the dance begins slowly

unheard music is part of the air

i was a young man then

i wore black crow feathers, black bear hide

black paint changed my face

my moccassins sang the red dust

we each dance in a circle

part of the larger circle

as the light begins to change my heart beats strongly

the sky turns red then darker

it was my first dance

a dance to pray for corn

my legs are strong

my body alive

my blood is pure it knows it beats a sacred song

i see more than i can touch

when we beat the earth with our feet we are praying

to the ground we ask the spirits of the earth

for what we need

this way we talk to the insects

in the earth the animals that live there

i feel more than i can see

we  move together and our movements ask the gods

for good crops

we pray so we may live we pray for we believe

we dance until it is finished

dachi dakata

i walk and can see over the cliff

straight down to the sagebrush below

i am alone

i feel a part of all that is before me