Article: Mentoring in Native American Communities

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Mentoring in Native American Communities

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Growing up on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana, I received mentoring from a variety of different people in a variety of different ways. My father was a farmer/rancher, and from him and my older brothers and other relatives I learned how to do farm and ranch work at a very early age. I grew up in a family of 10 children, but there were always many extended family members around. I learned from all of them. Native families rarely go anywhere without taking everyone along. Mentoring and knowledge transfer occurred just by being a part of the group and participating in group activities. Whether it was putting up food, picking berries, butchering farm or wild animals, doing farm or ranch chores, training horses, or participating in ceremony, I was mentored in a very informal way. Participating, observing, and watching were always the beginning of the mentoring/learning partnership.

Children are watched by adults who observe their areas of interest and then try to provide opportunities that match their interests or natural inclinations. For example, my younger brother was an accomplished horse rider and roper from a very young age. My older brother was a good bull rider. They were both taken in and mentored by other older brothers and relatives who did those things. I was more interested in social and ceremonial type interactions, so I was taken under the wing of an older male relative who was a medicine person. In the area of spiritual development especially, elders never told me what to do even if I asked them directly. They would tell a story that had a similar theme, but at the end would always say, "It's up to you." The intent was always to guide those being mentored on their own spiritual path and allow them to discover that path for themselves in the context of their own life and their own relationship with the omnipresent "Great Spirit."

This method of learning and knowledge transfer requires spending time in the learning environment without interruption from outside influences. Today, the hectic nature of our lives, television and other media, and the influence of mass culture threaten the knowledge transfer process among indigenous cultures everywhere on the planet. Many young people don't receive the mentoring they need to succeed in Native culture or any other culture. The challenge for Native adults in this day and age is finding the time and making the commitment to ensure that young people have adequate opportunities to learn ancient ways. Young people, on the other hand, must turn off their computers, video games, cell phones, and televisions long enough to seek out and enter that sacred learning space.

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