There Is No Fast Food Drive-Thru for Prayers
By Ed Orton
I am of Cherokee decent. My mother was Cherokee from Oklahoma.
I am a first generation Californian, born and raised. My mom and dad left
Oklahoma (OK) in 1952 looking for a better life in the "Golden State".
I grew up in California knowing my whole life that I was Cherokee, but
not really understanding the culture until I was in my very early 30's,
I am 48 now. The older I got the more I knew I had to go back to the "homeland",
which I thought at the time would be eastern OK, or western Arkansas.
About 17 years ago I began praying and having an inner vision of going
back "home" and being engulfed in the culture of my ancestors.
I was in a marriage at the time that wasn't in tune with my vision. My
wife was a 4th generation Californian and didn't want to leave. Again
I prayed that my wife would have understanding or that Creator would put
me in a place where I would be able to follow my vision. In 1998, my wife
and I divorced. It was a friendly divorce, we are still friends and both
remarried.
I met my current wife in 2000. By then I had done genealogy research and
found that my Cherokee ancestors came from the Smoky Mountains, and that
was the place I needed to go. I felt it in my gut and in my spirit. Shortly
after meeting my current wife, I told her that "if" we were
to get married (I had only known her for about a week and we had not talked
of marriage. I was only joking, so I thought, at the time), she must be
willing to move to the Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. She smiled and
then she told me she had always wanted to visit there and then she showed
me a map of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park that she had taped
on the side of a bookshelf. Later that year in the summer, we came out
here to Asheville. We drove around the area along the Blueridge Parkway
and saw most of the local sights. We went to Cherokee a couple of times
and once on the way back we drove through Maggie Valley. My wife said
that she liked Maggie and wouldn't mind living there. We both also loved
Asheville and the area around there.
I retired from my job with the L.A.P.D. in November of 2000. After working
with kids in gangs, I knew I wanted to work with at risk youth, before
they got too involved in the criminal justice system. I knew I wanted
to work with Cherokee kids that were at risk, so I began to pray that
I would be able to work with Cherokee kids that were at risk. I also began
to pray that if it were meant to be that I would meet and learn from traditional
elders who still knew the ways of our old ceremonies. Well we stayed in
the L.A. area for a couple more years. My wife had just got promoted in
her job (she was the director of interpretation for the Mountains Resources
and Conservation Association, a resources management organization for
the California State parks), and she wanted to get more experience in
her field. I was okay with that. While we were still there, I fulfilled
a childhood dream of wanting to be on t.v. and in the movies. I became
a background actor and did a few student films and a couple of independents.
Around June of 2003 I began looking for jobs in NC via the internet. I
applied with the state to work in the Swannanoa Valley Training Center.
In September they called me and asked if I could come out for an interview.
My wife and I were getting married on the 21st of September so I said
yes, and we came back out here for our honeymoon.
I interviewed for the job, and then my wife said let's see what kind of
real estate is available. I said okay. The first real estate agency we
went to was kind of small. We told them what we were looking for, a nice
secluded log home with some land, and a stream. They said they had what
we were looking for, so we headed up Soco Mountain to the house. It was
just what we wanted, but I started thinking what if we put in an offer,
they accept and I don't get the job. My wife wanted the house really bad
so I put in a low offer, about $6,000.00 less than what they were asking.
They came back with a counter offer and I told my wife we couldn't afford
that. She pleaded with me and I put in a second offer, about $2,000.00
less than their counter. They took it. We started the paperwork. We lied
and said we only had $10,000.00 for a down payment, including closing
costs. We didn't have a cent. The process was started and we went back
home, with me not knowing if I was going to get the job.
Well, this story is getting too long so I will wrap it up. I got the job,
not what I really wanted but it got us out here. We moved into the house.
I applied with an emergency shelter for kids in Bryson City for some part
time work. I started working part time there and then I found out that
on the Qualla Boundary there was a similar place called the White Path
Center. I applied for a part time position as a resident councilor there.
When I did this, I saw that they were looking for a "cultural specialist".
The person had to be a member of the EBCI. I didn't apply. Even though
I am Cherokee, I am not a member of the EBCI. It was taking a long time
for the paper work to process through. Then one day the director called
me and asked me if I wanted the "cultural specialist" position.
She told me I had been very patient through the whole process and that
she believed that good things come to those who wait. I accepted. I have
been working there now for 10 months. Through this job I have come to
know many of the traditional elders and am learning much about the culture
of my people that just can not be experienced through reading about it.
It took a while to get to where I am. Why one might ask? Well I believe
that is because when I was praying for all of these things to happen,
I also prayed to learn patience. So two things can be learned from this.
If you believe in a higher power, pray for guidance and courage to follow
your dreams/visions. The other is don't give up. Your prayers will be
answered, just maybe not when you think they will. That is the problem
these days, people give up on there prayers and dreams/visions, because
in today's society where everything is so fast, people think that their
prayers should be answered just as quickly. When they are not, they give
up on them. There is no fast-food drive-thru for prayers. Things happen
in their own time, and things happen for a reason. There is a reason why
so many people of like minds are coming to the Asheville/Smoky mountains
area. The spiritual energy is powerful here in these mountains, possibly
because since these mountains are the oldest mountains in the world, they
contain so much wisdom and knowledge. That is why the Cherokee people
fought so hard to be able to stay in these mountains. This is where the
ceremonies of the people originated. One local "psychic" has
been quoted as saying that the Spirituality of these mountains have been
in slumber...they have not, for my people have maintained our Spirituality
and ceremonies for thousands of years.
Sgi (thank you)
Ed Orton