Welcome to Gallery IV
My small-treasure gift book, Native Knowings, has earned high praise from The Reading Bud. Here’s the text of the review:
“Native Knowings: Wisdom Keys for One and All by Steven McFadden is a profound and soul-stirring journey into the heart of North American indigenous wisdom. This concise book, though just 84 pages, is a treasure trove of timeless teachings that are more relevant today than ever. As I delved into its pages, I found myself deeply moved by the words of wisdom that have been passed down through generations.
“McFadden’s writing is both eloquent and accessible, making the profound teachings of the Native American elders resonate with a contemporary audience. The book masterfully weaves together teachings from various tribes, offering a rich tapestry of wisdom that speaks to the heart as well as the mind. The quotations and teachings from elders like Frank Decontie are particularly impactful, urging the reader to listen not just with their minds, but with their hearts. This approach brings a deeper, more intuitive understanding of the messages conveyed.
“One of the most compelling aspects of Native Knowings is its relevance to our current era of transition and uncertainty. The book highlights how these ancient teachings can guide us in creating a more harmonious and sustainable future. It’s a call to integrate these insights into our daily lives, for the sake of ourselves and future generations. The sense of urgency in the words of contemporary elders adds a poignant note, underscoring the importance of heeding these teachings now.
“In conclusion, Native Knowings: Wisdom Keys for One and All is a must-read for anyone seeking wisdom, guidance, or a deeper connection to the Earth and its history. McFadden has created a powerful compilation that not only educates but also inspires. It’s a book that I will undoubtedly return to, as its messages are timeless and its wisdom, inexhaustible.”
As the pace of world transition intensifies, I’m moved to once again articulate in direct language my understanding of the vision held by millions of people around the world: the vision of agroecology.
Thus, I offer below a two-minute slide show with words and images characterizing some basic elements of the agroecological vision, and also offering a glimpse at how deep agroecology embraces the vision, then endeavors to explore further into positive possibilities.
Note: The slides are set at 7-second intervals. You can start and stop the presentation by using the slide at the bottom.
Many years ago I compiled a concise eBook with some key native knowings about the earth, and about the era of transition we are living through. Much of that book came from my notes about meetings with traditional native elders, and other people learned in the ways of earth and spirit. Our current national and global circumstances prompted me this past month to update the eBook and slso to publish it in a paperback edition for the first time.
With that background and intention, Light and Sound Press, LLC hereby announces an important addition to the Soul*Sparks collection of gift books–-small treasures recognized for their enduring insights. As of late May 2023 Native Knowings is now available in a slender, handsome, and impactful paperback edition as well as the eBook edition.
Indisputably and on many levels of experience and understanding, profound changes are underway in the world. My hope is that this small volume will in some ways help us to move through the changes more wisely. The root teachings of North America—native knowings—can truly help. This I know in the core of my being.
The words of contemporary leaders in particular bear notes of urgency. They share a sense that the time for us to make profound changes in our attitudes and our behaviors is short. As Native Knowings makes explicit, they encourage us to consider their voiced offerings promptly and carefully.
The back cover of this small treasure gives a sense of what lies within:
My wife Elizabeth treated me to a movie for my birthday just before 2022 came to a close: three hours of the new Avatar film in 3-D at an I-Max theater. Great beauty we beheld in The Way of Water. Although I have to say that as is true for me with most modern adventure films I find the endless battles to be tedious at best, deranging at worst.
More emphasis on story in 2023, I say to Hollywood, and less focus on ways to maim or terminate ourselves and other entities.
In that regard, I’m interested to share a link to a two-minute video clip on water and the IMAGES we hold and project into the world. May we all find ways to do this with greater skill and beauty in the new year and beyond. Peace, S.
The phrase main chance generally refers to the most advantageous prospect available, the opportunity for the greatest progress or gain in any given set of circumstances. I use the phrase now in regard to our tempestuous environmental, climatological, social, and spiritual circumstances.
