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05 Wolakota Project Video Transcripts and URLs.docx · WP-0202. Imported source record; individual Elder status and tribal affiliation are not inferred.
Reviewed JAG competency and OSEU connections
No reviewed JAG–OSEU–interview connection is published for this record. Search matches alone do not establish an alignment.
Interview transcript
I had started to talk to you about…a word… a word that says Otiwote. Each one of us came into this world through the sacredness of water. When your mother's water breaks… and it is your time to come into this world. When that water touches this earth… and your after birth is ceremonially spiritually taken care of in the proper way, you have a very deep connection with Makoce, the Earth, Mother Earth. You have that connection with her… Otiwote talks about that little place where you were born… where your water touched the earth. This little Rapid Creek that goes through the beautiful black Hills… was Crazy Horse’s Otiwote. He was born near Rapid Creek here in the Black Hills. The stories of why… and how he fought to keep the Black Hills or many. But the bottom spiritual line is… is Otiwote. This was his location, his spiritual connection to the Black Hills. I have been fortunate enough to have Otiwote on the western edge of our reservation. Today is where I was brought into this world through the sacredness of my mother's water… where I touched the earth. I've always felt fortunate that my elders were willing to share with me… to give me their insights on life. The wisdom… share their wisdom with me to pass on. We have elders that remind us constantly. These are ours to pass on. We don't want to take them to the grave with us. We must ensure that they pass on. So, the story of our Otiwote and what it means… what these places mean to us. Our connection to the land… We don't own it. It's our mother. It gives everything to us. This special place here, the Black Hills… we refer to it as Wizipan… which means a container. You could be out on the prairie… very hungry, homeless, sick… If you come into this place, the Black Hills, this container that contained everything that you needed to live… the shelter was here, the food, the medicines, everything was here. It was our container. So, as you grow and you learn the history of your people, dream as your ancestors did, that this is your mother. Make a relationship with her. Keep that relationship beautiful and strong. She will take care of you all the way to the end. But it's your job also to give back.