Last night I gave a presentation on the Navajo Long Walk to some youth. I am always ready and willing to share my culture with others. It got me thinking again that I am far away from home. Living off the reservation can be a challenge, especially living the urban life. I’ve lived off the reservation most of my life, but there is that longing to eat the food, hear the language, and be around the people! I don’t know how it is for other Native Americans, but there’s this weird sense of always wanting to return and get a bite of the culture so my soul can digest it all and give me renewed energy!
In case you may not know, the Navajo Long Walk is the story of the Navajo Tribe’s forced removal from their land by the US Government in 1864. They spent four years in captivity at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, until 1868 when the government came to the realization that it was a failed attempt to relocate them. They were able to return to their land which they held sacred.
For me, the Navajo Reservation is a place of beauty in it’s own rite. My people have paid the price for me to live today, which I am very grateful. Although I am far away from this beautiful sacred land, it still holds a special place in my heart. I am always so proud to be Navajo or Dine! Take a look at my video that I made a little over a year ago about the Navajo Long Walk. I hope you will ponder your own ancestry and be proud of where you came from and the sacrifice that your own ancestors made for you!
Newfangled Native American 