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Poetry Page 1.
OUR
CAUSES.
I
heard the sound of a distant bugle,
On
a cold and mournful day,
And
then the sound of ponies,
As
soldiers came charging our way.
I
stepped out from my tipi,
Weapons
of war in my hands,
My
pony was painted for battle,
As
we fought to protect our band.
They
attack us early this morning,
Hoping
to catch us asleep,
But
we always posted sentries,
So
our women would not have to weep.
The
sound of rifles exploding,
Filled
the still morning with dread,
For
it signalled the start of the slaughter,
As
some of our brothers fell dead.
They
shoot to kill all before them,
Not
caring when killing our young,
Our
women they cut down with long knives,
For
their day of judgement has come.
Their
cries of excited frenzy,
As
they slaughter without any pause,
Gives
them brave heart in the killing,
And
renews the faith in their cause.
I
do not consider them heroes,
These
men without honour or heart,
For
this is the action of cowards,
And
our causes are so far apart.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
June
1998
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SPIRIT LANDS.
There
are many sacred places,
That
I hold so very close,
For
in them live my forefathers
In
the guise of a vision ghost.
They
dwell within these Spirit Lands
So
that I can come and see,
All
the beauty of the lands
Where
I can wonder free.
For
when their bones have turned to dust
They
form a layer upon the earth,
On
which the people can walk upon
And
from which we are granted birth.
These
Spirit Lands are most sacred,
For
they are the peoples heart.
And
no path can make us leave it
Or
distance keep us apart.
And
when my time has finally come
To
join all those who went before,
Carry
my body to the Spirit Lands
So
that I may live once more.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
January
1999
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BROTHER.
My
mother’s name is Running Deer,
She
was my first true love,
For
I worship her just as much
As
the stars shinning high above.
My
father’s name is Black Dog,
And
he shines within my eyes,
For
he always burns more brightly
Than
the sun up in the sky.
The
village where I have always lived,
Is
the center of my world,
Where
I could run and play around
Where
I could scream and yell.
My
elder brother Eagle Feather,
Taught
me how to ride,
And
it broke my heart the day I learnt
That
in a buffalo hunt he’d died.
It
then left me with two sisters
Who
showered their love on me,
One
was called Morning Cloud
The
other Willow Tree.
Although
our lives were often hard
It
was our love that saw us through.
And
then quiet unexpectedly
Our
Mother gave birth to you.
I
sat inside our tipi
Right
at my Fathers side,
As
we thought of a beautiful name
But
we could not decide.
It
was Morning Cloud who spoke the name
That
we would bestow upon you,
For
as she played with you upon the hide
We
could see the name was true.
For
she had called you Laughing Bear
And
we could plainly see,
That
of all the names we had thought about
This
one it had to be.
And
now as I hold you in my arms,
Looking
down upon your face,
A
distant memory is disturbed
Of
another familiar face.
Did
Eagle Feather have to go,
So
that Laughing Bear could come?
For
if it’s true I’ll love you more
Than
a brother has ever done.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
January
1999
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BROKEN ARROW.
You
came into our camp un-invited,
To
tell us what we must do.
You
wanted to show us all your might,
So
you lined up your men in blue.
You
called us all to meeting,
And
made us sit upon the ground,
You
then talked to us like children
As
your smiles turned into a frown.
You
wanted us to sign your treaties,
That
would remove us from our land
We
told you we would not sign the paper
This
was not what you had planned.
You
said our Great White Father,
Would
send more soldiers here,
But
if we signed your treaties
We
would have nothing to fear.
You
then offered us some blankets
To
help keep out the cold,
You
promised us more presents
If
we would do as we were told.
Our
chief he then stood before you
And
began to explain about the land,
How
it belonged to each generation
And
was not owned by any man.
But
you would not listen to his words,
And
then you threatened us with war.
He
then broke an arrow across his thigh
For
we’ll give you what you’re looking for.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
January
1999
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Copyright @ William Purcell 2002
All rights reserved.
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