One bright summer afternoon in 2001 my 7 year-old son and I were standing on an overlook taking in the awesome and powerful beauty of the Lower Yellowstone Falls located in the Yellowstone National Park. Prior to stopping we enjoyed the breathtaking scenery of the mountains, forests, animals, and landscapes. Being that we are of White Mountain Apache (me) and Navajo (my son) heritage, we had a healthy respect for nature’s majestic creations.

Most of the drive he was silent taking in the views as I explained that Yellowstone was once a place where Shoshone, Bannocks, and Nez Perce Indians hunted, lived, and held ceremonies. It was a place where they LIVED. After stopping to walk down to the Lower Yellowstone Falls, my son would stop and touch the ground to feel the soil, and look for the different types of birds.

He was a true Apache from the mountains of Apache in that he always had a deep reverence for nature, animals, and peaceful quiet. His nalis (maternal grandparents) owned a ranch in Rough Rock, Ariz., on the Navajo Reservation where he learned how to ride a horse pretty much while he learned to walk.