UPCOMING EVENTS WITH EVAN PRITCHARD
JANUARY - MARCH 2012
For more information, contact Evan Pritchard at
PO Box 140, Salt Point, NY 12578
evan.pritchard7@gmail.com

Saturday, January 28th, 9 PM to 9 AM Sunday, Imbolch Ceremony; All Night and Into the Dawn Singing and Storytelling Festivities hosted Robin and Stephen Larsen, Stone Mountain Farm/Center for Symbolic Studies, 597 Springtown Road, New Paltz, NY 12561. (845)658-8540. (If you don't see Evan, look for "Clovis Flint, the 11,000 Year Old Man.") Be sure not to miss Steve's spooky annual pre-dawn firelit rendition of "The Cremation of Sam McGhee." Free of charge. Saturday, January 28th, Official release of the brand new one hour CD of Evan Pritchard's greatest hits (so far and who knows?) The Complete "Earth Dance Anthology" with 12 songs from the edge of the Native American experience. Five years in the making. ($10; turn in your Earthdance mini CD's for $2 credit) Features "Ballad of Ojigwano," "Fire In Our Hearts," "Cash Is King," "Wanna See Us Free" etc. Order from Evan Pritchard PO Box 140 Salt Point NY 12578. ($10 plus $2 P&H) Tuesday, January 31st, First anniversary of the passing of Shoshana Rothaizer, a friend to the Mi'kmaq. (See Youtube film "The Blessing of the Bluesmobile") Saturday, February 4th, "Bird Medicine" all day workshop, 11 AM-5 PM, Camelot, Rock Tavern. Evan will discuss the four million year old spiritual relationship between birds and people. He will inform us about traditional beliefs about birds. Evan will relate amazing stories about how birds are helping present day Native Americans in their spiritual lives. He will remind us of the loss of safe habitat for our feathered friends and discuss what can be done. contact Linda at (845)590-3818, or Evan at (845)266-9231. $30 suggested donation. Bring your bird stories. Saturday, February 4th, COSM Full Moon Ceremony 7:30 to midnight. Evan has offered to tell his Native American tales of winter as part of the interfaith convocation. Contact COSM, www.cosm.org (845)632-3880. 23 Deer Hill Road, Wappingers Falls, NY. Sunday, February 12th, Unitarian Universalist Catskill Congregation, 10:30 AM to 12 noon. "The Beauty of Winter:" Evan Pritchard's sermon will focus on Native American winter traditions and stories. This time of year is one for rest and reflection, where perceptions of the past crystalize like ice on the window pane. It is a poetic season where even short walks lead to places of solitude and frozen ecstasy. In this talk, Evan Pritchard, a descendant of the sub-arctic Mi'kmaq people, will share Native American perspectives on winter, including personal and family stories of snow-bound adventures. He will also discuss how Native people have dealt with cold, both spiritually and physically for 10,000 years, and how those perspectives might help some listeners find a way to lower their thermostats with pleasure, not pain, and in combination with other measures, help to reduce New York State's energy footprint in the snow, keeping in mind that love is the ultimate alternative heat source! (Intergenerational segment: "The Snow Tree") Saturday, February 18th, 11-4 Medicine Wheel 1 Eastern Directions; In native teachings, people speak of a "fourness of things," which is related to the four directions and the four parts of the self; the soul (East) the mind (South) the heart (West) and the body (North). In this series of workshops we will explore various aspects of the four directions, and various types of teaching wheels, including that of the elements, of the animal realm, the passage of time, and more. We will also discuss the four paths to wholeness. Camelot, Rock Tavern, NY East: The Path of the Shamans; Self-empowerment through visions and inner journeys. Contact Linda at (845)590-3818, Evan at (845)266-9231, and Barbel at (845)800-1699 $30 suggested donation. Saturday, March 17th, (St Patrick's Day) 11-4 Medicine Wheel 2 Southern Directions; Camelot, Rock Tavern, NY South: The Way of the Heron; Learning to resolve conflicts through the power of our truth. Linda at (845)590-3818, Evan at (845)266-9231, and Barbel at (845)800-1699. $30 suggested donation. Wednesday, March 28th, No Word For Time, The Way of the Algonquin People, will be released (by popular demand) in a new paperback edition by Millichap Books of Tulsa Oklahoma. The list price is $18.00, but pre-orders are being taken on Amazon, with a discount price of $12.15 for those who are price-conscious. You can also pre-order through the Resonance Catalogue, and get an autographed copy at full price, ($18 plus $3 P&H) but it may take an extra two weeks for delivery. ISBN 13-9781937462017. Sunday, April 1st, 2-4 Landkeeper I at Mirabai Books, 23 Mill Hill Road, Woodstock NY ($18/$22) (845)679-2100. In this workshop, participants will learn a number of ways to connect to the Lenape (Munsee and other Algonquin) spirits called "Landkeepers" who watch over Woodstock and the Hudson and Delaware Valleys, in order to help them with their work protecting the environment. Saturday, April 21st, 11-4 Medicine Wheel 3 Western Directions, Camelot, Rock Tavern, NY. West: The Way of the Heart (Tchi Tchan Kwi Wee) Learning to surrender to the power of the Creator. Contact Linda at (845)590-3818, Evan at (845)266-9231, and Barbel at (845)800-1699. $30 suggested donation. Sunday, May 6th, South Presbyterian Church service with Evan Pritchard (tentative) Tarrytown, NY. Contact Evan at (845)266-9231. Saturday, May 19th, 11-4 Medicine Wheel 4 Northern Directions, Camelot, Rock Tavern, North: The Way of the Ethical Warrior; Becoming physically self reliant and without complaint. Contact Linda at (845)590-3818, Evan at (845)266-9231, and Barbel at (845)800-1699 Saturday, May 26th, Sunday, May 27th Monday, May 28th Bowdoin Powwow, Bowdoin Park, Poughkeepsie, NY 11-6, Tony Moonhawk (917)415-5139 Saturday, June 16th, 11-4 A History of the Sacred Pipe (Father's Day Weekend) This is not a pipe ceremony, just an educational workshop focusing on the history of the sacred pipe in Native American culture, sharing personal stories about the pipe. Camelot, Rock Tavern, NY Contact Linda at (845)590-3818, Evan at (845)266-9231, and Barbel at (845)800-1699. Saturday August 18th, Sunday, August 19th, Daniel Nimham Powwow, Kent NY (845)225-8154. ALSO ONLINE: Streaming Online: November 23rd WYPR - 88.1 Midday Radio Show with Dan Rodricks Baltimore's NPR flagship radio station. Evan discussed the concept of Gratitude from a Native perspective and also share about Native peoples of the Chesapeake Bioregion.

