Best Iroquois Poems
Lake Ontario
great lake
beautiful lake
in Huron Wyandot
Ontarí’io
names but thunder
they merely rumble
intentions that echo
lake of shining waters
beautiful water
in Iroquois Mohawk
Oniatari:io
names are how we honour
reflecting our own light
our little wave
our tide our turn
to appreciate this life
Ruler of the Cataracts-Maiden of the Mist
The thundering waters of the Niagara.
Voice of the mighty spirits of the water.
The natives believed and yearly sacrificed
a white canoe with fruit and flowers
and a chosen daughter, until the Christians
came and told them Jesus paid. Not until
Lela-Wala, an only child and motherless,
was chosen did the practice subside.
After she dived, her father Chief Eagle
ran out of the woods and followed her.
1/11/2022
HANDSOME LAKE
He was born as Hadawa'ko “Shaking Snow.”
Handsome’s half-brother was Cornplanter.
My heritage from People of the Longhouse —
John married Margaret, a French woman.
She birthed Helen, my great-great-great grandma.
Together they lived on a reservation.
Handsome was born in 1735 in a Seneca village
on the Genesee River into the Turtle Clan —
later he was adopted into the Wolf Clan.
Doubtless my relatives knew of Handsome Lake.
He signed the U.S. treaty with the Six Nations.
1/11/2022
Referenced Wikipedia.com and webwinds.com
Proud woman with the turquoise eyes;
half Iroquois, half white
Beautiful woman with the crescent moon smile,
that Milky Way glows in the night
Jeanie ... I fell in love with Jee,
from the moment I boarded the wrong flight
Got on an Ottawa bound plane
one snowy December late
But it had to be the right plane, for it was fate
Her seat was next to mine,
our virgin conversation was so
Pocahontas out of time
She opened up her heart to me
with the oral still water storytelling of her Iroquois name
Said the Haudenosaunee translation meant “lost mocassin”
My white buffalo clan Cinderella princess,
whose feet I caressed on that maiden voyage
So je ne sais quoi was her French-Canadian speech,
it aroused the Judeo-Africano passion in me
Jeanie ... I love Jee
Jeanie ... I’m so in love with Jee
Revealed to me her childhood nickname
as we were disembarking from the plane,
Jee was the arrow that pierced my curious mane
Made this lion of a man, docile and tame
From that moment on I had to know more;
and the more of her that I learned,
the more the fire in my heart for her burned
Proud woman with the alabaster skin,
now Euro-Iroquois Judeo-African
Jeanie ... I love Jee
She is now the closest branch of my family tree
My Jeanie ... I love Jee
She is my favorite kin kissing genealogy
My Jeanie ... I love Jee
Haudenosaunee ...
translation: They made the house
But who painted it
the colors we now see ---
Red, white and blue
Let's go back in time shall we,
and observe who cut down the first tree
in the eleventh century
Five Nations ...
called by one name, Iroquois
A French given name
Separate nations who agreed
to live under the same
Great Law of Peace
Signified by the Great Tree
that housed all five families
under one roof
Haudenosaunee ...
The long house was proof
that all nations could come together as one
under one roof
A novel idea, way ahead of its time,
the first North American U.N. of it's kind
That was a nice trip back in history,
but the question still remains: who painted the long house
the colors we now see ---
Red, white and blue
The answer, perhaps you never knew
Even so, you never thought about it much, did you
Mohawk red ... a lot of spilt bloodshed
Onondaga white ... a lot of innocent loss of lives
Oneida blue ... a lot of human souls traded too
Cayuga red ... a lot of totems toppled on their head
Seneca white ... a lot of war whoops in the night
Iroquois turquoise blue ... a lot of ancient land taken by someone new
Seems two coats of war paint wasn't enough,
too bad they didn't first try the color of love
Have you ever written anything without sub combing to tears ?
My Family portrait in my mind , 2 older sisters , 2 brothers
My Mother caring about all five in different ways
Just with Mom & Dad there having the best of Holidays
My sisters laying out on the deck of river bank for 4th of July ~
Listening to " Honkey Chateau " and all by Elton John.
music a great memory ~Disco , Donna summer , Grease ~ Jaws !
Dad's records to Tony Bennett , Hank W Sr. , Count Basie & Louis Armstrong.
The music takes me home in a wagon filled with children and a dog "Lucky "
My Older brother , athletic , always fishing & hunting.
My younger , my Rock , Swimming and netting for fish,
feeding our Fat cat Perch off the rocks patiently awaits her food
the yelling , slamming of doors , tempers Flare , passion
Our Parents , passionate love yet passionate Hate .
After being a Family of Seven , Divorcing their fate ..
Why did that show " Dallas " bring out the Divorce in all ?
Scottish ~ Irish ~ French Iroquois ~ Cherokee
No matter what the mix ..Our curse Alcohol ~
the Screaming , Drinking , this memory I wish to shut the door on .
Going to A & W or making Cheerleading ,The Bears of course~
Excited in Chicago ! seeing Elton John in the Summer of 1976 ~
Cubs , museum of Wax , Museum of science & History , Pizza !
