Talking sticks and listening sticks

[Chris Corrigan]

in Ojibway circles we use an eagle feather to pass around. The feather
is traditionally regarded as a tool to confer respect on the speaker but
also the responsibility to tell the truth.  In courthouses in Canada for
example, you can swear your oath on an eagle feather.

Here on the west coast most First Nations have a talking stick that has
figures representing the clans of the community carved into it.  These
represent the whole community and the power of leadership to speak for
the whole community.  Many organizations also have talking sticks which
confer the same status on individuals.

As a result, I will often use the organizational or community talking
stick if it available to us.  If not, then I will pick an object that is
representative of the power of the group and can serve the same
function.  Often it is a stone, representing the power of the land,
which we will send around the circle and I will then give to the oldest
person in our group as a mark of respect.

For other groups sometimes it is something as simple as a felt pen, a
symbol of how the group used their power at the beginning of the meeting
to create their agenda.  Whatever the piece is, I try to make it
appropriate to the group.

Chris

*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html

To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist