Leonard Peltier Thoughts - Columbus Day 2012

[timotei]

"I don't know how to save the world. I don't have the answers or The Answer... I only know that without compassion and respect for all of earth's inhabitants, none of us will survive -- nor will we deserve to." ~Leonard Peltier

Sitting amongst ourselves in the Talking Circle, I hold the Eagle's feather in both hands. Looking upward I breathe softly knowing wordsand their use are of man's creation and thus are flawed, as are all of man's attempts to ressemble, instead of be, the universe. The beauty of the Talking Circle is the notion of equality and respect.

Respect does not mean agreement, for one can easily live within the circle of the other, or, its opposite.

Equality does not mean truth, for my words may be just as flawed as anothers, or, just as true.

But, these are hard lessons to learn, as they fly against our egos and belief that the Red Road implies direction and time. One's life "time" is only known when it has stopped. Its direction only upon One's passing. This is true of man and the birds and beasts and creatures and all other living entities on the earth. So we must, each, grasp the given moment for there may not be another one and begin to swirl in the mystery of the universe guided by our minds, our upbringings and the love of the ancestors that preceeded us.

As I breathe in the last bit of air, I hold the feather tighter and my mouth begins to move:

Specifically, Ka-Mook Nichols stated that in the months following the shooting, Peltier, speaking to Pictou-Aquash and her, said of one of the FBI agents, “The motherfucker was begging for his life, but I shot him anyway.”

As we journey through and amidst these moments that our words call life, it is not only of light but also of shadows and dark crevises and places we should be afraid to peek into.

I respectfully listen to the man Peltier and I believe his words in both statements to be true and believed by himself.

The first set of words above, depict the warrior, the thinker and a man gaining his understanding of the universe.

The second, merely proving he is a human on this road, as we all are. And, I believe he killed the man.

And, that is the lesson of equality. It heeds not our needs and protestations for fairness and understanding and righteousness, but also cuts equally with pain and sorrow and regrets through the hearts of all. The world of equality isn't neccessarily a gentler place, rather, one where the joys and heartaches of life are presented to each of us without favour.

~chowilawu~