Mni wiconi - Water is life

Chapter 14

"You expect me to sit quietly in this sardine tin and wait for you to return every evening when my people need me?" The old man shook his head wearily and packed more things into the small traveling bag. Which stood open on his bed.

"It is too dangerous for you, Grandfather." Leo rubbed the back of his neck. He had never seen his only living relative this obstinate. How did he convince the stubborn man of the need to stay at home instead of joining the activists? Some of them had only suffered bruises the day before. Others fractures or eye injuries. And that was surely just the beginning. Things would only escalate from here. Their opponents couldn't fail to notice how the protest camp was growing by the day. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into," Leo tried again. "You never served in the army."

The grandfather snorted contemptuously, then sat down on the bed and put the bag on the floor. He patted the now empty space. "Come here, my boy. It is about time I tell you a story."

Reluctantly, Leo complied with the request. He knew all the myths and legends of his people. This one would teach him nothing new.

"Very well. A long time ago, some brave warriors joined forces to fight a malignant disease that was affecting more and more of their tribal friends. A plague that was spreading rapidly and came from distant lands. The sick turned away from the red path. They forgot to treat plants, animals and their own kind with respect. Instead, they chased after fantasy figures. Evil spirits who promised them wealth and power. But the temptations plunged people into deep misery. Hopelessness spread further and further.

The brave warriors saw through the evil spirits' plans. They sought to destroy all the values that could pose a threat to their endeavors.

This was not going to happen. The warriors first tried to heal the sick in one place. To protect them from the deceptive temptations. Other warriors saw the efforts and joined the fight. As at the Battle of the Little Big Horn, the lines were blurred. It did not matter which tribe you belonged to. The only thing that counted was the commitment to the good cause.

First, they focused on places where the disease could spread particularly quickly. Places where people from whose homeland the disease originated lived. But the warriors soon realized that the old traditions were valuable allies in their fight. Those who adhered to the virtues of the ancestors were more robust and could withstand the whispered temptations of the evil spirits more easily.

This is why they supported the cramped tribes that once proudly roamed the plains. Among them still lived wise women and men who had learned the stories of their past from their grandparents. More people realized that they had to defend themselves against the foreign plague in order to protect their children and grandchildren from it.

But the evil spirits called on their allies for help. Cannibals who had been contaminated from childhood and took up the fight against the warriors." The old Lakota took a deep breath before continuing. "They could not stop the American Indian Movement then and we will oppose them again. I participated in the Trail of Broken Treaties and attended the occupation of Wounded Knee. I am not going to let a few sheriff's office employees stop me from helping my people now."

It took Leo a moment to process his grandfather's words. Then his eyes widened with realization. "You were a member of the AIM? Why didn't you ever say anything about it?"

The old man sighed, placed his wrinkled hands in his lap and lowered his chin to his chest.

Leo knew what that meant. A memory that had to do with his grandmother. She had been three years younger than his father. Only eighteen when she had Leo's mother. Two more pregnancies went wrong. Then she gave birth to a boy. But a drunk driver finally destroyed the happy family in the seventies. Leo's grandmother and uncle died in hospital a few days later. Their deaths broke the grandfather's heart. It was only when his daughter became addicted to alcohol that he woke up and tried to save the rest of his family. "You promised Unci, didn't you?"