Message from our Community Engagement & Development Director    Danny T.  Duong

 

 Magic & Mystery at Wolf Dream Mountain

 

Earlier in June, Braided Wisdom, in partnership with Elder Medicine Woman Verlinda Montoya,  gathered twenty-one women on the land of the Yuki people in Lake County for our Deep Renewal Women’s Gathering to complete the Cross-Cultural Medicine Wheel cycle. For several years, Wolf Dream Mountain has served as a sacred home for people of all backgrounds to participate in Native American ceremonies that heal the wounds of generations who have come before us. As Verlinda shares, “the magic of Wolf Dream Mountain is the emptying of our minds that occurs upon stepping foot onto the land”. Together, women across different cultural diasporas and generations came together to drop into our bodies, letting go of the material world to be fully awake in ourselves as we  sang, drummed, danced, and contemplated our inner landscapes.  

 

 

Over the course of three days, we spent quiet time in the wild, we practiced meditation and tai-chi, we cleansed together in the Inipi sweat lodge ceremony, and we prayed and sent our tender wishes into a sacred fire held by ancestors and land spirits. Our bellies were nourished abundantly with rich and colorful foods and our hearts filled by deeply transforming wisdom circles with Carol and Verlinda. Being in community, so intimately connected to each other and Mother Earth after two years of isolating pandemic life, we witnessed the revealing and humbling truth of our interconnectedness as living beings.  

 

The effort to come together on the land encountered new challenges that didn’t exist prior to the pandemic. We were invited as a whole community to confront the mystery of the unknown when it came to preparing for the retreat and responding to unexpected outcomes. We rose together, worked our best to care and protect each other, and learned through generosity and love how to steadily navigate the practical and interpersonal complexities of our current world. Our team feels deep gratitude for this sacred opportunity to co-create a beautiful weekend of growth, connection, and healing.   

Every year, Wolf Dream Mountain brings both magic and mystery. Together, with open hearts, we practice welcoming and honoring both.