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Why We Dance Our Prayers

When we dance to the drum, we pray to the creator
and attract the Heartbeat of Mother Earth
we call it Turtle Island.
We never dance without reason,
every dance has a purpose.
We dance for rain, healing, our elders, veterans, changing seasons
We dance for our children,
for their lives to be better than our’s.
The coming generations will keep dancing
To keep these ceremonies alive
As our ancestor’s danced for us.
The drum plays to the beat of the earth
and to the beat of our hearts.
It’s why our ceremonies connect us
to one another, and to Turtle Island and Creator!
The drum player always
Aho aru

 

The Rooms We Build In Our House

In my mind, there are many dwellings.
In each dwellings we create ourselves,
a room of anger, a room of despair, a room of self pity
a room of indifference, a room of low self-worth.
We can live in these rooms, for as long as we choose
or we can remodel the rooms of negativity.
And build-a-new, inside and out
The House of Positivity.
The House of Hope
The House of Joy
The House of Peace
With side rooms like enthusiasm and cooperation.
The room full of Love
The kitchen where we feed our soul.
We stay in these rooms for as long as we decide.
Create with our hearts and minds.
We can stay or leave any time.
They become our world until we leave it for another.
Where will you decide to live today?
“Creator” no one can determine which dwelling I choose to enter.
No one has the power to do so, only me!
“Creator” let me choose wisely
Today

📬

These stories arrive by mail.

Every month, a physical envelope arrives at your door, postmarked from San Quentin Village, California. Inside, you will find original artwork, writing, and recipes from real contributors, along with a personal letter from me, Diane Kahn, founder of Humans of San Quentin, about the people who made them. You read it. You keep it.

Every piece comes from someone serving a sentence. Every piece reminds you they are so much more than that.

📬 Join the Mail Club

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