As you read "Blue Winds Dancing," you may want to check out this video called "Ojibway Heartbeat" to help you get in the mood. It combines pictures from a pow wow, a social dancing event, with nature shots of northern Minnesota or Wisconsin to a sound track of pow wow drumming.
Intermission: Learn how to say "hello" in Ojibwe in this language instruction video. The Ojibwe or Anishinaabe people are making great efforts to revive their language. Listen carefully at the beginning and you'll hear them called "Anishinaabe" in their native language. ("Ojibwe" is the name their neighbors gave them. It means "puckered," and its original meaning is obscure. "Anishinaabe" means the people.)
A powerful video called "Knowing the Ojibwe" combines footage from a pow wow on a Minnesota reservation with an interview with Richard Morrison, a pipe carrier or traditional spiritual leader. His religion was banned for a time during the 20th century, and parts of it are still not shared with outsiders. But Morrison explains some of the ethical principles behind it in terms that are common to many of us. Watch for what he says at the end of his interveiw about what each of us can do in our own communities. Something to think about.
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