June 3 Valley Life Column

June 3 Valley Life Column in AG Weekly

Cowboys and Indians abound this weekend

When I moved to Idaho in 1959, my cousin Robert thought for sure I was moving to the Wild West. "Be careful of the Indians," he urged as we waved good-bye. For years, whenever he would drop me a line or we would meet at family reunions, he would ask, "How are the Indians?"

Now, Robert didn't mean Indians like Indians on reservations. He meant Indians like Indians who fought with cowboys on TV. Born and raised in North Dakota, his concept of cowboys and Indians was influenced by the large fort standing west of Bismarck. Fort Mandan was truly one of those authentic forts where cowboys took refuge from arrow-slinging Indians, and we had enjoyed several outings there before I moved away.

Since Robert and I are of the generation of Hopalong Cassidy, Roy Rogers and the Lone Ranger, we played with plastic cowboys and Indians the way children today play with Mario on their computers. So it makes sense that Robert would worry about Indians. Further, Sacagawea, the Shoshone Indian girl who had been kidnapped by a war party of Hidatsa Indians and taken to the Hidatsa-Mandan villages in North Dakota, was a North Dakota hero. While Robert learned how Sacagawea helped guide Lewis and Clark to the Pacific Ocean, I studied about the Oregon Trail, pioneer immigration and gold mines.

Over the years, Robert has been to Idaho, but he's never been here during Western Days. It's too late to invite him this year, but maybe I'll invite him next year. Maybe then he can see some of those Indians he keeps asking me about.