Tuesday, June 17, 2025
  • HOME
    • ABOUT
    • OUR TEAM
    • AMBASSADORS
  • BLOG
    • SPOTLIGHT
    • HEALTH + WELLNESS
    • LIFESTYLE
    • YOGA + MOVEMENT
    • GEAR
    • TRAVEL
  • PODCAST
  • BOOK CLUB
  • PARTNERS
    • DIRECTORY
      • Directory – Colorado
      • Directory – Florida
      • Directory – Illinois
      • Directory – Iowa
      • Directory – Kansas
      • Directory – Michigan
      • Directory – Minnesota
      • Directory – Nebraska
      • Directory – North Dakota
      • Directory – Wisconsin
    • PROFILES
    • JOIN US
  • EVENTS
    • EVENTS CALENDAR
    • EVENT ROUND UP
  • SUBSCRIBE
Midwest Yoga Conference
  • HOME
    • ABOUT
    • OUR TEAM
    • AMBASSADORS
  • BLOG
    • SPOTLIGHT
    • HEALTH + WELLNESS
    • LIFESTYLE
    • YOGA + MOVEMENT
    • GEAR
    • TRAVEL
  • PODCAST
  • BOOK CLUB
  • PARTNERS
    • DIRECTORY
      • Directory – Colorado
      • Directory – Florida
      • Directory – Illinois
      • Directory – Iowa
      • Directory – Kansas
      • Directory – Michigan
      • Directory – Minnesota
      • Directory – Nebraska
      • Directory – North Dakota
      • Directory – Wisconsin
    • PROFILES
    • JOIN US
  • EVENTS
    • EVENTS CALENDAR
    • EVENT ROUND UP
  • SUBSCRIBE
No Result
View All Result
Midwest Yoga Conference
No Result
View All Result

Minnesota Native

by Mary Gavin (she/her)

Amy Zellmer by Amy Zellmer
March 7, 2024
in Lifestyle
202 4
300
SHARES
1.9k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
May 2, 2022
in Lifestyle

Upon returning to Minnesota after a decade of living in the mountains of Colorado, I began to reconsider what it means to be “from” here. Mni Sota [Makoce] means “place where the water reflects the clouds in the sky” in the Dakota language. I grew up in Dakota County, unaware at the time Iwas surrounded by a rich legacy left by the indigenous people of Minnesota. It took me leaving to bring fresh eyes back to this place I called home for over twenty years. 

As I settle back into living here, I am discovering opportunities to deepen my own understanding of the Native community right here in my hometown. I recently learned about the cultural and spiritual significance of the merging of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers when the high school I graduated from was renamed “Two Rivers High School.” The renaming did not come without some resistance from the community, but as described on the school’s website, “The name Two Rivers High School reminds us that we must find a way to move with the current instead of fighting to stand still. There is pride in learning to gracefully move with the river of time as it flows ever onward.” This means moving forward together as a community while honoring our shared history. 

This merging of the two rivers has been a sacred space to Native people as the setting of their story of origin. They consider this spot  not only the center of the earth, but where life itself began for the Dakota people. I wondered why that was the case. It would be utterly impossible to know the number of times I crossed the Mendota Bridge, which passes just above this sacred site. I learned how to drive along the banks of these rivers, just minutes from the house where I grew up. It had always been my favorite place to see downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul at the same time. I figured I wasn’t the only one in the dark, so to speak.

I left for a decade, and with these “new eyes” I revel in the beauty of Minnesota I had not truly seen until recently. As I prepare to settle into my own apartment along the Mississippi River, a quintessential “homecoming” of sorts, I am deeply aware of the importance of acknowledging, celebrating, and uplifting the rich history of Minnesota’s truest Natives. As a single, childless 35-year-old, I am excited to continue exercising my freedom of time and money to support the Native community.

I worked in the service industry for over 10 years, and was excited to hear about the opening of Owamni, a modern indigenous restaurant headed by James Beard Award-winning “Sioux Chef” Sean Sherman. Owamni boasts a locally- and ethically-sourced menu, which inspired a packed calendar of reservations for the restaurant since its opening in the summer of 2021.

Birchbark Native Arts in the Kenwood neighborhood of Minneapolis is an absolute gem, filled to the brim with books and art by Native artists from around North America. On my last visit to the shop, I picked up “The Gatherings: ReimaginingIndigenous-Settler Relations by Shirley N. Hager and Mawopiyane. I look forward to reading it with friends and considering each of our roles in forward progression and inclusion.

You can experience Native artist Angela Two Stars’s newest installation, Okiciyapi, (“Help Each Other” ) at the Walker Art Center’s outdoor sculpture garden. Recordings from fluent speakers of the Dakota language, which can be accessed via the cell phone app, accompany the physical sculpture. Two Stars’s commission depicts the action of the ripple effect of a single drop of water. How fitting, as none of us exist as an island. We all influence one another, whether or not we are aware.

I know we all get wrapped up in our own lives, but the more we open our eyes to those around us, the deeper our connection becomes to this place we call “home.”  Endless opportunities for rebirth, renewal, and the merging of past, present, and future surround us. Exploring what it means to be a “Minnesota Native” to indigenous people can energize opportunities for healing and a meaningful trajectory toward inclusion and elevation in the Twin Cities.

Support Indigenous communities: 

  • NATIFS: North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems: “The Indigenous Food Lab.” Culinary resources and training facility. NATIFS.org 
  • NACDI: Native American Community Development Institute: NACDI.org
  • Native-land.ca: Enter an address and/or zip code to search territories in your local area.