Expeditions of discovery ,little brother & I finding arrowheads on the Shore.
Our Grandparents Faithful Celebrations ! Chiffon cake , Apple strudel `
Our Cousins on Holidays , going for ice cream cones ,
scent of wet rain on oak leaves ~Before Halloween was bought in stores.
~ That is the Family I Love ,
that is the Family I choose to miss ~
I would like to pay tribute to those who died
While introducing you to our native pride
We are Cherokee, Iroquois, and Lakota
We are Navajo, Algonquin, and Dakota
Our lands were open and free to roam
But when the pilgrims came, we lost our home
We are Omaha, Sioux, and Pawnee
We are Mohegan, Crow, and Shawnee
Our people were brave, our tribes were strong
What was done to them was very wrong
We are Hopi, Ottawa, and Comanche
We are Pueblo, Cree, and Apache
Now my friends, let the truth be told
Our people were killed, beaten and sold
To this day we get no respect
The word used to describe us, we must reject
A football team even bears the name
Which brings us dishonor, grief and shame
So tell me the truth, what would you say
For us, is it a Thanksgiving Day?
Ontario in Iroquois is-
Kanadario meaning sparkling water
the British claimed the land
under the approval of the Queen
148 years ago
well all that is another story
Ontario became a province of Canada
in 1867
a land of rivers and lakes and wild forests
the flag of Ontario has only been flying
since 1965 -
red background
British Union Jack in upper left corner
and Provincial Coat of Arms of Ontario on fly half
it is a symbol of our identity
and the history of Ontario's British heritage
our forever relationship with the Queen
the vastness of Ontario is breathtaking
the most amazing in my life
travelling to Hudson Bay's far north
mostly still untouched and pristine
did you know that the Ontario's flower
is the white trillium
found in woodlands
it follows the sun across the sky
our motto is loyal she began loyal she remains
the Ontario flag flies proudly beside the Canadian flag
a magical beautiful sight shining boldly
on any important building you will find her beauty
blazing in the sun
fluttering in the wind rain and snow
a symbol of pride
______________________________
July 10, 2015
Free Verse
Written by Broken Wings
For the contest, Tell Us About Your State Flag, sponsor, Judy Konos
First Place
A polite rain
joined me briefly
before heading uptrail
to leave me standing, alone,
in a suddenly steaming forest.
I wrote this on a hike in the Adriondacks to to Mt Marcy, the highest mountain in New York State. My Adirondack Guide indicated that Tahawus was the a first Nation (Iroquois ??) name for the mountain and it meant “cloud-splitter.” I decried that the mountain is now named "Mt. Marcy"after William L. Marcy, who as Governor of New York (1833-1839), authorized the geological survey that explored the area. I speculated that this is why there is so little poetry in our time.
However, a later Wikipedia search revealed that the name was likely never used by the aboriginal peoples of the area to refer to the mountain, and its meaning, may have no roots in any language.
The Iroquois, the Ottawa, the Potawatomi, the Crow,
The Lakota, the Chippewa; all dwelt by their shores
And in their deep forests, but are there no more.
Yet the Lakes remain; their waters abide.
Clear and quiet they lie on calm summer days,
But send ships to their bottoms when gales roar in their skies.
The abyss of Superior, so cold and so dark,
Holds tight to its secrets the Ojibway said,
And the waters of Superior never gives up its dead.
The waters of Michigan, not so cold nor so deep,
Yet, like Superior, its secrets they keep.
The waters of Huron I see in a dream
Flowing over the ghosts of primordial streams,
Past islands and trees, always south towards the sea.
Receiving their waters, Erie, with skies luminescent,
Sends them on crashing over the Escarpment.
Then on through Ontario and the Saint Lawrence,
Passing Quebec, passing great forests,
They reach their goal, the wide gray Atlantic.
Like great Superior,
My secrets lie deep, my secrets lie cold.
They lie in an abyss and will never be told.
But there come to me times when I want just to go
To that vast Ocean wide;
To flow into the deep and there forever abide.
Laying here in the cut with eyes closed,
listening to the soft, tinkling sound
of the Oriental wind chimes
My mind is calmed by peaceful meditations
In my heart, I feel universal love ...
rhythmic beat of African drums
Dark continent chants,
majestic silence of Mt. Kilimanjaro
heard off in the distance
And in my soul, I feel a new song being composed
It's for a family reunion occasion,
invitations offered to my brother and sister Caucasian
and Asian
Now, I'm feeling an Islandic, Inuit and Indian spirit
rise up in me ...
Polynesian and Caribbean,
Aztec and Mayan,
Sioux and Seminole,
Navajo and Crow,
Anasazi and Apache,
Iroquois and Cherokee ...
all shouting in unison: Love is unity
Then, I open my eyes to the truth
of a future time,
as my ears hear the serene sound
of the Oriental wind chimes
A Place of Creation
---------------------
Telephone City, Wayne Gretzky’s home town, the place of my birth.
Thirty three years, I played, worked and walked this piece of earth.
