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Poetry Page 2.
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MY FATHER.
My
father lived upon these lands,
Where
he could wander free.
And
no man told him what to do,
Or
told him what to be.
He
lived the life of a human being,
Not
attempting to change one little thing,
And
he left no tracks across these lands,
To
show where he had been.
He
could walk the sacred paths,
For
he knew just where they lay,
And
when he spoke at council,
They
would listen to what he’d say.
The
feathers that adorned him,
Showed
for all the world to see
Just
how brave he was in heart,
And
the warrior that I could be.
He
loved these lands, my father,
And
knew just where he’d lay,
When
his life had reached full circle
As
he reached his dying day.
Now
I live upon these lands,
Where
I can wander free
And
no man tells me what to do
Or
tells me what to be!
Shunkepi
Nunpi
January
1999
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MY NAME IS.
My
name is Running Bear,
A
Lakota by birth,
The
great Wakan Tanka
Placed
me on this earth.
He
gave to me the Black Hills,
So
I could honour him by name,
And
in a sacred vision,
Told
me not to change.
He
placed me on a sacred path,
To
follow throughout my life,
He
gave me food and shelter,
And
a woman for a wife.
He
granted me the beauty,
That
a father’s name can bring,
When
you hold your first born,
A
truly wonderful thing.
And
when I ride into battle,
Painted
for all the world to see,
No
weapons of war can harm me,
For
the Great Spirit rides with me.
For
my name is Running Bear,
And
Lakota by birth,
The
great Wakan Tanka,
Placed
me on this earth.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
September 1998
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JOY.
I
walked with Twisted Elk Horn,
When
we were no more than boys,
And
we laughed and played upon the plains
For
our hearts were filled with joy.
I
was taught to ride the pony
So
that I could wonder free,
Safely
in the knowledge that,
The
Great Spirit rides with me.
I
then rode with my brother, Big Heart,
On
my first hunt for buffalo.
And
the women sung, when the day was done,
Then
with great joy I danced with Laughing Crow.
I
fought alongside Running Bear,
Aganist
the Shoshone and the Crow.
I
rode with pride right at his side
With
the scalps that I now owned.
I
gave three ponies for Morning Cloud,
When
I took her for my wife.
And
in return she gave to me
Three
children full of life.
We
wonder far across these lands,
That
are so endless and so free,
And
I know the joy within my heart
Is
because the Great Spirit is guiding me.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
January
1999
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I AM.
I
am a Lakota warrior,
Painted
and ready to fight,
To
protect these lands that I cherish,
And
to die for what I believe is right.
No
longer will I ever believe,
The
words that you speak and write,
I
do not live in fear of your army,
For
I know in my heart that I’m right.
You
ill treat me and call me a savage,
Not
seen in your eyes as a man,
But
it is not I who murder without reason,
As
you cheat my people for this land.
I
do not take any pleasure or honour,
When
I send one of you to your hell,
For
it was not I who started the killing,
Or
started the lies that you tell.
All
that I have ever asked of you,
Was
to leave me alone on my land,
So
that I could live at peace,
And
be free to be who I am.
Shunkepi
Nunpi
September
1998
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Copyright @ William Purcell 2002
All rights reserved.
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