The following version of this poem was used to create this guide: Harjo, Joy. “For Calling the Spirit Back from Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet.” Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings (W.W. Norton & Company, 2015).

Note that all parenthetical citations refer to the line number from which the quotation is taken.

Harjo's indigenous American heritage deeply informs her life and work. Her mother was of mixed Cherokee, Irish, and French heritage. Her father was a citizen of the Muscogee Nation whose family descended from a line of respected warriors and speakers. These included the famous leader Monahwee, who fought in the Red Stick War against President Andrew Jackson in the 1800s. As a celebrated figure in contemporary Native poetry, Harjo uses her voice to empower indigenous people and address feminist issues. In “For Calling the Spirit Back from Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet" and other poems, readers from any ancestry can find solace and joy in Harjo's work.

Particularly in “For Calling the Spirit Back from Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet," Harjo informally advises the reader on how to exist the trap of consumer culture to instead find value in nature, ancestors, and relationships.