It's kind of sad the way things are. My grandmother once had a lot of land in Green Grass and she gave half the land to the church, because at the time, that was the only way to pray freely. After my Grandmother and Grandfather died a few years later, my father would ask us go to church now and then, as my Grandfather respected both ways. In the earlier 70¹s they called us devil worshippers. One day, while we sat in church, the preacher said that the people that lived a couple miles west of the church, us, are devil worshippers and that we drum at night. My father said, "Lets go home, because I don't feel good about this", so we left that church. I think the people chose to forget where they got the land from to pray, my Grandmother. Because we were struggling to be left alone as we did not have the freedom of religion yet, we stayed quiet and did not make waves.

When my Grandmother died she left 40 acres to me, as the Keeper of the bundle. She told me that it would stay with the bundle, if the spirit allows it. My Father has gone and the land that was left for the bundle is now 6 acres, but it makes me remember that my Grandmother told me before she passed on, that I was the last Keeper. Even though she shared this with me, she also said that the power of prayer brings miracles. So I work and pray that her prophecy can be changed and we will deserve the sacred bundles, the spiritual energy to stay with the people, so we can have good health; mind, body and spirit. The reason why the bundle came to the people was our Ancestors at one time began abusing the sacredness of life and forgot the connection to Mother Earth, along with the teachings of the buffalo. We depended on the buffalo back then, not only for food and shelter, but what they taught. When one of the buffalo would fall, the rest would circle around them to give their energy so the fallen one could stand and together they would move forward, always facing the wind. They used their energy to heal, as we do in ceremony. This taught leadership, responsibility and respect toward one another. When our Ancestors forgot these teachings, the buffalo disappeared, so they prayed for deliverance. This is why the White Buffalo Calf Woman brought the Sacred C'anupa, nineteen generations ago. The red stone represents the blood of our people and the stem represents the connection to Mother Earth and the Universe, therefore representing the responsibility to be the caretaker and protector of our Mother Earth.

I think our families should put aside some of their time to pay respects to our sacred way of life that can teach our children respect and honor. The real meaning behind the name of the Lakota, Dakota, Nakota People means the protection and responsibility in respecting the gifts the Creator gave to us, this includes our identity with our language. It means so much more then an enrollment number.