Born in 1919, Holiday is a practicing traditional Navajo medicine man living in Monument Valley, Utah. Drawing on extensive interviews with Holiday, McPherson (College of Eastern Utah) presents a detailed account of Holiday's life, from his early training with his grandfather and other family members living in the high country desert of the Colorado Plateau, through years of interactions with whites in the early film making industry, in the Civilian Conservation Corps and the military during the 1930s, and as a miner on the Navajo Reservation during the 1950s. The second half of the book features tribal and family teachings passed down from generation to generation, and other lessons from contemporary society. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

A Navajo Legacy: The Life and Teachings of John Holiday

Biographies & Memoirs

McPherson, Robert S.

Holiday, John

Community & Culture

Univ of Oklahoma Pr

For almost ninety years, Navajo medicine man John Holiday has watched the sun rise over the rock formations of his home in Monument Valley. Author and scholar Robert S. McPherson interviewed Holiday extensively and in A Navajo Legacy records his full and fascinating life. In the first part of this book, Holiday describes how, at an early age, he began an apprenticeship with his grandfather to learn the Blessingway ceremony. As a youth, Holiday traveled over the desert with family members to find forage for the animals and plants for healing practices. He experienced the invasion of Monument Valley by whites and later participated in the early filmmaking industry. Holiday was employed in the 1930s with the Civilian Conservation Corps and then served a brief stint in the military. During the 1950s he mined in one of the two largest uranium deposits on the Navajo Reservation. He also worked on the railroad in Utah. But he always returned to eke out a living with his livestock and agriculture. In the second part of the book, Holiday details family and tribal teachings. All of Holiday’s experiences and teachings reflect the thoughts of a traditional practitioner who has found in life both beauty and lessons for future generations.

A Navajo Legacy: The Life and Teachings of John Holiday (The Civilization of the American Indian Series)

University of Oklahoma Press

HOW TO SELL LIKE CRAZY: The Big Sales Secret

Business & Money

Marketing & Sales

Independently published

Daily Stoicism With Marcus Aurelius's Philosophy: Practical Guide to the Art of Living to Achieve Inner Peace, Happiness, Confidence, Emotional Resilience, and a Stress-Free Life

Literature & Fiction

Classics

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

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