups recognized by the Native American Music Awards (NAMA), which awards “Nammy’s” for styles of music associated with Native Americans and First Nations and to nominees who are Native American or when at least one member in a group or band is from a State for Federally recognized tribe. Most of the songs feature people who have been inducted into the Native American Music Awards Hall of Fame or have been awarded NAMA Lifetime Achievement Awards. Some songs simply won a Nammy (or two). To my knowledge, I only covered ten (maybe eleven) nations. I wanted to include “One World (We Are One)” – which is the result of a collaboration between Taboo, IllumiNative and Mag 7 – but the song was not available on Spotify.
Extreme heat (and traumatic events) can not only make people lethargic and unmotivated, they can also lead to extreme agitation and anxiety-based fear. We may find it hard to think, hard to feel (or process our feelings), and/or hard to control our impulses. If you are struggling in the US, help is available just by dialing 988.
If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.
White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.
If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).
Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.
Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.
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Words That Saved Many (mostly the music) August 14, 2022
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in "Impossible" People, Books, First Nations, Healing Stories, Music, One Hoop.Tags: Chester Nex, Diné, IllumiNative, Iwo Jima, Judith Schiess Avila, Mag 7, Marine Corporal Chester Nex, National Navajo Code Talkers Day, Navajo Code Talkers, Raven Chacon, Taboo, World War II
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Many blessings on National Navajo Code Talkers Day!
”When the war ended, other combatants were free to discuss their roles in the service and to receive recognition for their actions. But the Marines instructed us, the code talkers, to keep our accomplishments secret. We kept our own counsel, hiding our deeds from family, friends, and acquaintances. Our code was finally declassified in 1968, twenty-three years after the war’s end.
This book may be my story, bit it is written for all of these men.
May they and their loved ones walk in beauty.”
– quoted from the Dedication (“to the 420 World War II Navajo Marine code talkers”) in Code Talker: The First and Only Memoir By One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII by Chester Nez with Judith Schiess Avila
My apologies for not posting the music before the practice. You can request an audio recording of Sunday’s practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
Musical Note: This is the remix that includes compositions by Pulitzer Prize winner Raven Chacon. With the exception of the seventeenth track and the final track, all the music on the playlist features musicians and/or groups recognized by the Native American Music Awards (NAMA), which awards “Nammy’s” for styles of music associated with Native Americans and First Nations and to nominees who are Native American or when at least one member in a group or band is from a State for Federally recognized tribe. Most of the songs feature people who have been inducted into the Native American Music Awards Hall of Fame or have been awarded NAMA Lifetime Achievement Awards. Some songs simply won a Nammy (or two). To my knowledge, I only covered ten (maybe eleven) nations. I wanted to include “One World (We Are One)” – which is the result of a collaboration between Taboo, IllumiNative and Mag 7 – but the song was not available on Spotify.
”’I’m no hero,’ Chester Nez chuckles. ‘I just wanted to serve my country.’ I just wanted to serve my country. to appreciate that remark, you need to know a little modern Native American history. In Chester’s home state of New Mexico, Native Americans were still denied the vote when he volunteered as a Marine in World War II. Nevertheless, the military called upon Chester and fellow Navajos to devise a code that many analysts believe assured the United States’ defeat of Japan in the South Pacific.”
– quoted from the Prologue (by Judith Schiess Avila) to Code Talker: The First and Only Memoir By One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII by Chester Nez with Judith Schiess Avila
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
A Joyful Practice 