A wee child toddling in a wonder world.... I prefer to their dogma my excursions into the natural gardens where the voice of the Great Spirit is heard in the twittering of birds, the rippling of mighty waters, and the sweet breathing of flowers. If this is Paganism, then at present, at least, I am a Pagan.
Half of humanity cannot rise while the other half is in subjugation.
Half of humanity cannot rise while the other half is in subjugation.
- Zitkala-Sa, Sioux Indian writer, editor, musician, teacher and activist
Zitkala-Sa, a.k.a. Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was born in 1876 on the Yankton Sioux Reservation in South Dakota to an indian mother and caucasian father. She spent much of her life between two cultures -- that of Caucasian and Native -- and lived on and off of her reservation for much of her life, ultimately not feeling a part of either world. Despite this, she went on to become a writer and activist of some repute, and even composed an opera -- titled The Sun Dance Opera -- with William F. Hanson of BYU.