A lot of native culture has been destroyed. So you already feel lost inside your culture. And then you add up feeling lost and insignificant inside the larger culture. So you end up feeling lost squared. And to never be recognized, to never have any power, you know, other minority communities actually have a lot of economic, cultural power.

We're all travelling heavy with illusions.

If you let people into your life a little bit, they can be pretty damn amazing.

You know, people speak in poetry all the time. They just don't realize it.

I felt so conflicted about having fled the rez as a kid that I created a whole literary career that left me there.

...there are some children who aren't really children at all, they're just pillars of flame that burn everything they touch. And there are some children who are just pillars of ash, that fall apart when you touch them..." ~ Thomas Builds-the-Fire (played by Evan Adams) in Alexie's "Smoke Signals

Because I'm an American, I know there's all sorts of international folks who would gladly kidnap and behead me.