Water Ceremonies

Celebrating Life

Water Is Life Walk is a celebration of life. As we walk we take notice of all the plants and animals that come across our path and look inside to see their connection to each other and the SacredWater. It is a way of reconnecting ourselves to All That Is within the Web of Life, of bringing us back to the understanding that none of the plants and animals that feed us would be here if it were not for the SacredWater, none of the trees and plants that make our air would be here—and without them we would not be here! All of the Ceremonies of the Water is Life Walk help us remember or renew our personal connection to the SacredWater that birthed each and every one of us and continues to sustain us each and every day.

Our ancestors cut these waters in their birch bark canoes from source to the sea, with many portage trails along the way. As we travel down the river, we will address dams and other industrial damage along the river. Each dam obstructs the natural flow of the water and movement of the fish and other wildlife that are needed to sustain a healthy river. Each dam creates a catch-basin for pollutants and organic waste from the mills and communities upstream, so the pollution builds up as we go down the river.

Nourishing the entire Web of Life

Participation in Ceremony does not authorize you or anyone else to perform these Ceremonies.

The Water is Life Walk is Indigenous-led, but open to all faiths and all nations as we offer one prayer for the SacredWater. Please notify us if you are interested in performing a ritual or ceremony from your own spiritual practice.

Some Ceremonies will be known in advance and announced on the Calendar & Map webpage. The need for other, additional Ceremonies will emerge along the route as called for spontaneously by Spirit.

Known Ceremonies will include:

 

Questions about Ceremony will be welcome during the Walk.

Anyone interested in deeper learning about Ceremony may approach Uncî Carole traditionally, with an offering of tobacco.

Protocol Phase

Every year, Grandmother Carole takes four rivers into prayer and waits for Spirit to guide her. Once Spirit has selected the river, Carole approaches members of the indigenous people who traditionally held the stewardship of that SacredWater and its watershed. This protocol phase involves respect for tradition and also honors the responsibility Native peoples have always taken to care and tend for the Mother, our Earth.