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For many people, June is a month of slowing down and relaxing...baseball games, cookouts, no school, swimming pools, and ice cream cones! For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, June marks the true beginning of summer, called the Summer Solstice. This occurs on June 21st and is the longest day of the year. This year, Father's Day also occurs on June 21st, giving us even more reason to celebrate!
In this month's newsletter, we feature articles by two of our crystal experts. In "A Tribute to Fathers", Stephanie Tingle offers up crystal suggestions that feature strong, grounding energy for our fathers. At a loss for what to give your dad for Father's Day this year? Crystals can make a welcome change from the usual necktie or socks!
According to Native American teachings, The Creator gave seven grandfathers the responsibility of watching over the people. They taught of Wisdom, Love, Respect, Courage, Honesty, Humility, and Truth. Read more about their important messages in this month's second article, "Grandfather Teachings", from Susan Jolley.
Healing Crystals is very excited to announce new card decks. Card decks 4, 5 & 6 are available along with two new Zodiac Card Decks. We also have an extra special surprise for you... enter the code HCJUNE2015 for a free Crystal Card Deck 4 with any order this month!
Crystal Blessings,
The Staff of HealingCrystals.com
Now, on to our Newsletter...
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A Tribute to Fathers
By Stephanie Tingle
In most countries around the world, Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June each year. It originated here in America when Sonora Smart Dodd decided that fathers should have a designated holiday, just as mothers do. Mrs. Dodd and her five siblings were raised by their father, which I’m sure contributed to her admiration for him. Her idea was apparently not so popular with the fathers that she spoke with though, as they felt that they would essentially be paying for their own gifts for this crazy new holiday! Nonetheless, she persevered with her idea, going to local shops and government offices, as well as her local YMCA and churches to draw attention to her cause. Her idea was successful and, on July 19, 1910, the first Father’s Day was celebrated. It has been celebrated since that date but it wasn’t until 1972 that then-President Richard Nixon signed a proclamation declaring Father’s Day to be a national holiday.
Traditional gifts for Father’s Day include socks, sweaters, or the ever popular necktie. This year, I’m choosing to celebrate Father’s Day by giving my dad one of our Mango Wood Bowls filled with our top ten crystals for men. He humors me about my crystal obsession and agrees that they are nice to look at. They will beautify his home while filling it with beneficial, healing energy. Onyx, Mahogany Obsidian, Green Tourmaline, and Hematite are grounding and protective; they will help him feel protected as he has protected others throughout his life. Turquoise helps promote heartfelt communication, which is essential in all relationships. Blue Sapphire is a stone of wisdom, and that in itself reminds me of my dad. Malachite and Lemon Quartz are healing and purifying, to help keep him physically healthy. Brecciated Jasper and Golden Tiger Eye will help fill him with optimism, strength, and vitality.
However you celebrate - as a father or a child or both - I wish you a Happy Father’s Day! I will leave you with a poem by Dinah Craik which I think suits this day perfectly:
Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away.
-Dinah Craik
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Grandfather Teachings
By Susan Jolley
Many Native Americans passed down their teachings through the use of stories. The Anishinaabe tribe views the teachings as traditional knowledge that represents what is needed for everyday life and survival. To them, this was “walking the Red Road” or “the Good way of life”. In essence, The Creator gave the seven grandfathers the responsibility of watching over the People. They reported back of illness and bad things so a messenger was told to go down, look around and bring back someone who we can tell about what life should be. On the messenger’s seventh attempt he brought back a baby. The baby spent many years with the messenger learning all that was taught to him and, as an old man, he was sent back to the People to share his story and explained the gifts of the Seven Grandfathers’ teachings. The teachings are Wisdom, Love, Respect, Courage, Honesty, Humility, and Truth. It was explained to the people that they all must be used with the rest. You cannot have Wisdom without the other six; you cannot be Honest if you only use just one or two of these or if you just leave out one. To leave out one is to embrace the opposite of the teachings.
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WISDOM: The Beaver teaches us Wisdom. The ability to make decisions is based on personal experience and knowledge. The ability to cherish our personal experience and knowledge is known as Wisdom. If we remain open to others we can acquire more knowledge and apply this to our own life. In turn, by valuing our own knowledge we can then share it with others.
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LOVE: The Eagle teaches us Love. Love is and must be unconditional. To feel true love is to know the Creator/Great Spirit/God. It is expected that one’s first love is to the Creator/Great Spirit/God, who is considered the parent to all children; the giver of human life. Love is given to the Creator/Great Spirit/God as an expression of self-love.
