According to John Perkins in his e-guide All My Relations, We are Each Other, “All my Relations” is a worldview shared by many indigenous cultures around the world, “particularly those of the North American continent,” that maintains “we are all family, bound to humanity as a whole as well as to the Earth, the plants and animals that share it with us, and to the stars and other heavenly bodies in the universe.” Although philosophical values differ from culture to culture, there is a common thread among many indigenous communities that the land is not owned—animals, rivers, oceans, and mountains are not an endless resource to be pillaged for personal gain. Instead, the Earth is seen as alive, and an entity to be in relationship with that does not exist outside the self.

~ Alexia Lassman

Red Deer Stag in Autumn – photo by Voy, bigstockphoto.com