Preserving the Native American heritage is important in order to keep the cultural identity in which you are a part of. You are what you are because of your characteristics that were molded by your cultures. Thus, cultural identity is indeed a part of an individual. Aside from defining your identity, keeping your Native American heritage will also help you educate other people of your culture. Though, most of the times preserving it is harder than what you think especially if you are living in a different country; but always remember that if you are willing to stand for your culture you can always find a way to keep it. Here are some ways that you can preserve the Native American heritage.
- Cook meals from your native land. If you are residing in a different country, you can still keep the Native American blood running in your body by cooking your native foods. Not because you are already in a different place you will stop eating the food in which you have been used to. The taste of the food can bring you back to old memories of your real home – the place you were shaped and fashioned. You can also share these foods with your friends. This way, you are already showing yourself to them. You get the chance to preserve and share your culture to closest people in your heart.
- Celebrate your holidays. Even if you are no longer living in your native country, you can continue celebrating the holidays known in your place. Decorating your home, preparing traditional holiday meals and celebrating the holidays are easy ways to preserve the Native American heritage.
The Native American heritage like other cultures is worth preserving. It holds important histories in the past that forms the future. For this reason, you have the responsibility to keep it alive until the next generation.
Many people know the importance of preserving the Native American heritage but unknowingly, in simple and everyday chores they do, they are already denying their culture. If you are residing in your home country, preserving the culture is easier. But what if you already migrate in a different country, can you still continue in holding and keeping your culture? Here are some ways you can do in order to preserve your heritage:
- Continue to speak and write your native language. Never forget your native tongue. You can always keep it fresh by speaking and writing using Native American language whenever there are opportunities. You can teach your non-native friends how to speak words or phrases in your language. Another way to keep your native tongue alive is by writing letters to your relatives and family back to your home country. You can ask them to send you newspapers and books from your place. This is a good way to invigorate your language while keeping yourself informed of what is happening in your country.
- Join Native American groups. Some organizations arrange activities or gatherings so the members of the group can meet and discuss things or issues that both interest them. By joining these groups, you will have the chance to make connections to people with same beliefs, backgrounds and culture. If you cannot find a Native American organization in your place, try starting your own group. You can look for members and make plans like meeting monthly. You can organize a small gathering for your group – cook your native foods, speak your language, talk about your home country and pretend you are in your home country again.
Migration is never an excuse for you to forget all about the culture, which molded you. Though it is difficult, you should try your best in preserving the Native American heritage wherever you are.
Every individual has his own ways of valuing and preserving the Native American language. People come up with various means such as keeping the native tongue refresh, building the culture through connections in groups and organizations and many other ways. But do you know that there are people who strongly see the importance of preserving the heritage and the above ways are simply not enough to stand for your community?
Some strongly believe that people destroy their heritage by committing miscegenation or proclaiming intentional misinformation about their culture. It is a form of mocking and scorning as others perceived. Doing these things would mean betrayal of ancestors and destroying the future birthright of your children. Your child cannot choose which heritage and traditions to preserve or continue; thus, the only solution is to stay in one line of heritage. Every heritage is considered beautiful in its own way and combining it to other culture will only produce complex situations. This is the reason why some people are straightforward in discussing the dangers of miscegenation.
Miscegenation is also known as interracial marriage. It is a termite that slowly destroys the preservation of every culture. A writer once said that a child born out of miscegenation instead of becoming a member of his or her racial community becomes a conforming human. It does no good neither to the mother’s heritage nor the father’s. Being a member of the Native American heritage is not only defined by blood but it is weaved together with action and will. Birth is not the entrance to a certain community; the person should take responsibility in doing and preserving the cultural traditions of the community.
You might say that this is an exaggeration but the truth – it is not! There are some who really value the richness of their heritage more than their life. Though people have their own opinions about heritage and culture, the important thing is your determination to preserve your heritage.
Most children (sometimes even adults) have little knowledge of their roots. They are only concerned of living in the modern times, worrying about their future. When children are asked who they know in the family, they would only answer up to their grandparents, or sometimes their great grandparents. Only a few go beyond that. But why is there a need to know your roots? Why dig up the past?