It is understood that if one cannot love oneself, then it is impossible to love others. Knowing love knows true peace. The ability to get along with others; to be kind; to share; the willingness to show that you care for others; being helpful; understanding and having compassion for another’s feelings; doing something that makes the day better for someone; to accept the differences of others - these are all ways of showing/expressing unconditional love.
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RESPECT: The Buffalo teaches Respect. To honor is to respect. Through the giving of its life and sharing every part of its being was how the Buffalo showed its deep respect for the people. To the Native People, no animal was more important, for it gifted shelter, clothing, and utensils for the day to day living of the people. Native People believed themselves to be the true caretakers of the great herds. A developed and sustainable relationship with the Buffalo resulted in a relationship that was truly an expression of respect. |
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COURAGE: The Bear teaches us Courage. Courage is the ability to face the fears, changes and/or dangers in one’s life with confidence and bravery. The most important teaching of all of those that the Bear provides, through the way it lives, is Courage. The ferocity that a mother Bear shows when her cubs are approached is the very definition of courage. As humans, we have many fears that prevent us from moving forward and living our true spirit. It takes mental and moral strength to overcome them, but must be done with the same ferocity as demonstrated by a mother Bear protecting her cubs. By doing this, regardless of how difficult it may feel, one can achieve their goals. One needs to master those challenges in a positive manner and without worrying about the outcome - to work through them, to give all aspects of one’s life one’s best effort, to accept responsibility for one’s behavior, and accept those challenges as lessons and learn from them. Be willing to demonstrate Courage to others by your actions (standing up for your values, facing fears, and dealing with challenges) and not just words The Crystals in this grid that will help support finding the courage within are Bloodstone, Aquamarine, Epidote, and Garnet. |
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HONESTY: The Sabe (Sasquatch) teaches us Honesty. Honesty is speaking and acting truthfully, which means standing in integrity and remaining morally upright. Long ago, a giant called Kitch-Sabe walked among the people to remind them to be honest to the laws of the Creator and honest to each other. The highest honor that could be bestowed upon any individual was someone saying, “There walks an honest man” or “He can be trusted”. To be truly honest was to keep the promises (one’s word), made to the Creator, to others and to oneself. |
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HUMILITY: The Wolf teaches us Humility. Humility is being humble and not arrogant. Recognizing and acknowledging that there is a higher power than man, known as the Creator, is to be deemed truly humble. To express to the Creator, by deference or surrender, the acceptance that all beings are equal is to capture the true spirit of humility. To express humility is to place the consideration of others before ourselves. The Wolf became the teacher of this lesson because he bows his head in the presence of others out of deference and will not take food until it can be shared with the pack. The lack of arrogance and respect for community is a hard lesson, but integral for the Native Way. |
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TRUTH: The Turtle teaches us Truth. To know truth is to know and understand all of the original laws as they were shared with us and to remain faithful to them all. It is said that in the beginning, when the Creator made man and gave him the seven Sacred Laws, the Grandmother Turtle was present to ensure that the laws would never be lost or forgotten. On the back of a Turtle are the 13 moons, each representing the truth of one cycle of the Earth’s rotations around the Sun. The 28 markings on her back represent the cycle of the Moon and of a woman’s body. The shell of the Turtle represents the body, real events as created by the Higher Power, and serves as a reminder of the Creator’s will and teachings.
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 I'm just not a fan of non-Native American people talking about Native American cultures/spiritual beliefs. It usually shows pretty painfully too. Example: "Many Native Americans passed down their teachings through the use of stories" -- (1) yes, just as literally any other group of people has done/continues to do; (2) using past tense with "passed on", as if Native Americans were only on this earth long ago and not, you know, still here. This is the problem with talking about peoples or cultures we don't belong to -- especially when they're historically marginalized peoples. We may have innocent intentions, but these seemingly trivial details actually matter!We don't need to romanticize Native American cultures (or any other culture/people) to write interesting stuff about stones and crystals! I bet there's things to be found about crystals/stones in everyone's own personal ancestries. I would love to see us all practice good allyship to communities of color in this way. Cheers :) (Submitted by: Jane on June 21, 2015) |
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 Very well done. Photos are very nice. (Submitted by: Micheline on June 20, 2015) |
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| Excellent article about Grandfather teachings. (Submitted by: Joanne on June 20, 2015) |
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