A North American Journey

Had the day enroute to Medicine Creek.

Decided to visit the Aktá Lakota Museum & Cultural Center in the town of Chamberlain.

"The center opened in 1991 on St. Joseph’s Indian School campus. The name of our Native American museum reflects what we do: honor and preserve the rich culture of the Lakota people, the students at St. Joseph’s Indian School "

The visit prompted my Life 2.0 post.

Live 2.0 : “The meaning of life is that it ends.”

The US Traverse is now in full swing and the two males in the pack are making their way across the prairies towards Black Hills and the epicenter of the Sioux nation.

This is where US history was written in blood with immortal leaders like Crazy Horse, Sitting bull, and where Custer had his last stand.

I had to make a detour to The Akta Lakota Museum at St. Joseph's Indian School. It was fascinating to walk through the history and try to see it from the perspective of the Sioux people. Red Cloud, a Lakota Chief voiced the frustrations:

''They made many promises to us, but they only kept one. They promised to take our land, and they took it.'

But it was Spotted Tail’s speech, delivered at the great council on the Powder River, just before the attack on Fort Phil Kearny that had me thinking.

“There is a time appointed to all things. Think for a moment how many multitudes of the animal tribes we ourselves have destroyed! Look upon the snow that appears to-day -- to-morrow it is water! Listen to the dirge of the dry leaves, that were green and vigorous but a few moons before! We are a part of this life and it seems that our time has come.”

Sounds very negative, but is it?

Franz Kafka’s quote “The meaning of life is that it ends” does have an interesting twist. Kafka did not believe in the afterlife. His philosophy was that only when we understand and accept that when we die, there is no heaven or hell, that we just die, that is the moment when we begin to truly live.

That holds true for a person or a tribe.

Also visited the South Dakota Hall of FameRead more