Yesterday, my niece and I spent the afternoon planting a batch of flowers in my yard. It was our first gardening endeavor together and it was filled with profound ponderings only a three-year-old can conjure. As we planted the blooms I told her about how I planted flowers with my late Nalí asdzaan. She askedContinue reading “Seeds of Gratitude”
Author Archives: Jaclyn Roessel
Moonlight Respite
My house is quiet in this hour. Nothing moves but my heart, ceiling fan, and the occasional sighs of my dog. The stillness is my soul’s reminder to be reverent. There is a lunar eclipse occurring on this spring morning, one of the shortest of the year. We are taught as Diné (Navajo) people toContinue reading “Moonlight Respite”
In the Time of the Eaglets’ Cry
My late Nalí asdzann would prepare for a new school year, a ceremony or chapter meeting with gusto. She dove into things. I never knew her to announce her fear. When it came to how to start something new, or even what to do next she would simply do. Always reminding me “don’t just talkContinue reading “In the Time of the Eaglets’ Cry”
Shíkeyáh as Medicine
Sunday morning I said goodbye to my family after a delicious breakfast prepared by my mom. We ate and laughed as a late winter snow fell outside. My heart swells at all the scenes we took in together and remember the prayers we said for each other and ourselves before I left. I know IContinue reading “Shíkeyáh as Medicine”
Shine Love.
It is hard to escape the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. today as it is the day which bears reminding of his work and sacrifice of life. There are many favorite quotes of his I have gained inspiration from, “To serve. You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated byContinue reading “Shine Love.”
Yá’at’eeh Hai
I rang in the New Year surrounded by family, in the land I love and call home. Diné Bikeyah (Navajoland) was white with snow and blissfully cold the first of the year. I ended and begun the year in the way I aim to start and end every day, with a grateful heart. Processing myContinue reading “Yá’at’eeh Hai”
Stay Gold.
At 30, I am making every one of my English teachers happy, as this almost birthday girl has been thinking of Pony Boy Curtis. The greaser from the S.E. Hinton’s book “The Outsiders” has come to mind several times this August as I set to mark my golden birthday – the day you turn theContinue reading “Stay Gold.”
Yá’at’eeh Ya’iishjááshtsoh
Normally a month full of activity July seems to pass so quickly. This year is no exception as I post this I am confounded by where the time has gone. In Navajo it’s the season filled with the “flourishing of early crops”. A time when working in the corn fields is critical. This idea ofContinue reading “Yá’at’eeh Ya’iishjááshtsoh”
Ode to the Desert
I was raised in Diné Bikeyáh (Navajo land) but I grew up in the desert, a place that has taught me many lessons. Of them, how important it is to stay hydrated and (one of my favorites) how a place so hot can be full of so much earned beauty because everything, including the people,Continue reading “Ode to the Desert”
Yá’at’eeh Ya’iishjááshchilí!
A near holiday in my world is the Summer Solstice. Approaching quickly, June 21, it’s the half way point of the calendar year – the longest day – full of the most sunshine. I find this day a perennial reminder of the need to stay connected to the natural world, a feat in the city. AContinue reading “Yá’at’eeh Ya’iishjááshchilí!”
Grownup Navajo 