FAQ Frequently Asked Questions

Bobbye Eachus, all American mix, no pedigree just a good heart and active in a humble family that prays regularly. I am no one special, this is just the way I pray. I am grateful to be allowed the privilege to participate and honor the oral traditions of Lakota spirituality. I am accountable to my relatives in South Dakota. I was given permission to pour from my Uncle Fred, his clear instructions were these:

Don't add anything. Don't take anything away. Just Pray. Do things as I do them.

Having come through non-Indian prayer families prior to becoming part of Fredrick's extended family I had learned many things and experienced many things in ceremony.

I relate this as a perspective grantor: Living in the US many homes erect a tree in thier home to honor the festivities of the winter holidays. Some folks do it to honor Christmas, some to honor a family tradition, some to include children in the holiday gift giving presentation.

I go into all that to paint a picture. No two homes have exactly the same tree in exactly the same way. They have the tree there for personal and family reasons and honor very specific traditions. Some that are important to the degree of being vital to the individuals involved. 

In my experience there are certain things that are consistant in Lakota spirituality. We do not mix Pipe Ceremony with a woman's Moontime. We do not participate in ceremonies under the influence of drugs or alcohol. We do not bring firearms or weapons to a ceremony. We do not use media recording at any ceremony that involves a prayer pipe being loaded.

The Pipe, prayer ties, Sacred Songs are the focus of our coming together. We pray so the people may live asking for good health and help these are the consistant focuses of this way of being.

No two prayer ceremonies are performed or participated in, in exactly the same way. However sincerity, generosity, and humility are the guides to our conduct. 

I am small and still learning to walk in a good way. My feet were placed on the Good Red Road in 1991. The Lodge we care for has been on this land since 1995. We are located within the city limits of McKinney Texas and are granted a burn permit from the city prior to every lodge. 

 We as a prayer family do our best to honor the laws of the land as well as keeping our spiritual commitments.  

How can you participate in Native ceremonies when whites have treated the Native people so unjustly?

My heart is Red and I believe that Creator is colorblind. I am taught that we honor our Elders. Honoring both my white grandparents who encourage me to be all that I can be, learn all that I can and do all that I can and my red grandparents who remind me who I am and why I am here, and how to honor the gifts of health, help and awareness. This awareness tempers my willing disposition to forgive and heal the Hoop. Making it possible to help preserve these traditions and this culture for the generations that follow.

When is the next lodge? 

That is referenced on the home page and set up once a year and turned in to the City of McKinney so we can get our burn permits. Roughly the formula is 3rd weekend except for Jun, July, & Dec which are on the 2nd weekend to accomadate holidays. We alternate Saturday evening and Sunday morning lodges due to proximity to downtown McKinney and to help out our folks that do not drive at night. 

Do I have to wear a dress?

Simply yes if you are a woman honor your container and skirt up. If I can you can. I promise you the Lodge is the only place you will sight me in a dress. Reframe it like this - we are allowed to practice these Traditional Native American ways of praying. Honoring our container for the time it takes to pray is a matter of humility and willingness. 

Modesty:

Men & Women please out of respect for the culture and traditions please be respectful in your dress, the words you choose and the actions you take around participating in a prayer ceremony. Guidelines on appropriate covering from the waist up is a loose fitting tee shirt covering your body - waist down loose fitting to below the knee. 

What can I take into the Sweat Lodge?

You can take your modestly covered self and a towel. (Yep that is it)

I want to know more how do I learn?

Show up early and stay til everything is put away and ready for the next gather. Helping and fellowshiping with your relatives is the traditional way to learn. Be welcome. Come with a glad heart. Be kind. Help each other. 

Can I go North with you this Summer?

Going North is the journey our family makes to participate in the prayer ceremonies up on the reservation. I prefer that folks pray traditionally with the family for at least a year or better before making that journey. 

What is the deal about money and ceremony?

We do not pay to pray. We do not exchange money around ceremony. This is a gray area and a sensitive subject. The lanuages, culture and spiritually has barely survived extinction. What remains is Sacred. There are those who have used the Sacred for personal gains. Please know this is not a respected practice. It is tolerated due to the nature of the culture, but it is not respected.

The gray area around being self supporting and working cooperatively especially around big gathers of people in this modern time. The way that it is handled up North where I pray is that there is a need and the community gifts that need. Each cycle of ceremonies different relatives step up and assist but there is no fee or an expectation of one.

Be careful of places that you are not free to come and go at will. It is a common signal of control and an agenda when a fee is expected. Do not stay anywhere you are not comfortable to be. 

Yes, I choose to be active in my family. I share my experiences and ask for guidance from my relatives.
They are in good standing in the community and share with me how to traditionally pray in these ways.

What does . . . mean?

Well spiritual growth and understanding usually is an inside job. In my humble oppinion it is a journey of discovery, seeking value for what those impressions, dreams, visions, meditations mean for you. In my own experience a dream or vision can mean different things at different times in my developement. So my feeling and belief is this, I do not have anyone elses answers. I can share my experience, my awareness, but I am only one person, and I have found that Creator communicates with each of us in exactly the ways we will understand. Even though the process of understanding may take a while.