This is a meaning-packed collection of brief spiritual reflections from one of the most prolific of Native/First Nations teachers and writers. We recommend you read from it each morning upon waking. That is how the author, Richard Wagamese, tells us he wrote them.
This is the last book of Wagamese’s, published before his death in 2017. He was an Ojibway from the Wabaseemoong First Nation in northwestern Ontario and one of the most articulate and profound spiritual teachers of his generation.
Short teachings are grouped into seven chapters: Stillness, Harmony, Trust, Reverence, Persistence, Gratitude, and Joy.
Even a couple of sentences pulled from a longer paragraph can be a useful intention for morning meditation: “I am my silence. I am not the busyness of my thoughts or the daily rhythm of my actions.”
Other times, you need to have the whole teaching paragraph: “I used to believe my body contained my soul. That was fine for a while. But when I started thinking about oneness with Creator, I came to believe that it’s the other way around. My soul contains my body. It is everything that I am. I am never separate from Creator except within my mind. That’s the ultimate truth, and I need to be reminded, to learn again, to learn anew in order to get it. When I do, I know the truth of what my people say: that we are all spirit, we are all energy, joined to everything that is everywhere, all things coming true together.”
Embers is full of these gems.
Why is it titled, Embers? The author explains: “The words in this book are embers from the tribal fires that used to burn in our villages. They are embers from the spiritual fires burning in the heart, minds and souls of great writers on healing and love. They are embers from every story I have ever heard. They are embers from all the relationships that have sustained and defined me. They are heart songs. They are spirit songs. And, shared with you, they become honour songs for the ritual ways that spawned them. Bring these words into your life. Feel them. Sit with them. Use them.”
