native american heritage month…

digital decoupage cwmartin

you cannot bury
these memories
in the sands
of regret
or remove
the blood
from your hands
by bathing
in the river
of empty promises
nor gain trust
by granting
time to speak
to those
you’ve silenced
for generations
offering now
a month
in exchange
for what
you’ve stolen
and
continue to steal
did you
really
believe
that black elk
no longer
speaks

lone wolf’s lament…

this is not the place
that was your father’s
these woods hold
bones older than
your history
each tree marks
a fallen warrior
black elk knew of them
calling upon the spirits
to receive their brothers
and sisters in death
to guide them safely
to a land of peace
not one of war
nor into stolen mountains
flowing with streams of tears
nor torched prairie villages
now no more than smoke
carried away in the night
only brother wolf
was left
to lament
as the funeral
procession
passed by
to an unwanted
desert
away from
this sacred
and
holy
place