Check the internet for additional information. There is SO much out there.

 

 Mary Gavin is an intuitive, activist, teacher, and certified Reiki Master. Her passion for healing is rooted in her own experience living with post traumatic stress and dissociation. As a trauma survivor, she feels proud to share her experiences as a source of inspiration and connection. She aims to elevate marginalized voices and inspire healing by sharing bits of her soul through writing.

Related Posts

Fall + Winter Recipes
Lifestyle

Fall + Winter Recipes

March 18, 2025
An excerpt from Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor’s Unlikely Adventure
Lifestyle

An excerpt from Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor’s Unlikely Adventure

March 12, 2025
An excerpt from: Mindful Practice: A Beginner’s Guide To Vibrant Living
Lifestyle

An excerpt from: Mindful Practice: A Beginner’s Guide To Vibrant Living

March 10, 2025
An excerpt from Mental Health Matters: How Ten Psychological Principles Will Enhance Your Mental Health
Lifestyle

An excerpt from Mental Health Matters: How Ten Psychological Principles Will Enhance Your Mental Health

March 6, 2025
An Excerpt from  Astro Yoga for an Aquarian Age
Lifestyle

An Excerpt from Astro Yoga for an Aquarian Age

February 19, 2025
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Share120Tweet75
Previous Post

Hearing the Whispers of Your Soul

Next Post

Creating Your Yoga Business

SIGN UP

BLOG

Call for Content

Call for Content

May 29, 2025 in Uncategorized We are seeking stories for the upcoming SUMMER issue of Midwest YOGA magazine, due out August 1st.  *** Please read this ENTIRE POST … as our submission [...]

Read more

Email Blast Digital Marketing Sale

May 19, 2025 in Uncategorized Buy Three, Get One FREE Take advantage of our most popular digital marketing method and get your brand/studio/product in front of thousands of readers and [...]

Read more
Fall + Winter Recipes

Fall + Winter Recipes

March 18, 2025 in Lifestyle As the days lengthen and a chill isl in the air we tend to move towards more hearty and filling dishes. Here I have gathered [...]

Read more
Save a Fox: A Sanctuary of Compassion and Healing

Save a Fox: A Sanctuary of Compassion and Healing

March 17, 2025 in Spotlight In a world often too busy to notice the smaller creatures among us, there exists a sanctuary dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation, and care of [...]

Read more
Shiva, Shakti, and the Divine Non-binary:  Viewing Queerness Through the Eyes of Yoga

Shiva, Shakti, and the Divine Non-binary: Viewing Queerness Through the Eyes of Yoga

March 14, 2025 in Yoga + Movement The original yoga teachings say we all contain divine masculine and divine feminine aspects within ourselves. One cannot exist without the other. Shiva [...]

Read more
Strengthen Your Karma Yoga Practice

Strengthen Your Karma Yoga Practice

March 13, 2025 in Yoga + Movement As much as I love yoga, one thing bothers me. Westernized modern yoga focuses far too much on our bodies rather than our [...]

Read more
An excerpt from Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor’s Unlikely Adventure

An excerpt from Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor’s Unlikely Adventure

March 12, 2025 in Lifestyle This excerpt is from the team’s prolonged trek to base camp in Tibet which should have taken five days but was stretching on endlessly because [...]

Read more
Blossoming Wellness: The Story of the Minnesota Institute of Ayurveda

Blossoming Wellness: The Story of the Minnesota Institute of Ayurveda

March 11, 2025 in Spotlight In the picturesque suburb of Eden Prairie stands a beacon of holistic healing - the Minnesota Institute of Ayurveda (MNIA). The genesis of MNIA is [...]

Read more
An excerpt from: Mindful Practice: A Beginner’s Guide To Vibrant Living

An excerpt from: Mindful Practice: A Beginner’s Guide To Vibrant Living

March 10, 2025 in Lifestyle Mantra: Just be you. “Let yourself be drawn by the stronger pull of that which you truly love.”  Rumi After my car accident, I had [...]

Read more
JunoActive: Redefining Fitness and Fashion in the Twin Cities

JunoActive: Redefining Fitness and Fashion in the Twin Cities

March 7, 2025 in Spotlight, Uncategorized In the heart of the Twin Cities, where the spirit of innovation and inclusivity thrives, there's a brand that's revolutionizing the way we think [...]

Read more

INSTAGRAM

Follow Us!

    The Instagram Access Token is expired, Go to the Customizer > JNews : Social, Like & View > Instagram Feed Setting, to refresh it.

© Copyright 2024 | Midwest YOGA Magazine

Disclaimer

  • HOME
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • BLOG
  • CONTACT

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
    • ABOUT
    • OUR TEAM
    • AMBASSADORS
  • BLOG
    • SPOTLIGHT
    • HEALTH + WELLNESS
    • LIFESTYLE
    • YOGA + MOVEMENT
    • GEAR
    • TRAVEL
  • PODCAST
  • BOOK CLUB
  • PARTNERS
    • DIRECTORY
      • Directory – Colorado
      • Directory – Florida
      • Directory – Illinois
      • Directory – Iowa
      • Directory – Kansas
      • Directory – Michigan
      • Directory – Minnesota
      • Directory – Nebraska
      • Directory – North Dakota
      • Directory – Wisconsin
    • PROFILES
    • JOIN US
  • EVENTS
    • EVENTS CALENDAR
    • EVENT ROUND UP
  • SUBSCRIBE