For Micah on his 11th birthday ~ with much love!

“What’s Your Indian Name?”

It has to do with full moments

of mountains, deserts, sun, gods

song, completeness.

It has to do with stories, legends

full of heroes and traveling.

It has to do with rebirth and growing

and being strong and seeing.

You see it’s like this (the movement):

go to the water

and gather the straight willow stems

bring them home

work carefully at forming them

tie on the feathers

paint them with the earth

feed them and talk with them

pray.

You see, son the eagle is a whole person

the way it lives; it means it has to do

with paying attention to where it is,

not the center of the earth especially

but part of it, one part among all parts,

and that’s only the beginning.

Simon Ortiz

From Woven Stone, Four Poems for a Child Son