My Grandmother once told me that our medicine is dying, because the reservation dogs are dying.

My first puppy was given to me from my older brother when I was a very young kid. I loved this puppy, he was very energetic and he always ran by my side every time i went outside. I named my puppy Flowers, even though my puppy was a male. My Grandmother would call my puppy Shunka ( Shunka in Lakota means dog) I was always angry with my Grandmother because she didn't call my puppy Flowers.
I loved my puppy, but had no knowledge of why he exists or what his purposes in life are.

One day my Grandmother called me to sit down with her on the couch, and then she told the history of the dog and its relationship with the Lakota people. there was a story of a girl who had a puppy she spent every day with this puppy and she treated this puppy with great respect as though the puppy was her brother/ sister. Then one day the little girl got a sickness that couldn't be cured, the dog became sad. The dog prayed and decided to give himself back to the creator to help the little girl. As the days went by the girl became healthier , but she started become worried because her puppy isn't by her side. The little girl soon found out that her puppy gave its life to save her life.

The story of the dog is also told in different ways, but the story that my Grandmother has told me, will always stay with me. I am glad to hear this story because, I have learned more about our relationship with the dog and I have learned how much the dog really cares. I understood the meaning of my puppy, Flowers, who was always my friend, I was glad to have a friend who belongs to the ancestor who saved that little girls life.