philosophy

we call them american indians. actually 'american' comes from a european mapmaker and 'indian' comes from the idea that the explorers of the time were seeking the east indies. i understand they call themselves the people.

they had civilizations across both continents, each tribe with its own territory. not quite the city-states of greece, there was still trade within the land masses.

while very few philophies or theologies can be accepted in toto the people have quite a few customs worth noting. a fasciniating quality is their patience. an oft repeated adage is 'you must wait until the water settles to see to the bottom of the spring'. they make their decisions with due care and then act on them.

the forced marches of resettlement are a shame. my father's land is from the civil war and has a graveyard there. in it are tombstones some of which are marked and some aren't. some are supposed to be from local indians.