The old Indian

THE OLD INDIAN

Years ago I heard the story of an old  Indian elder.  He was well respected by his fellow tribe members because of his old age, experiences, and wisdom.  He and his wife lived in quiet dignity with other members of the tribe.  They had all they needed and shared with others the good times and the bad times.

Then the old elder died.   His wife did not enjoy the same status in the tribe as did her husband.  Her possessions were few; among them small clay bowl.  Since the tribe no longer needed her, she was cast out into a blizzard and soon died of exposure.  Her clay bowl was shattered and left with the dying woman.

  Today we have a government that is taking a few paragraphs from the old Indian story but adding a new twist.  They do not wait for the respected elder to die.  Rather, the elder is judged on his worth to the tribe and the calculated years of productivity left in his declining years.  When some hired gun from the government decides the scale has swung in a direction that is no longer in the governments favor, the Elder is cast out in the blizzard to die.  His wife is not thrown out with him, but the government confiscates her clay bowl and “redistributes” it to some other Indian that needs it more.  She has nothing to look forward to except her time to be cast out into the blizzard.

Dal Wolf.