One would not exist without the other — for today is their wedding. Thanks to your help, they finally have a safe home where they can celebrate their love and weave it into future days.
As you read this, their wedding has begun. There will be family and friends gathered at the home they have struggled to build on Wings’ ancestral land. There will be blessings of their love and home. Afterwards, people will celebrate their union - laughter, joy, and music rising into the sunlit sky.
There will be live music and a recorded play list. Aji told me how much Wings’ loves this song. Though it is not from either the Tiwa or Shinaab traditions, some of this song is very close to what can be heard in both their cultures. Today, before the live music starts at their home, Aji strongly suspects that this song will be played on a loop. After listening to it, I believe her.
x xYouTube Video x xYouTube VideoThere is so much to celebrate today, not least the fact that Aji is home from the hospital and has finally found a doctor she trusts for follow up diagnosis and treatment. The exterior coat on the house has been finished and, according to Aji, glows in the light. But above all else, we are gathering today to celebrate Aji and Wings’ wedding at their home at Taos Pueblo, the home you helped make possible.
Today, the construction paraphernalia has been put away. Instead of the sound of hammers, saws, and compressors — voices of family and friends will drift through house and yard. The outdoor fire pit will be lit. Drummers will begin to play.
There will be food and gifts shared, music and dancing.
Their love and their home will be blessed. And they have asked us to send them ours — our love and blessings. They did not want this day to pass without you.
So today we gather with them, in spirit if not in body, to send our love, blessings, and protection.
x xYouTube VideoIn Wings’ tradition, turquoise is the “sky stone,” pieces of the sky fallen to earth as rain and hardened by the earth's heat into a valuable jewel. Its color is believed to ward against evil and protect from harm. A traditional use of the color can be found on the windows and doors of the over thousand year old homes of Taos Pueblo.
Before Winter finishes closing in, the door and window trim of Aji and Wings home will also be painted a turquoise color. Their home will reflect Wings’ peoples’ long history and traditions.
That is part of Aji and Wings’ weaving. Just as is her Ojibwe heritage.
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This is not a fundraising diary. It was far more important to Aji and Wings that we be with them on this day.
However, if you would like to send a wedding present, half the costs for the exterior coats and finish work are still due. The man heading the crew took a half payment for now, saying that Aji and Wings “are family,“ but, $2,500 in labor costs remain.
At this moment Aji and Wings focus is only on one another and the wedding they have waited for.
So I’m asking you to please consider the holiday season fast approaching and peruse Wings’ site for your gift-buying needs. The sales of Wings’ extraordinary work has funded the majority of their building costs. That is why shares of his site and these diaries written for them are so important.
The links to Wings’ web site are here —
*Wings site directory:
AccessoriesBeltsBracelets — Cuffs & Links & BanglesBracelets — Coiled Power Collections (7th Fire Series)BucklesCollectiblesEarringsNecklacesPendantsPinsRingsOther ArtistsContact PageYou too can give the gift of Turquoise protection, caring, and beauty to a loved one.
Autumn Skies The Web of the World is the Spirits EmbraceLove DreamsA Distracted LightThe Visionary Medicine of Late Summer Skies Nine Stone — Turquoise, Garnet, Rose Quartz Earrings A Trail of Petals of Autumn LightOf course Wings works in a multitude of stones and you can commission a work specific to your loved one or yourself. There is much more of his work to see at his site.
Dreams of an Open SkyShelter for the Indigo HoursIf you would like to send a donation as a wedding gift, the link to Wings’ paypal account is here —
Wings's direct PayPal link
No donation is a small one. No matter the amount, they all speak of a caring heart. We can help ease the early days of Aji and Wings’ formalized marriage by defraying some of the labor costs. That would be a true wedding gift.
At this very moment people are gathered in Taos Pueblo. And we gather here to celebrate the love and lives of two amazing people. We are sending out our care and blessings in turquoise streams of light, surrounding Aji and Wings with our love and protection.
Let the celebration begin —
x xYouTube Video x xYouTube VideoFrom Aji’s Blog Post tonight —
Sunday, Nov 19, 2017 · 4:00:23 AM +00:00 · OnomasticWe did it! Oh, there were all kinds of hiccups, not least of which was a chill wind that just refused to disappear entirely. The flowers never arrived; some mixup or other. So I grabbed a handful out of the vase from the bouquet Wings bought me from the grocery store, my maid of honor did likewise. Our minister was delayed by traffic, and when we finally got under way, we proceeded to the arbor out of the original order, with Wings and I walking together both directions. (It was best; trust me.) And we went and had ourselves a wedding! Not everything that was supposed to be done on the house got done — nowhere near it, actually. There's a lot left to do in the weeks to come, and a lot to pay for, and I'm not remotely inclined right now to bother copying and pasting all that stuff. If you really want 'em, you can find all the links in yesterday's post. For now, we're both pretty thoroughly exhausted, but also indescribably happy. Despite the obstacles, there was joy and fun and singing and drumming and round dancing and feasting and a little bit of New Mexico's answer to Champagne and even a celebrity officiant. Most of all, there was love, lots and lots of love. Thank you, everybody.