"Oren Lyons, seventy-six, is a wisdom carrier, one of the bearers of a variety
of human tradition that cant easily be reduced to a couple of sentences. One
reason he and the tradition for which he is a spokesperson isn't more widely
known is that he doesn't actively seek forums from which to speak. If someone
asks him, however, about the principles behind the particular Native American
tradition of which he has, since 1967, been an appointed caretaker, he is glad
to respond. He chooses his words carefully, and occasionally, these days, there
is a hint of indignation in his voice, as if time were short and people
generally willful in their distraction."
What follows is a powerful conversation between Barry Lopez and Oren Lyons.
