Maggie's Story

Teachings of a Cherokee spiritual person take place spontaneously, not in formal classrooms. Often these lessons are passed on from mother to daughter or father to son. Pamela Dawes Tambornino shares her grandmother's knowledge of language, herbal cures, animals, and people. She shows how the entire life of a healer is a text to be pondered, as well as nature and its processes. As the author reflects upon her grandmother's lessons, she brings to life the humor and the generosity that made her grandmother a healer respected by her Oklahoma family and community. Tambornino, an enrolled member of Cherokee Nation, follows her grandmother's lead as she entertains her readers and also, indirectly, instructs them.