In 2016 thousands of people from around the globe gathered at the Oceti Sakowin Camp on the Standing Rock Reservation. We gathered in an effort to protect the waters, to protect the lands, and to uphold Tribal sovereignty. We gathered to stop the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline. This piece remembers and honors this time by continuing to tell the story.

Water was all around us at the camp, which was located on a floodplain, nestled between Cantapeta Creek and the Cannonball River, just west of their convergence with the Missouri River. To the north and south brown hills rose up cradling us. Access to camp was from the south because to the north the road was blocked by armed guards at the bridge over Cantapeta Creek. Beyond this point construction crews continued building the pipeline, which eventually led to the forced drilling and laying of pipe under the Missouri River, shown as the two embroidered red X’s.

The red stitching details some of the memories I have from the camp. The location where I first set up my tent. Morning circles. The unsettling night sounds of explosions too close for comfort. A water ceremony along the Cannonball River. The hill we climbed to access phone service. The place where we shared meals. Where I found comfort in community and assisted with a medic training teaching warriors techniques to control severe bleeding with tourniquets. The location of actions to push back private security and reclaim ground. Thanksgiving night spent walking with two dear friends under a star-filled winter’s sky. I will hold the memories and the lessons I learned during my time at Oceti Sakowin with me forever, and for that I am grateful. Mini wiconi. Water is life.