Given - by Sir Frederick Haldimand, “ Haldimand Proclamation, ” -
to the Iroquois, six miles, each side of the Grand River, the six Nation
Reserve, from its source to its mouth ( 950,000 acres ) 904,000 eradicated,
46,000 acres left for the Mohawk, Cayuga, Onondaga, the rest confiscated,
as the Oneida, Seneca and Tuscarora are left to share this land.
Most taken by many devious means at the white man’s hand.
This is the place I grew up, the place that educated me.
The mean Streets of Brantford, forty years I seldom see.
Three thousand miles, forty two years away.
Life has been, in many ways, lived within a fray.
Home is where the soul, the spirit, the heart is, anyway.
So out here in beautiful B. C., is where I will stay.
B. J. “A” 2
April 4th 2016
America's had lots of heroes through the years
Helping the world overcome many fears
Humankind hasn't always been kind
Look closely at history, see what you find
Our founders succeeded and failed many ways
People of color not treated fairly those early days
Three fifths a human is a void left incomplete
An error future generations destined to repeat
Indigenous people's abuse not a matter of pride
Devastation of natives a story history did hide
The Iroquois Confederacy gave us our republic's design
Its novel concept: states and nation's powers align
All of which helped founders form this great nation
We repaid this gift by invoking near annihilation
The Statue of Liberty invited all to come in
Remember our promise once again can begin
Supremacy, Eugenics, Ethnic biases towards the other
Can result in policies separating a child from a mother
In the last great war the Japanese here were incarcerated
Their concentration camps long since have been eliminated
Still the attitudes of ethnic discrimination persist
We always fall prey to what we resist
Much that hurts you is what you don't know
Amazing how deep "Bigoted Suffrage Suppression" did go
All minorities' suffering here has been vast
Here's how it plays out in the recent past:
1920: Women first get to vote
1924: Native Americans first get to vote
1943: Chinese citizens first get to vote
1946: Asian Indian citizens first get to vote
1950: Asian native born first get to vote
1952: Japanese citizens first get to vote
1965: African Americans first get to vote
Bigotry is deeper and bigger than you knew
Power and domination over others does not make right
Today, we must deal with all minorities' plight
It's our nation's unrealized promise that all will be free
Our union depends on the promise that we all can be
Created equal is what makes us all as one
When we get there as a nation, our work will be done
Every great society has dark secrets untoward
Looking back helps us see our way forward
This is why truth always makes a difference
Lost civilization's ethics is their lasting evidence
America's still young as history does show
Compassion and integrity will light where we go
When Cultures Collide
Where the river ends
And the ocean begins,
Cultures collide and history’s tide
Erases a way of life
For the indigenous people.
St. Lawrence Iroquoians
Welcomed the French
To the shores of “Kanata”
At Stadacona with ceremonial greetings,
Exchanging gifts and ideas.
But only the riches of the land
Are considered worthy:
Natural habitats retreat
And the environment suffers.
First Nations people would fare no better
Against these foreign invaders.
***
Notes:
“Kanata” is the Saint Lawrence Iroquois word for village, referring to Stadacona (present-day Quebec City, Quebec), and was interpreted as “Canada” by the French explorer Jacques Cartier (1491–1557) in 1535. The St. Lawrence Iroquoians existed from the 14th century to about 1580. They disappeared soon after the arrival of the Europeans, and it is suspected that diseases transmitted by the Europeans to them (for which they had no immunity) were a major reason for their demise.
Hey, Pilgrims,
Let's dress-up
Dress-down the plumes
of the dancing Peacock
(If we'd allow)
but for the Ritual;
For Francsly speaking
in tongues of plata y oro,
Pound-for-bloody-pound
How much 'cide this buys?
A simply-uneasy angst to the quest,
Oh, how Corpulent "m.d.'s" -
Which dystrophy Indigene Water - Land - Identity muscle
Manifest your Destiny! - Trophied.
Lots of time for sargeants,
for unhappy Cherokee rides on trails to tears
Led from 50,000 years to Discovery? Indeed!
With no reservation
'cept to enslave the Spirit,
And with tobacco & cotton gotten
from the corn colors of the Earth!
Are the Iroquois/Mohawk/Navajo/Cherokee/Hopi
Thankfully jeeping...?
Don You grisly-now...
Our meleagris gallopavo decapatito,
Strut and march like mute Mummera in the Charade!
Cum Multis Aliis
When did the arms of Lady Liberty turn inwards
Her torch extinguished; her poem long forgotten?
You have heard me say it often since begotten
That which makes America greatest is her diversity.
As a child, I learned some basics, some fundamentals—
Like from shore to shore, America is a vast melting pot,
A dynamic, living breathing linguistic polyglot
English, our native tongue, was not the first one here
When the founders set foot upon the Eastern shore
Cherokee, Shawnee, Iroquois tongues to them were new
Even today strange languages are spoken among a few
Mandarin, German, French and Spanish were planted here
Chinese and African labor, I know, were sadly exploited
German scientific knowledge was much appropriated
While French, Spanish, and Russian plots were integrated
Now, the contributions of all are gleefully rewarded.
The truth is that we all came from "foreign" countries
We diligently search for our long-hidden genealogy,
We must continue to welcome and help the refugee
Who want so much to call America their home.