Intertribal Life Newspaper -

My childhood was dark. First memories are pretty negative. I'm the firstborn of nine children. What I remember of my childhood was fighting, drunkenness and pain. I have a lot of painful memories from when I was a kid.

I do remember the beautiful parts of living on the reservation-how I caught fish and ran with my dog. How I started playing the guitar. But it wasn't until later in life that I came to know Christ and He helped me to live with the terrifying nightmares that weren't nightmares but reality. I lived with them.

My dad was a Korean War veteran. He was hurt in that war, and after h...