The past has the ability to affect the present much as the present has the ability to affect the future. When people are asked of their past, they only go to the past in their lifetime – their childhood, college, past relationships, etc. They don’t go to the past beyond that past. How many of you know if his ancestor fought and became hero in a war? It’s always good to take a look back and discover your roots.
In doing so, not only do you learn about your ancestry but you also learn more about history. When teachers talk about history, the dates and the wars and all the colonization and achievements made, students have a hard time understanding because they always think of it as something unconnected to them. They only see it as a necessity to memorize these data and information for the sake of passing the exams and never because they think they are part of it. They become rigid of the past as separate from the present, not thinking that the present is a continuation of the past. If you ask students what their least favorite subject is, you’d likely hear history aside from the ever-dreaded math. If they realize how they are affecting history by studying it, no one would hate the subject.
In today’s world, only those born from renowned families know of their roots. Ordinary citizens give no importance to this. But what if you study your heritage and you discover that your great great great grandfather was a bestfriend of a president? Or that one of your ancestor fought valiantly in defending your town that made it hard for the foreigners to colonize? You never know what interesting facts you could unearth. There’s always something to be proud of when you look back.
The world is a dynamic place. Changes occur in every aspect. In the physical world, tall buildings and skyscrapers replace what used to be vast forest. Natural resources are being depleted – water, oil, etc. People are also changing. From their attitude and personalities to their priorities in life, much has changed and still much is changing. Because of the technological advancement, children these days are focused only on gadgets and the internet. They are not children in the decades past where they find happiness playing tea party with friends.
Technology is not a bad thing. On contrary, it brought about many developments and had made life easier for people. In the current times, it is possible to talk to a friend on the other side of the world. Well, not only talking, but seeing that friend is now possible without leaving the house. Decades ago people would have deemed that impossible. But with technology, impossibilities become possibilities. Now the limitations of what people could do are unbounded.
But as much as technology making lives easier, it also made the world more complex and somewhat less humane. It is great that there are still families talking over dinner about their concerns. Some, unfortunately, became too engrossed with technology that they lose a vital part of their lives – their heritage. It is said that adaptation is needed to be able to survive. But adaptation does not equate to being receptive only to the changes that the world dictates while forgetting you really are.
As the years pass, only few keep the traditions alive and treasure their heritage. If people continue on becoming focused on technology and advancement, soon there wouldn’t anything to keep you special from other people. Your heritage would be lost and forgotten. So while you are still young, protect it and share it so that younger generation would be knowledgeable and proud of their heritage. It would be great that when you grow old, your grandchildren will still be able to relate to you.
The Western world is in the frontline of advancement with only some notable countries from the East like Japan, Singapore, and South Korea. America, specifically the United States, is very influential in today’s world. All countries want to be in good terms with the major power.
It is every dream of every people to be able to step in the land of America. It is considered an achievement to reach this land, for whatever purpose it may be – vacation, study, work, or residence. America is so progressive that it attracts people like magnet.
Because of the economic advancement, people see many opportunities in America so they want to take their chances to live a better life here. Many were able to fulfill their dream and became successful here. But there are also some who were not fortunate to achieve this.
It is ironic that people from all the corners of the world want to be here while Americans want to go out there. The diversity of people living in America could be reflected on the number of different dialects and languages being spoken. The America now is no longer a purebred America – it has become a mixture of different heritages. As people come here to grab opportunities, they bring along with them their own heritage and subliminally incorporate this into the society. You do not need to travel far and wide to experience different cultures. Just look around you and you will see.
It’s amazing how people of different backgrounds are able to come together and live harmoniously. Well, there are occasional conflicts, but there is no neighbourhood that is at continuous conflict amongst them because they are of different heritage. In the years to come, the children would no longer be only Americans. He might be because of nationality, but his environment that would be influencing him as he grows up is a hotpot of the different cultures in the world.
