ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk ~ We Danced Round Dance
We followed the moon
from January to February
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk
from dusk toward dawn.
We danced round and round
again and again
just as the sun moves round and round
again and again.
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk
kâh-kîhtwâm
tâpiskôc pîsim kâ-isi-waskawît
kâh-kîhtwâm
They make a pleasing sound with the drums
so others can hear them from far away.
ê-takahkwêwêtitâcik
êkwa ê-matwêwêhwâcik
Aspen-Raine, her long
brown legs, her long brown hair,
her deep brown eyes, her
nine-year-old hope, dances
round and round
kâh-kîhtwâm
with her long, brown Dad
with her Dad’s tall woman.
The drummers, hurtin’-hearted men,
pound the drums.
Standing in a circle
each drum a heartbeat,
as small big-hearted boys,
aspire to be big-hearted men
pounding the drum.
ê-takahkwêwêtitâcik
êkwa ê-mâ-matwêwêhwâcik
And I hope my Dad and my Grandma
can hear the pounding from the earth
where they rest.
We danced round and round
again and again
just as the sun moves round and round
again and again.
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk
kâh-kîhtwâm
tâpiskôc pîsim kâ-isi-waskawît
kâh-kîhtwâm
And the pounding can be heard
from far away.
ê-takahkwêwêtitâcik
êkwa ê-mâ-matwêwêhwâcik
The women, strong-hearted ladies,
show us the way to take
steps small enough to meet
the hurtin’-hearted drums,
show us the way
to follow the moon
from January to February
from dusk toward dawn.
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk
kâh-kîhtwâm
tâpiskôc pîsim kâ-isi-waskawît
kâh-kîhtwâm
The hurtin’-hearted ladies know
just when the strong-hearted men
will tap those drums just so
softly, and the strong-hearted women
circle round the drums and the men,
and when those strong-hearted men
tap those drums just so,
those hurtin’-hearted ladies
sing a heart-song that resonates
with the beat of the drums
with the spirit of the heart.
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk
kâh-kîhtwâm
tâpiskôc pîsim kâ-isi-waskawît
kâh-kîhtwâm
ê-takahkwêwêtitâcik
êkwa ê-mâ-matwêwêhwâcik