You’re my Relative
You’re my relative,
There’s an ancient connection
between me and you…
You’re a matriarch,
And we are born from a womb.
This soil, this land,
is our relative too.
Never once have you proclaimed,
“This is what I own,”
“This is what you owe.”
Instead, you carry a mountain on your back,
guiding us to the mountains we call home.
And as you tend to all the places you roam,
Your tracks lead the way
Behold all the knowledge,
The ceremonies where we pray.
Relative, I see you.
And as I recognize
your heart-shaped eyes,
I feel less alone.
I bear witness to you
looking back at your creation in awe
When she frolics beside you, as if saying,
“Look at me, Mom!”
You show her how to walk…
Could you show me too?
How to face storms, and stay strong
after grieving all those who’ve gone?
To hold dignity
while offering every part,
And to give all of your heart.
Ode to you, in honor songs.
With gratitude, I sing a prayer tune.
Because you see,
We still have much to learn from you.
We call you by many names
From Buffalo, to Tatanka,
in my people’s language:
Iyanee’.
I call you my relative, a sage of the plains.
For together, we are woven through roots
Where all that is sacred remains.
Buffalo are the heartbeat of the plains, sacred relatives who walk with strength into every storm.
This National Bison Day we honor their return as a ceremony of renewal, restoring ecosystems, culture, and spirit by uplifting the voice of an Indigenous youth artist whose poem calls us back to relationship with buffalo, with land, and with all that is sacred.
Collage by: José Giovanni
Sketch by: Phoenix “PHNX” Amaterasu
Photos by: Louise Johns & Kevin League