---

Chief William Commanda passed into the spirit world August 3rd, 2011. Memorial services began the following day and his body was buried on Friday August 5th. I wrote this song for the occasion and sang it at the memorial services.

~ Evan

I Think of You
(To William Commanda)
Copyright © 2011 Evan Pritchard

CHORUS:
Ojigwano, Ojigwano, born beneath a morning star long ago
Shine your light from heaven, Ojigwano, Shine your light from heaven now.

VERSE:
I think of you and all the songs we played and I think of you and all the jokes we made,
and I think of you whenever I'm afraid and I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.
And I think of you when fiddlers strike a tune, and I think of you when I sing to the moon
And I think of you whenever flowers bloom, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.

CHORUS

I think of you when snow begins to fall, and I think of you whenever eagles call
And I think of you at every waterfall, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.
And I think of you and all the trails we blazed, and I think of you and all the Hell we raised
And I think of you and I still stand amazed, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.

CHORUS

I think of you and all the time we spent, and I think of you and what the words all meant
And I think of all the helping hands you lent, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.
And I think of how you grew up on the run, and I think of all the battles you have won
You built a rainbow bridge to make us one, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.

CHORUS

I think of you when wolves begin to howl, and I think of you when I'm watched by an owl
And when I think I should throw in the towel I say a prayer my friend and think of you, Ojigwano.
I think of you when eagles call my name, and I think of you when I think I'm to blame
And I think of you when I feel I've been tamed, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.

CHORUS

I think of you and why you had to die, and I think of you and I try not to cry
But if life's a prayer in action I know why, 'cause you had your say, my friend, and I'm thanking you, Ojigwano.
I think of you and all the songs we played, and I think of you and all the jokes we made
And I think of you whenever I'm afraid, I say a prayer my friend and I think of you, Ojigwano.

CHORUS (variation)
Ojigwano, Ojigwano, left this earth beneath his star not long ago
Shine your light from heaven, Ojigwano, shine your light from heaven now. o o o

The Landkeeper Newsletter ~
Vol. 1 Issue 4 ~ AUG 2011 ~ PO Box 140, Salt Point, NY 12578