There is an enchanting story of creation of the tribal Five Nations of the Northeast United States in which a spirit from the Sky World admired the beautiful Earth so much it created people to inhabit it and he blessed them with an abundance of healthy and delicious foods to eat.
In this lovely story of creation and blessing, the tribal peoples created were the Mohawks, Oneidas, Senecas, Cayugas, and the Onondagas. The Native American foods, bestowed upon each tribe, were corn for the Mohawks; nuts and fruits of the trees for the Oneidas; the Senecas were blessed with beans; root vegetables were given to the Cayugas; and the Onondagas were blessed with grapes, squash, and tobacco.
Once the people were blessed with these superbly nutritious Native American foods, the Sky spirit wrapped himself in a bright and beautiful cloud and flew swift and straight as an arrow to the Sun, where his return was welcomed and rejoiced by his brother spirits of the Sky.
This bountiful blessing of Native American food staples is the basis for a healthy diet even today. Today’s nutritionists and food scientists will tell you that a diet containing these items (except the tobacco) are everything needed to ensure a long and vibrant life.
There is a great deal of disease related to lifestyle in today’s Indian population but eating a diet based on these traditional Native American food items will do much to combat today’s ills. They are much more in keeping with the traditional way of life than the typical American diet of today is and they are much more friendly to the environment. Historically, all Native American food was considered a blessing of the highest honor and the Earth which presented it was to be nurtured and revered at all times.
There was a time when even enjoying tobacco occasionally wasn’t such a self-destructive act. Unfortunately, today’s chemists and food engineers have taken a perfectly fine blessing from the Sky spirit and made it a poison. Using today’s tobacco products is almost like an insult to the benevolent spirit who gave it.
The next time you sit down to dinner, remember the Sky spirit and honor him, and the Earth, by choosing only the best Native American food blessings. To do so means to live healthy and live long.