Home > Work > The Orenda
1 " I say that humans are the only ones in this world that need everything within it ... But there is nothing in this world that needs us for its survival. We aren't the masters of the earth. We're the servants. "
― Joseph Boyden , The Orenda
2 " I say that humans are the only ones in this world that need everything within it...But there is nothing in the world that needs us for its survival. We aren't the masters of the earth. We're the servants. "
3 " They laugh at this, the idea that one might keep herds of friendly deer or elk that walk happily to their slaughter whenever it's time for the human to eat meat. Some ask openly if there aren't consequences of a life so easy to live. "
4 " We are the people birthed from this land. For the first time I can seem something I've not fully understood before, not until now as these pale creatures from somewhere far away stare down at us in wonder, trying to makes sense of what they see. We are this place. This place is us. "
5 " But why?" Gabriel asks. "Why do they wish to cause such pain to another human?""Why does the Spanish Inquisition do what it does?" I ask. "Why does our own Church burn witches at the stake? Why did our own crusaders punish the Moors so exquisitely?"Gabriel thinks about this. He knows I don't beg answers for these questions."Of course it's easy to say that we mete out punishment to those who are an abomination in God's eyes," I say. "But it's more than that, isn't it? I think we don't just allow torturers but condone them as a way to excise the fear we all have of death. To torture someone is to take control of death, to be the master of it, even for a short time. "
6 " wolves are so frightening not because of their fangs and claws but because of their intelligence, because of their hunger. "
7 " We are the people birthed from this land. For the first time I can see something I've not fully understood before, not until now as these pale creatures from somewhere far away stare down at us in wonder, trying to make sense of what they see. We are this place. This place is us. "
8 " In matters of the spirit, these sauvages believe that we all have within us a life force that is similar, if you will, to our own Catholic belief in the soul. They call this life force the orenda. "
9 " So much is learned by seeing how well or how poorly someone accomplishes a job he dislikes. "
