Cherokee Rite of Passage Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage? His dad takes him into the forest . . . blindfolded . . . and leaves him . . . alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night . . . and not take off the blindfold until the ray of sun shines through it. He is all by himself. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN. He cannot tell the other boys of this experience. Each lad must come into his own manhood. The boy was terrified . . . could hear all kinds of noise . . . beasts all around him. Maybe even some human would hurt him. The wind blew the grass and earth and it shook his stump. But he sat stoically - never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could be a man. Finally, after a horrific night, the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold. It was then that he saw his father sitting on the stump next to him - at watch the entire night. We are never alone. Even when we do not know it, our Father is protecting us. He is sitting on the stump beside us. All we have to do is reach out to Him. credit to my dad
Unfortunately the reality of a Cherokee rite of passage was the Sundance...where said Cherokee youth would have his flesh pierced with sharpened animal bones attached to rope and be hung up by the chest muscles in the searing heat:spun around (maybe for days) until the bones cut through and he would fall, half alive to the floor...Many died in this ritual:Not being gruesome or trying to pour scorn on a nice story...just chucking in my 2 penny's worth.
