A Native Prayer of Approach
I honor your gods,
I drink at your well,
I bring an undefended heart to our meeting place,
I have no cherished outcomes,
I will not negotiate by withholding, and
I am not subject to disappointment.
I learned this years ago as the Native Prayer of Approach. I’ve also seen this on the internet as the “Druid Vow of Friendship”. I’m not quite sure when it entered my life. I have tried to apply it in various forms, including through divorce (how I approached the ending, not the negotiations — but I think it made a difference in the latter). I continually come back to it as a stance into relationships, and it continues to challenge me because it is so human to have cherished outcomes. Thich Nhat Hanh teaches, “You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.” This, for me, is one of the key teachings towards expansive love, as a liberating structure rather than a confining one.