In a historical context, playwright William Shakespeare employed the phrase main chance memorably in a speech by the Earl of Warwick in Henry VI, Part 2:
“There is a history in all men’s lives,
figuring the nature of the times deceased,
the which observed,
a man may prophesy, with a near aim,
of the main chance
of things as yet not come to life…”
With my nearest aim, I now prophesy for the future that our main chance would be wisely grasped in reference to collective ambitions that we must of necessity awaken in ourselves: ambitions for survival and well-being through climate chaos and more, for a clean Earth, for health, for respect, for purpose, for the next seven generations, for beauty, for spiritual maturity.
All of this is what farms are for, what they can be for if we set our minds and hearts to make it so. Farms and food are the key to our physical, moral, community, and spiritual survival and evolution. Our main chance to realize all of this lies in the realms of agroecology and deep agroecology.
For your consideration, here’s a sample of five memes I was inspired to create by the main chance theme:
Dear Readers –
In recent years the web-birthed form of communication known as “memes” has become a creative outlet for me. By combining an image with a few words to create a meme, anyone can bring an idea into sharp focus. By now (summer 2022) I’ve probably created several hundred memes over the last 7-8 years, relying on the talented photographers of Pixabay, and the design capabilities of Canva. They are worthy of praise and gratitude. Thank you.
The memes in this digital museum bring to light some of the ideas in the books I have authored. Yet by now the memes are scattered across the Internet like individual digital snowflakes. I felt the memes, at least some of them, deserved to be gathered in one place. Thus, with a wink and a nod, I hereby establish Chiron’s Museum of Marvelous Memes.
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Dear Readers, I’m pleased to announce a facelift for an old book that is, I feel, acutely relevant to all that’s going on in the world. It’s the slimmest of volumes, but it still goes right to the heart of the matter. As of today the new cover and format edition is readily available as either print or eBook.
Here’s an image of the new cover, and below you will find the updated text from the book’s back cover:
Tales of the Whirling Rainbow is a journalist’s account of some of the key myths and mysteries of the Americas, and an electrifying exploration of how those myths are resounding in real time.
Veteran journalist Steven McFadden weaves the living myths together seamlessly. Like an atom of gold, this wee book radiates deep beauty. It delivers authentic inspiration for our 21st Century souls.
Tales of the Whirling Rainbow conveys critical insights into core wisdom teachings at the heart of North America’s unfolding saga. Respect for these knowings is fundamental to our survival, and to our spiritual development.
As the Sun awakens and Earth changes intensify, our lives attain high velocity. At this time and in this manner, elders across The Americas informed the author, the human beings who are the different colors and faiths of the world will have opportunities to heal their web of relationships with each other, and with the natural world.
In 1993 I had the honor of serving as National Coordinator for the annual Earth Day USA observation. When appointed to the position, I reached out to the Seventh Generation Fund. We formed a project partnership, and together we developed a plan and a protocol for community council circles.
People came together with their neighbors in a respectful matter to talk about something they (and their children) all have a stake in: the health of the earth, their responsibilities, and their opportunities.
That year Earth Day was marked with formal Council Circles in over 500 US and Canadian communities, a host of other activities from the Boston Esplanade to the Winnebago Reservation in Nebraska, and circles along the Pacific shore.
Now, 29 years later, the materials are still relevant for all kinds of communities. They describe a way to bring people together in a respectful and positive manner.
To access the guidelines and protocol for hosting a community Council Circle (on Earth Day or any day), follow this link then scroll down to where you see the scanned copies of the original typewritten documents.
Council Circles remains a powerful tool for any group of people needing to address serious issues. The circles function as a perennial way of democratically developing and engaging community wisdom and strength.
Your actual, real-time Odyssey parallels this Summer’s ‘blockbuster’ film
New and improved: Classical Considerations
Behold the Light: Farms, Photons, Futures
Our Collective Odyssey: Song and Story for the Generations Arising