The Virtue of Wisdom

"First, I learned all I could, and so I know many things" (p.201).

In the virtue story of wisdom from The Lakota Way, there was a old headmaster for a village and he was very wise. People started wondering about his abilities because he was getting very old, and one day a few young men of the village wanted a new headmaster. They then decided to create a test, to test his abilities of wisdom as a headmaster to see if he was still fit for the position. They yearned for a new leader so bad that they set it up so the headmaster would be wrong if either answer was chosen. The test was simple, they captured a small bird and they would bring it to the headmaster. They would ask if the bird was dead or alive, and if he chose alive, they would squash the bird. If he said dead they would not squash the bird. It seemed like a one sided test, but the headmaster thought for a while, and found a wise answer. He said "The answer is in your hands." This story demonstrated wisdom because even though he did not know that it was a one sided test, he had a very wise answer which proved that he still had the ability to lead.

The importance of wisdom in the Lakota culture is required. Wisdom brings guidance, and it gives you the ability to lead a tribe if you are very wise. In the Lakota culture, the more older you are the more wisdom that you will have because you have learned from past experiences enough that you can give others guidance if they need it. There are many stories in the Lakota history that are based on wisdom, and how they affected or played a part in the story. Not only is it important, but it is also a part of your character.

The importance of wisdom in American culture still goes on but it is not that important. Many people will either go to a friend, or family member to get their guidance. Sometimes they will go to people called guidance counselors to help them. It is much different from American culture to the Lakota culture because in American culture we do not go to our elders for help because we think that they're too old to give any guidance and wisdom. It is a bad habit to deny the elderly, but we should consult with them because they have been here longer, and have learned more than people who are younger then them.