WEBVTT

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[APPLAUSE]

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I'm going to read one
more from this book.

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But before I do that, I want to
acknowledge Jim Perlman, who's

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in the audience, who is the
founder and the publisher

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of Holy Cow!

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Press.

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And that's who
published this volume.

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[APPLAUSE]

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And like Arizona
Press, Holy Cow also

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does a lot to support
Indigenous writers.

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So check out their list too.

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We're going to sell a lot
of books in this room.

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[LAUGHS]

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So some of you may have
heard that Jaune Quick-to-See

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Smith died a few days ago.

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She was an incredible
Indigenous artist.

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She also wrote poetry.

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She was just a
really amazing woman.

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And I had a little
correspondence with her.

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And actually, in
Ancient Light, there's

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a poem that's dedicated
to her because it's

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written as an ekphrastic
piece, and engage--

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from looking at
one of her works.

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But I thought that we've been
living through a lot of loss

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in recent years, all of us.

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And I wanted to throw this
poem out in the world for you,

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if you've experienced
loss, and also

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in the memory of that
beautiful artist, whose work we

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will treasure for decades.

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Afterwards.

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Because the smallness of our
being is our only greatness.

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Because one night I
was in a room listening

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until only one heart beat.

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Because in these
last years, I've

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worn, and worn, and nearly worn
out my black funeral shoes.

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Because the gesture
of afterwards

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means the same thing, no
matter who speaks them.

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Because faith, belief,
forever are only words.

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No matter.

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Because matter disappears
always and eventually.

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Because action is not
matter, but energy

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that's spent, changes being.

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And if death too is a change of
being, perhaps action counts.

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And if death is a
land of unknowing,

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perhaps we do well to
live with uncertainty.

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And if death is a forested land,
it would be good to learn trees.

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And if death is a
kingdom, it would

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be good to practice service.

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And if death is a
foreign state, we

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should loosen
allegiance to this one.

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And if our soul leaves our body,
then we must rehearse goodbye.

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[APPLAUSE]

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