C H I E F J O S E P H S U R R E N D E R S
"Hear me my chiefs
my heart is sick and sad
from where the sun now stands
I will fight no more
with the white man."
10 o'clock in the morning
the sunlight still trying
to sink into the mountains
a promise made
in the shadows
of the forest
is kept
remembering all those treaties
boundaries like narrow streams
moving back and forth
moving out finally.
No more winters
in the Wallowa Valley.
2,000 miles of fighting
in the Bitterroots, Bear Paws
along the Big Hole
in Lolo Pass
for a small country
for the children of coyote.
No more
Wallowa Valley
Chief Joseph
knew
it wasn't too much
to ask for
who looked twice
at two-faced men.