My birth name is John Fitzgerald Zephier given to me by my brother Loren Zephier.  I was born during the time when J.F.K. died in Dallas. His spirit moved my family and so they agreed to name me J.F.Z.  My Indian name given to me by the spirit is Isage Imani (Walking Staff) and I am a member of the Yankton Sioux Tribe (Ihanktowan). 

I want to briefly without going into too much detail the explanation of the Medicine Wheel and Quill Work as is was told to me, so people can have some understanding of them.

There are four main colors to the Medicine Wheel. These colors consist of Black, White, Yellow and Red. Medicine Wheels were used for decoration on personal items. Along with this Medicine Wheel was a philosophy of life. Each color represents a race of people on Mother Earth. This Wheel reminds us that we are all related, by embracing this philosophy and concept we are embracing everyone and everything as a relative.

Black represents the unknown and our fears we must face in our lives. It also represents the Thunder Being Nations and the life they hold (water). White represents the spirit (Waziyata) the Great Giant of the North. It also represents Mother Earth’s white blanket.  Yellow represents the rising sun and the newness it brings to us everyday.  Red represents the road in which we travel to the spirit world when our time is done here on Mother Earth. It represents the sacred red road we travel during our lifetime.

The colors went in this order, but many years ago a prophecy was told about Mother Earth and the changes she was going to go through.  When this prophecy was told the colors changed to Black, Red, Yellow and White. These colors changed to remind us of this prophecy and would not change back until this time is at hand.

Around 1995 during a fast and Sun Dance on one of the Sioux Reservations in South Dakota the spirit informed the people that these times were at hand. The colors were then changed back to their original direction. 

Medicine Wheels are given many different colors in quillwork, but the concept of the Medicine Wheel remains the same (we are all related).