The Crow

Our bus took us further to the home of the Real Bird family. This family of Crow Indians live on the reservation. They train, buy and sell horses for rodeos. Henry Real Bird is a former rodeo cowboy and a cowboy poet. Dave has known him for many years.

Henry welcomed us and brought us down to the river. He invited us to feel the water, take a rock, sit in the shade of a tree. Then he picked up a stick and drew a map of his country in the sand. He told the story of his people, how they were driven off their homeland, how they were gathered in reservations, how the white men deceived them, how they were starving to death, how the soldiers hunted them, how the trappers killed their bison, ... He also gave us the Indian version of the battle of Little Bighorn which was handed down to him by a friend of his grandfather. General Custer came with his men through the land, near the river the Indians injured him and staked him to the ground. They slit his chest open, took his heart out and pierced it. The Indians had been praying to their god to give them Custer's life. It was made clear in a vision that this would happen.

We listened in silence. Moved by the story, shaken by the way it was told. Confused, perhaps, I believe.

Then Henry took us to another side of the field, along the river. Here he showed some beautiful artifacts made by the women in his tribe: dresses, belts, mocassins, ... all decorated with tiny glass beads. One small piece can take a month to make. It is very colourful work, and very expensive too.

We had a lovely meal, sitting on the ground. Some Indian tacos with beans and salad and melon for dessert.

The other members of the Real Bird family came over to talk to us. The oldest brother who told us about the change he had lived through. From the time he was a kid and could take a horse and ride as far as he wanted. How education seemed to be in contradiction with freedom. How difficult it is for the younger generations to get a degree. How high the unemployment is. How important alcoholism and drug addiction are. How hard is has become to lead a decent life in keeping with the Crow traditions and fit to modern times.

Henry's sister talked to us about her experience as a school teacher. She explained how she was confronted to racism on a daily basis. She also told us that it is impossible to take the Indian culture into a classroom to teach about it. The very fact that this is a concrete building, that she cannot feel the earth under her feet, nor feel the wind through her hair, makes it impossible to be Indian.
She taught us a few words of the Crow language, which is only one of the hundreds of Indian languages spoken by the different tribes. Unfortunately, this language is dying. Only a handful of people still speak it. The language is difficult to write, the words are very long. Something should be done to preserve it. But then, she said defeatedly, who would do that?

Henry's younger brother was a passionate advocate for a better government and an economic system within the reservations. He explained that with poor education, they were always cheated. Very often, the Indians do not fully understand what is being 'sold' to them. Although the reservation is very rich in coal and oil, the Indians do not benefit from this. All the money leaves the reservation. Even if Indians earn money, they spend it outside, so the economy is dying. He used to live in the city, where he made more money, but he came back to the plains, because his heart is here, and so is his freedom.

Finally, Henry talked to us about the spirituality of the Indians. He told us that every Indian has three mothers: mother earth, his blood mother, his teepee, and these he must always respect.
He also explained how visions and dreams are important and how men will go on vision quests, go to the sweat hut, fast in the mountains, smoke the pipe, pray to god, speak to the bison of the Great Dipper.
He said that the river plays an important part in his life. How he gives his worries to the water and let them be carried away. And he got carried away talking to us ...
Suddenly some wild horses appeared near the rim of the hill. They came to drink at the river.
It was a beautiful way to end this open-air session, which was in full contrast with the formal lectures we had had so far, and therefore depicted so well how different the culture of the Native Americans is from that of the Americans of today.

With my heart and head filled with stories never to forget, I dreamt with open eyes that the plains belonged to the Indians, who are the heirs of this country, and I wept deep inside for I believe that little by little they are dying, that this clash of cultures is fatal to them ...

and the bus brought us back to Billings.