Each week, the teams that come to the ministry center have a cultural evening, a chance to learn more about Native American culture. Dr. Russ McDonald, a dean at the Cankdeska Cikana Community College here on the reservation made reference this week to ceremonies that used to be performed for returning warriors, and I can't seem to get that out of my brain. I'll have to ask him if he can tell me more about it the next time he comes out, but from what he said and the little information I've been able to find, Native Americans had a grasp on PTSD and the needs of warriors returning from battle long before the rest of us.
Native Americans recognized that in order to kill people, in order to survive in battle, a warrior must become someone else. These ceremonies were performed to help the returning warriors become themselves again. It was also a chance for older, veteran warriors to connect with the young warriors, so they could see that if a young man was having trouble adjusting. They could then help than young man.
I know a guy who returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He spent a few weeks at an Army base somewhere down south debriefing. His wife joined him for a weekend, where they were required to attend a variety of seminars on How To Rejoin Civilian Life. Then they returned home to life in Michigan.
I've never been a soldier, never returned from battle, but the old Native American tradition seems like it would be so much more beneficial. A weekend of workshops a thousand miles from home can't possibly do as much good as a mentor who's part of your own community, someone who's there to support you and who understands what you're dealing with.
Why don't we have that?
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