My Cherokee Heritage

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From birth, my Cherokee heritage has had a major influence on my life. Growing up on the reservation instilled family values and incited a passion inside me that I do not think I would possess if I had been kept separate from my culture.

When one wanders around downtown Cherokee they will see the unique manner in which the intricate bear sculptures and modern casino combine with the dilapidated buildings to create the peculiar atmosphere of the place I called home for so many years. While an outsider may feel as though the new and worn down buildings are at a discord I believe they have a very different effect. For me, Cherokee is the physical manifestation of the tribulations that my ancestors overcame to become a society who still maintain …show more content…
In the time that I lived on the reservation, I attended every powwow and my father was a traveling dancer with one for awhile, but even after my departure I still attended the annual powwow held in Port Orange. The drum beats and voices always leave me with a tugging feeling in my chest that is guiding me to North Carolina. Aside from Powwows, I listen to Native American music traditional and modern renditions in the car and around the house. From Cherokee flute music to a Tribe Called Red blaring from my speakers it is not uncommon to find me in the midst of my own Pow Wow. Other parts of Cherokee have also been very influential in my life such as my grandmother's traditional basket weaving. I can not count the number of hours I spent by her side as she created one of the many white oak baskets around the house and around …show more content…
Remnants of the former disdain the United States held for Native American is carved directly through the reservation in the form of the Trail of Tears and inadequate health care also presents major issues. I have transformed the nation's issues into the source of my inspiration to succeed in my journey to become a doctor as my tribe using the addiction and disease epidemics that have befallen the nation to encourage and could be reduced with proper education and preventative care. Accordingly, Cherokee has incited a passion to succeed within me with its resolute nature, and I aspire to obtain a career in the medical field so I can one day return and assist my
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