Closing the Gap Between the Younger Generation and the Elders

The situation on Pine Ridge and other reservations today is not much different in comparison. Outside influences have devastated families. There is a high unemployment rate, alcoholism, drug use, gangs, stealing, violence, staying up all night and sleeping all day, babies having babies and lack of safety. Adults talk about negative forces and other things in the community from tribal council to tribal police. Corruption within tribal council and tribal police does not keep the people’s trust.  All of these things bring sadness, hopelessness, heaviness, and pain. Lack of jobs seems to be the denominator with the downfall of so many people on reservations. This situation has to change or the younger generation will be lost forever.

We must all stand together as a force of love. Be united NOW. There is only one way. Communication. Knowledge. Arm yourself with truth, love and perseverance. Extend your family. Join with others in giving. We are all related. People of the earth take back your heritage. I am not speaking of skin color or religion. Our heritage is this earth… Our heritage is also extended beyond this earth into the heavens where the spirit once lived before our birth into this world. You are bound to both.

To bring all the communities together things will have to change.  Many elders say the solution to the problems is prayer. Going back to the Inipi.  “Takashala (Creator) listens to us and takes care of us. We pray to him. None of us have nothing, no money, but we’re taken care of.  We have medicine for these sicknesses. We have ceremony. That’s where we get our strength.”

Communities have already began the healing process. We need to replace the negative with something healthier- like our culture. Some suggestions included helping our people define what culture is or what “the traditional way” is or what “the traditional ways” are. Other examples included promoting language, prayer, ceremonies (all different kind including specific examples to specific tribes/areas- from naming ceremonies, to blessing ceremonies, to sundance ceremonies, to sweat lodge ceremonies to rites of passage ceremonies, etc), potlatches, hand/stick game, singing, dancing and storytelling.

Cultural strengths as resiliency factors are so important because there are thousands of teachings within every example. The core teachings are about respecting your mind, body, spirit and all living things. With this as the core teaching, one would never put a harmful substance into their body. Key cultural strength words include: Respect. Ancestors. Honor. Wisdom. Pride. Vision. Power. Love. Excellence. Courage. Spirit. Values. Belief. Family. Sacred. Traditions. These words are fairly universal for all Native people. The reverence for ancestors is an attention-getter due to the fact that through our oral traditions we acknowledge those that came before us. We highly respect them for keeping the traditions alive without writing them down and for their resiliency of living hardy lives and thriving, even through adverse times like colonization. Because of them, we are still here! We have the same responsibility  and obligation to our future generations. Focus on resiliency and cultural strengths- they come in many different shapes.