Bear's Den "Veteran's Day"

Ya know, I´m often mystified, appreciative and proud of the little things in life. But then, being slow of wit and mumble of mouth… I´m not all that hard to please, either. Still, I´ve always appreciated the fact that American Indian Heritage Month and Veteran´s Day fall within the same period of the 12 moons. That´s because, the two couldn´t be more compatible – no, sir – they surely couldn´t.

Now, ordinarily, I always figure that my two years spent in Uncle Sugar´s Soldier Machine cured me of such things as ´sleeping on the ground´, ´running everywhere I go´ and… ´walking aimlessly´… down long, never-seeming-to-end… roads. But, as part of my domestic boss´s recovery from leukemia, she and I are walking some two miles a day. Yep, and, like the army drill sergeants I once had… she actually wants to increase the length of this daily hike as time goes on. Boy, when I was a kid in boot camp, I figured this torture was because my sergeants hated me so… what´d I ever do to her, hmm? Yet, I eventually learned that the NCOs were just getting me in shape for the job of soldiering – that´s all. And I´ve also fathomed that this present walking… is getting the Leukemia Kid and I – both – in shape for health, too. So, see… you can teach even slow-witted dudes... a thing or two, eh. Yeah, so all of this is where my mystification, appreciation and pride about the simple things comes in.

Now, being a veteran myself, I have extremely deep feelings about warriors. I spent 21-years in the Coast Guard, so I´m a card-carrying member. But man, this is further compounded by the fact that I´m also… an Indian. And no two ways around it, being a warrior – aka: veteran – and being an Indian – aka: Native American – are two things that are as harmonious as milk on your cereal or butter on your popcorn. Uh-huh, warriors and Indians go together – ´hand & glove´ – they most absolutely and positively… do.

I´m Blackfoot on my mother´s side, and it so happens that it was a Blackfoot named Red Fox James that got the notion started about honoring American Indians. He gathered and presented the endorsements of 24 individual state governments at the White House way back in 1915. It came to no avail, though – it was not until 75-years later that the first President George Bush approved "National American Indian Heritage Month" in 1990. Um-hmm. But, like a check that´s in the mail – it's better late than never, eh. November has been designated a national month to honor the American Indian ever since. Sure, and Veteran´s Day made the scene way back in 1919. President Woodrow Wilson designated November 11 – the day in November when the armistice ending World War One was signed – as a national day to honor all veterans. Now, you´ll likely never see any ´Native American Month´ sales in your newspaper – like you do those numerous ´Veteran´s Day Sales´, but… trust me, folks, it exists and has very much in common with the national holiday – to boot.

You´ll seldom go to a Pow-wow, anywhere in this country, and not see the warrior or veteran represented with high honors. American Indian and warrior are one and the same. The two are completely intermeshed within the culture. Sure, and it goes back to before the invasion – to when village fought against village for survival, and survival alone, here in this land. Warriors were vitally needed for protection and this need was, and remains… obvious… even in today´s modern world. Unlike some people, traditional Indians don´t stray too far from their raising. They recognize and appreciate this worth of a warrior – one who is willing to trade his life for the good of his people. This nobility is rare in two-leggeds – no matter what the color – and all traditional Indians know this fact - innately.

Yep, that´s why Indians have always served, in all times, against their Peoples´ enemies – no matter who the enemy was, or is. They´ve fought in every war, in this land and abroad. In the 20th century, there were five American Indians who won the United States´ highest military honor: the Medal of Honor. Yep, and in the beginning of this 21st century, there are nearly 190,000 Native American military veterans. Oh, and here´s another tie-in with veterans and Indians. More than 12,000 American Indians served in the United States military in World War I – the war that created Veteran´s Day to begin with. But Indians have always volunteered to fight for their people, and have done so, and will continue to do so... in overwhelming numbers.

Umm, hmm, more than 44,000 American Indians, out of a total Native American population of less than 350,000, fought in WWII. That´s almost all… of the legally aged and fully capable adult males, back then, folks – almost all. And shoot, at a time when many ran to Canada to avoid the draft, more than 42,000 American Indians – over 90% of them VOLUNTEERS – fought in Vietnam. So it is that, historically, Native American Indians have the highest record of military service, per capita, when compared to other ethnic groups. In many respects, American Indians aren´t any different from others who volunteer for military service. But, we do, however, have distinctive cultural values which drive us to serve our country. Yep and one such value is an ingrained and proud warrior tradition.

This warrior tradition is a strong willingness to engage the enemy in battle… to protect our people. It´s exemplified, soundly, by the following qualities that are inherent in almost all veterans and almost all Native American Indian societies: faith in the Creator, strength, honor, pride, devotion, and wisdom. It´s these qualities, folks, that make American Indians and veterans… pretty much… one & the same – hand & glove. So, the next time you see a veteran, please know... even if you don't say so out loud... that your safety and well-being... is largely due to him or her – it just is. Uh-huh, and that´s also why I´m mystified, appreciative and a little proud of the little things in life. I appreciate that American Indian Heritage Month and Veteran´s Day fall within the same period of the 12 moons because the two couldn´t be more compatible – no, sir – they surely couldn´t.