All About Mentoring Spring 2011 - SUNY Empire State College

26
“So They Will Honor You as a Human Being”:
Indigenous Knowledge and the Practice
of Mentoring
Jeffrey P. Lambe, Long Island Center
During the late 1980s and early
1990s, I volunteered for a
nonprofit environmental education
organization when the landscaping season
ended. We had contracts with the New
Jersey Division of Corrections and Division
of Family, Youth Services (DYFS). This is
when I met Tekaronianeken Jake Swamp
and Wanbli Nata’u Javen Tony Tenfingers,
onkwehonwe (original or real human
beings) who embodied two of the great
cultural traditions of Turtle Island (North
America), the Kanyen’keha (Mohawk, the
People of the Place of Chert or Quartz) and
the Oglala Lakota. In subsequent years, I
volunteered with the Tree of Peace Society,
a cultural and environmental education
organization that Jake founded. At one
point, Jake commented: “Why don’t you get
that piece of paper so they will honor you
as a human being” I have been reflecting
on the meaning of this suggestion for a
long time. Needless to say, I got that (which
turned into those) piece(s) of paper. In the
following essay, I will describe some of
the unique aspects of mentoring and other
insights that I experienced with these two
extraordinary people – insights that have
influenced the way I approach mentoring
students at Empire State College. It may be
unreasonable to suggest that those outside of
an indigenous culture adopt an indigenous
perspective to mentoring and learning.
However, attentiveness to a different cultural
perspective can prove enriching and can
enhance the work that we do.
The natural world is the model for the
type of mentoring and learning that I
experience. One way to think about
indigenous mentoring and learning is the
process of “coming to know” through a
reciprocal relationship and reflective process
between mentor and mentee. As I will
describe below, this pedagogy is grounded
in a sense of respect for individuality,
cultivation and obligation. The continuing
unfolding of the renewable quality that is
mirrored in the natural world is innate.
Although the individual beings and process
that exist in nature are distinct, they are
interconnected. The natural world is
based on both individual integrity and
contribution in conjunction with others.
This ongoing interconnection facilitates
the renewable spark of life’s continuance.
This is the model for many expressions of
indigenous cultures. For example, during
the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy,
Those Who Build the Longhouse) naming
ceremony, the community is reminded about
the importance of observing children as they
grow: simply watch them. Ideally, there is
an obligation to nurture and cultivate the
unique attributes that the child will certainly
express in the coming years. In turn, these
qualities enrich the community and create a
healthy world for future generations.
Both Jake and Tony shared traditional
narratives and personal stories when
they worked in counseling and education
environments. Cultural narratives
intersecting with personal experiences in a
reflective manner is one characterization of
traditional teaching and learning. In a sense,
traditional narratives hold the culmination
of knowledge of a people. These are often
expressed in figurative language and
represent different levels of experience and
knowledge. They are meant to extend to and
guide those living today, as well as future
generations. In essence, such narratives are
a cultural framework that guides people as
they come to being or become real human
beings. The narratives, along with the help
of elders, knowledge holders, and others
helps us embrace the joys and challenges
that we meet along the way. There can
be many layers of meaning – some that
are culture specific, and others that speak
to the entire human experience. The
Jeffrey Lambe
nature of traditional narratives allows for
disparate, even contradictory, truths to arise
simultaneously. It is up to the listener to seek
her or his own understanding by drawing
on personal inferences. In this sense, truth
and validity are determined in terms of a
resonance within one’s experience and being.
I am continually intrigued, challenged and
inspired by the depth of knowledge that is
grounded in – and stems from – expressions
of indigenous knowledge. Even at a young
age, I felt that although the knowledge base
that I was experiencing was very different,
in terms of depth and complexity, it was
akin to anything that was being taught in
a college or university. This was further
validated by the fact that we were regularly
solicited to incorporate the Tree of Peace
Society’s cultural programs with community
service learning components of colleges and
universities.
While working with the state of New
Jersey, I found that the types of learning
environments created by both Jake and
Tony were designed so that all who
suny empire state college • all about mentoring • issue 39 • spring 2011