At sunset on a spring morning,
a bison skull decorated in many colors,
eye sockets filled with white sage,
sits at the base of a pole made from a cotton wood tree.
Lengths of rawhide are attached to the pole
with hooks of bone at each end.
Men of the village stand in a circle around the outer edge.
They await the arrival of the medicine man.
He arrives and all is quiet.
The medicine man places two bone hooks
into the breasts of each man.
The men, warriors and young boys,
have whistles made of bird wings in the mouths.
They lean back until the rawhide is taught.
The drum beats slowly, the men dance forward and back,
Blow their whistle to ease the pain.
Women and children watch and dance to the rhythm of the drum.
The men lean back,
dance forward and lean back again until the hooks pull free.
They collapse to the ground to be tended by family.
It is the ritual of the Sun Dance,
dedicated to the Great Spirit for the health of the tribe.
It is a sacrifice for the peaceful world.
