The Lakota Way: Stories and Lessons in Living

“A cotton sapling could whine and argue; the summer wind could be persuasive, enticing all the blades of grass to bend and sway in the same direction at the same moment.”

The author writes about the power that stories have had over him since he was young. In the stories he heard, everything in nature was able to affect everything else. His sense of the natural world emphasizes the interconnectedness of living things.

“Humility can provide clarity where arrogance makes a cloud.”

Crazy Horse was a great warrior who led the Lakota against Lieutenant Colonel George Custer at Little Bighorn. He is popularly known for his bravery in battle. However, the author admires Crazy Horse more for his humility.

“The burden of humility is light because a truly humble person divests himself or herself of the need for recognition.”

In writing about the virtue of humility, Marshall says that a humble person does not stumble because he or she is concentrated on the moment than on winning recognition. Therefore, the humble person will be able to see ahead more clearly. The arrogant man, on the other hand, is too focused on the current moment to see the future clearly.