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| Guest Writings do not necessarily reflect my own opinions. I am trying to create an open forum. I reserve the right to include any submitted article or not, with or without saying why. If you wish to reproduce any of these writings you must ask permission of the author. At the bottom of each article will be contact information for the author when it is available. |
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TINY WARRIOR
You never saw the spring my love
Or the red tailed hawk circling high above
On feathered wings my love
You only knew the snow
You never saw the prairie grasses bend and blow
And undulate like the shimmering indigo sea
You never saw me
Your eyes were closed so tight
They say you put up quite a fight
Somehow your life was over before it had begun and
Gently did I touch and kiss your tiny-fingered hand
Born too soon
You never saw the silver moon
Or the light of a summer's day
Last night I dreamt a gathering of eagles
Had come
To spirit you away
Born too soon
Your tender heart
Could not beat
To the pulsing rhythm
Of life's taut drum
For Nikolai 1982-1983
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| MOTHER AND CHILD |
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TRADITIONAL SNEAK-UP
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PROMISED LAND
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Lonnie wants his promised land
His 40 acres and a mule
But Uncle Sam says "Boy,
Don't be such a fool
Cause I'll be damned
If I'm gonna give you any land.
You're fortunate just bein' alive.
Now don't-cha give me any more of your jive.
You're lucky to be on welfare
And you know it.
So son, I'd advise you not to blow it."
They don't call it the Promised Land for nothin'
They promised us land and gave us nothin'
Keoni says his Island was a paradise
Then the Haole came
Hungry for wealth they planted their cane
Now we hang our heads in shame
You made us change our pagan ways
You stole away our rainbow days
When you sold away our native land
And on just one hand
I can count all the gifts you gave to me
You brought us rats and leprosy
Our Island is a tourist trap
And Uncle Sam says, "Don't talk back!"
They don't call it the Promised Land for nothin'
They promised us land and gave us nothin'
My cousin Mountain Bluebird's Mother
Was Crazy Horse's sister
One of the greatest warriors
History's ever seen
But then the cavalry attacked
They put her Mama in a dirt floor shack
With a rickety outhouse way out back
Heya! Uncle Sam
We don't want your trackless land
We don't want this worthless sand
Give us back our Promised Land
They don't call it the Promised Land for nothin'
They promised us land and gave us nothin'
Except a million reasons why |
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Dedicated to the memory of my Mother, Rosebud a hereditary Princess of the San Poils in North Eastern Washington State
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I WILL DANCE FOR YOU
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LADIES FANCY SHAWL ON BUTTERFLY WINGS
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When you call me "squaw"
You have no idea how much it hurts
To hear you refer to me
As something so perverse
When you yell out "Hey, Pocahontas!”
It only shows your ignorance
So I go to the pow wow and I pray for you
Every prayer a dance
And every dance a prayer
I will pray for you
To become more aware
That your words can
Break my heart in two
I know sometimes
You speak your words in jest
But still like arrows loosed
They pierce my breast
I will dance for you
I will pray for you
Every prayer a dance
Every dance a prayer
I will dance for you |
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In my culture we pray by dancing. The Rain Dance, The Ghost Dance, The Corn Dance, The Sun Dance, The Grass Dance, etc., are all expressions of prayer to the Great Spirit, Wakan Tanka. This poem in it's own way is also a prayer to stop racial slurs and discrimination against us, and our culture.
After the Viet Nam War scientists spent millions of dollars studying the effect of war and death on plant life. They spent millions trying to see if plants responded to music. All they had to do was ask our Elders. We have had the answer for centuries. What did they think the Corn Dance was all about!!
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ALL THE WRITINGS ON THIS PAGE WERE WRITTEN BY:
Sharmagne Leland-St. John
Walks Far Woman
Confederated Colville Tribe of Nespelem, Washington
Quill and Parchment
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ALL ARTWORK ON THIS PAGE IS DONE BY:
David L. Eveningthunder-www.artnam.com
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WHEN WE DANCE, THE SPIRITS DANCE
DAVID L. EVENINGTHUNDER-www.artnam.com
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