Nature's University

"Oh, yes, I went to the white man's schools. I learned to read from schoolbooks, newspapers, and the Bible. But in time I found that these were not enough. Civilized people depend too much on man-made printed pages. I turn to the Great Spirit's book, which is the whole of His creation. You can read a big part of that book if you study nature. You know, if you take all your books, lay them out under the sun, and let the snow and rain and insects work on them for a while, there will be nothing left. But the Great Spirit has provided you and me with an opportunity for study in nature's university: the forests, the rivers, the mountains, and the animals, which include us."

Walking Buffalo
Stoney Nation
(Alberta)

Photos: (Top) Indian Paintbrush and West Glacier Lake, Snowy Range, WY, August 22, 2015; (Middle) Subalpine Aster and Nokhu Crags, Never Summer Range, CO, August 29, 2015; (Bottom) Mountain Gentian and Medicine Bow Peak, Snowy Range, WY, August 23, 2015

Did you know that trees talk?

"Did you know that trees talk? Well, they do. They talk to each other, and they'll talk to you if you listen. Trouble is, white people don't listen. They never learned to listen to the Indians, so I don't suppose they'll listen to other voices in nature. But I have learned a lot from trees: sometimes about the weather, sometimes about animals, sometimes about the Great Spirit."

Walking Buffalo
Stoney Tribe,
Western Canada

Photo: Bark patterns on a burned tree, Fern Lake Burn, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO, May 6, 2015