By Gemmah Stone, Sunray Peace Village Board Member
The first and the last thing that I always think of when visiting the Peace Village is the Sacred Fire. A fire that is felt so deeply within, and the fire that we take with us when we leave -still burning.
The Elder’s Gathering experience was very different and yet very much the same this year. The energy of hundreds of people coming together with loving hearts of compassion and one mind makes this experience one that will never be forgotten. People from all over the world, people that you have never met and yet you know.
People that feel the connectedness between all that is. There was an unspoken feeling of trust, a deep respect, unselfish generosity and an overwhelming appreciation for all teachings so graciously given.
The balance of the teachings is always something that I cannot wait for each year. We move from the heart teachings to the spiritual teachings to the scientific proof. We experience the Native ways of knowing, storytelling, symbolism and listening as well as the history, physics, chemistry, astronomy, and math of topics discussed.
The fire of knowledge, peace, love and compassion burns in all of us.