Wayta' Yawa': Always Believe.
The heart of Dorothy Ramon Learning Center beats with the late Serrano Elder Dorothy Ramon’s reflection from her cultural memoir,1 “Wayta' Yawa': Always Believe.”
“Always Believe” stems from a Native American Serrano song about the sacred bundle. In older times the sacred bundle was a pulse-point of traditional cultural ceremonies. These ceremonies and rituals were passed from generation to generation for untold years, and the sacred bundle held the important, powerful, sacred items that shamans used in these rituals and ceremonies. For example, a Cahuilla or Serrano sacred bundle might hold an eagle-feather skirt; the all-powerful and sacred Eagle served as a symbolic representation of the life of a clan or lineage, and periodically sacrificed itself to keep the lineage healthy, according to anthropologist Lowell Bean.2
Sunrise, Inland Southern California summer (Pat Murkland Photo)
A Bright Future
Dorothy Ramon explained how people become enlightened by the Serrano sacred-bundle song’s words, and, “Powva' 'aarnk hye'kam tum hiiti' 'a'aye'ci' peepamkw. Their eyes open up to see a bright future.”
Yet at the time she spoke about this song, and its message, she also realized,
“Qay' txami' patay 'enan 'amay' necamqana': 'amatunga' 'anin wi'wan xhiiti' nehaktii'. I don’t think anyone knows today: that’s why I want to talk about this.
'Ip 'uushanif qac. It’s now (preserved) in this book.3
Hiitin teerhaqa' pana'nyaawnk. That’s why I’m going to talk about this thing.
“'Ami' patay werrafktti' kwa' 'enan: 'ani' kwa' 'enan. If they knew their language, then they would understand.
Maqayeewp tum haypa'n 'i'pa'n haypa'n hami' 'ivi' kwa' kece' 'enan 'ivi'.
That way (i.e., preserved in this book) perhaps someone may learn about this sometime.
'Enaac kwa' 'enan. They can find out about it.” She wanted new generations to understand. She wanted their eyes to open also to a bright future.
Her work to save the Serrano culture and language has lived on, and grown, since she died in 2002. Always, the words, “Wayta' Yawa': Always Believe,” have stayed close to our hearts as her nephew, Elder Ernest Siva (Cahuilla-Serrano), has led the Center since 2003 in expanding her work to include saving and sharing all Southern California Native American cultures and languages.
Gala Gifts from the Generations
So, at Dorothy Ramon Learning Center’s 19th Dragonfly Gala on Aug. 13, 2022, we celebrate:
Ancestors and their many gifts, their resiliency and terrible struggles in keeping the Native American cultures viable, and their work in saving and sharing cultural knowledge for the future … that is, for us now in 2022.
Elder Ernest Siva (Cahuilla-Serrano), president of Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, leads the 2021 Dragonfly Gala. (Carlos Puma Photo)
Elders! At our 2022 Gala, several Elders who have worked tirelessly to teach new generations will be doing just that, including Ernest Siva, president of Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, of course, and also our past Dragonfly Award Winners for soaring achievements in saving and sharing Native American cultures:
Walter Holmes sings bird songs at a past Dragonfly Gala. (Carlos Puma Photo)
Elder Walter Holmes will lead the Morongo Bird Singers and Dancers in traditional bird songs.
Bill Madrigal sings at the Center’s Native Voices Poetry Festival before the 2020 pandemic. (Pat Murkland Photo)
Elder Bill Madrigal will lead the Madrigal Family Bird Singers and Dancers.
The past, present, and future will all blend together in these timeless traditional cultural songs.
Amid the cultural exhibits and displays, another previous Dragonfly Award winner, Elder Lorene Sisquoc and the Mother Earth Clan, will invite everyone to make art of their life, using yucca brushes and traditional-style pigments. Sherman High School students will exhibit their artwork, also under Lorene Sisquoc’s guidance.
New Generations of Leaders and Emerging Leaders: Morongo Cultural Department, Morongo School, San Manuel linguists, Malki Museum, California Indian Nations College, and Native American Land Conservancy will offer interactive exhibits and displays. Native American art is our 2022 Gala theme. And artist Gerald Clarke is working on a mysterious project.
Dragonfly Award 2022: Come join us as Dorothy Ramon Learning Center awards the 2022 Dragonfly Award for soaring achievements in saving and sharing Native American cultures to Gerald Clarke of Cahuilla Reservation, a Cahuilla leader and culture bearer, artist, bird singer, rancher, university professor, and California Arts Council member (and more, just naming a few ways he serves the community).
Center leaders June and Ernest Siva in 2021 with the 2021 Dragonfly Award winner, Kim Marcus (Serrano-Cahuilla) (Carlos Puma Photo)
Still time to RSVP
Seats are still available for August 13, 2022, don’t miss out! All proceeds support the 501c3 nonprofit Dorothy Ramon Learning Center and our work together to save and share Southern California Native American cultures, languages, history, and music and other traditional arts. We could use your help!
Thanks for reading News from Dorothy Ramon Learning Center! We welcome your EMAIL. Thank you from Editor Pat Murkland, August 3, 2022.
Dorothy Ramon and Eric Elliott, 2000, Wayta’ Yawa’: Always Believe. Malki Museum Press, Banning, California, pp. 150-152, reading no. 121, “Always Believe.”
Lowell J. Bean, Sylvia Brakke Vane, Sue Myers, and James Toenjes, “Cahuilla Ethnozoology: Database and Report on Sixteen Faunal Species found in the Cahuilla Territory,” prepared by Cultural Systems Research, Inc., January 2007, for United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management, Palm Springs, California, pp. 6-8.
The book, Wayta’ Yawa’: Always Believe.