Another Tragedy

There is so much sorrow, so much tragedy out on the reserve. Earlier this year, we lost a little girl from our school in a house fire. Today, another house fire claimed the life of a little boy in kindergarten. Do you know how common it is to see the flag at half mast? We just had three deaths, with the last being buried last week-a brother of a coworker, a son of a coworker, and a baby (my student's nephew). Deaths seems to come in three, and it's a firm belief out on the reserve. So we can honestly expect two more.

These people are some of the strongest I've ever seen-I've never seen so much tragedy in my life. I have a hard time grasping it at times, but they deal with it on a daily basis. You have to understand that when one person is affected, all are affected. People are all interconnected, and it affects everybody. I know it's taken a toll on myself, but imagine the toll it's taken on the people out there? This is their daily life, 24/7.