We have been blessed with a beautiful day here in the Great Smoky Mountains. We awake to what appears to be a light fog.... but it isn't fog at all... it's thin clouds. We are high up in the mountains.. and the low cloud cover that one would normally raise their eyes skyward to view... is even with our gaze when we step outside the tents today. Soon the sun rises above the horizon and the clouds disipate... and a clear blue sky is revealed for today's Cherokee Conference on the Journey of the Sacred Hoop.

The Sacred Hoop of 100 Eagle Feathers is carried into the Circle of Conference Participants by Members of the local Community and by a special friend... Renee... all the way from Atlanta, Georgia. There are many familar faces who join us today... and a few new faces as well. Thank you to all of those who made such a great effort to join us during our time here in Cherokee, N.C. So many of them share with us about the impact this Sacred Hoop has had on them personally and how they are anxious to learn more about the message of Wellbriety.

These encounters with old friends and new... these are the reasons we are on this Journey... why we do this work. To be able to share with them about the many lessons and experiences that have come into our lives because of the Gifts of this Hoop - Hope, Healing, Unity, and Forgiving the Unforgiveable - it is such a Blessing. And to hear from the People who have been around this Hoop before.. about the changes they have made in their lives because of what they have learned already.... we are very grateful for your sharing and all that you do... and we are honored to be with this Sacred Hoop when it travels. Wellbriety is not just a 'message'... that's what people are confirming for us now... Wellbriety is becoming a 'way of life'.

"This is the time for Healing"... . Don Coyhis says as he shares some of the phrophecies of not only the American Indian Nations... but also of Nations from the 4 Directions of Mother Earth. " There is a natural law put into place by Creator.. things do not happen until it is time" he continues... "You can plant your corn in the spring and work with the seasons of climate and growth.... or you can choose to plant your corn in the winter time... we have that free will to make that choice. But no matter what you do.... no matter how much you try to control things or people, you cannot cause things to happen... you cannot create change until it is time - you cannot plant your corn... your ideas for change... until it is the right time."

Floyd Hand of Pine Ridge, South Dakota then shares the stories and prophecy of his People... his Ancestors.... which include Chief Red Cloud. Floyd's words echo the essence of the prophecy shared with us at the Gathering of the Elders - in Janesville, Wisconsin 1995 - when the Four Gifts were put into the Sacred Hoop of 100 Eagle Feathers. Prohpecy of Austrailian Aboriginees, Tibetian Monks, Saami People, African Nations.... People from lands near and far came during that summer in 1995 to tell of their Ancestors and to share about the "Coming Together Time" that we are now entering.

Yes... it is time. It is time to stop the domestic violence... the jealousy and the pain that we inflict upon one another. It's time to let go of the pain of historical and generational trauma... time to heal from the abuse suffered in our families and communities. The time is now for Hope, Healing, UNITY, and to Forgive the Unforgiveable. Again.. as I looked around the room... every head was nodding in agreement to the words being shared by both Don Coyhis and Floyd Hand. Every State we have walked across... all of the people we have encountered... even for the briefest time... they all have a 'knowing' that this is the time to Come Together.

In order to help us to Walk in a good way.. to go about our own personal healing so that we could begin to heal our families, communities, and this Nation we all share... Floyd Hand agreed to honor us with a 'Wiping of the Tears' Ceremony. The lights in the Conference room were lowered... and the chairs were all placed in one large circle... after blessings and preparation of the Feathers, Sage, Water, Pipe, Tobacco and other Sacred Objects to be used during this Cleansing Ceremony... the room became hushed except for the occasional sobbing as one after another 'let go' of the pain and the tears of some past hurt.

I will not share any more details about the Ceremony. I feel that neither my words nor the words of the greatest writers who ever lived can do justice or honor to the work of 'Spirit'. For some events.. for some ceremonies or 'feelings'.. you must be present.

After the Ceremony was complete... we joined hands for a closing prayer. After the prayer was complete... people did not let go of one another's hands. That's how it is when something happens that is so good... that makes you feel so connected. It is difficult to want to end something that has made you feel so good. And that's how it was at the end of today's Conference. You could see it in the way people stood... in the way their eyes were connecting in the circle... there was no barrier between the people gathered in this circle at the end of this day. They all understood 'The Coming Together Time'.. and they all were receipients of the 4 Gifts of the Sacred Hoop.

Thank you to the People of this community.. to the Friends who drove from Atlanta to be with us... to the Walkers for bringing the Hoop all the way across the country to this place on the top of the Mountains in North Carolina. Everything must happen 'when it is time'. Today... in Cherokee.. for those gathered in this circle... it was time to 'wipe the tears'.. and to begin a Walk of Wellbriety.