The view out the fourth-floor windows is to the bluffs of the Minnesota River Valley. In her bed, Mom is resting peacefully.

“Knock, knock, knockin’ on heaven’s door” is a song written by Bob Dylan for the 1973 film “Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.” The song has the classic Dylan reprise of line and note. It went to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 for singles.  The universal message of the closing lines of the opening stanza is: “It’s getting dark, too dark for me to see; I feel like I’m knockin’ on heaven’s door.”

Mom is “knockin’ on heaven’s door.” The hospice nurse stopped by during the day. I had night watch last evening and was resting in the hotel. The nurse told my sister it would only be a matter of days.

I wonder what she’s thinking.

A branch of the Sioux Indians or Dakhota Nation live in the Minnesota River Valley. They prefer their name “Lakhota” to distinguish themselves from the larger assemblage of Native Americans. The more local group here — and this building is built on a portion of a reservation — is the Middle Sioux or Wichiyena. They are still very much alive and well. When I drive by the reservation homes, the garage doors are decorated with wonderfully painted buffaloes and birds.

Birds are important to the Dakhota. In the Sioux language,”bird” is “zintkazila.” All animals are important to the Indian, even small animals. Wrens are small animals with loud voices. The quick moving flycatchers have a rich, bubbling chatter of talk. To the Wichiyena, these are the “zintkazila cikala” for their quick-moving zinting and their ever-cikala chattering calling.

Along the bluffs of the Minnesota River, you may hear an old saying: “Enjoy the chatter of the birds, but don’t be late for supper.” The Wichiyena would laugh to say that, and the settlers would laugh to hear it. They knew what it meant.

The birds appear a bit foolish. The Lakhota and settlers, in their ways, thought themselves somewhat wiser.

To parahrase the Apostle Paul, in a line often attributed incorrectly to Shakespeare: “Suffer fools gladly, for you are wise.”

Who are the foolish and who are the wise? Perhaps the greatest exposition on Wisdom is the book of Proverbs. There we find that to be truly wise is simply to make right choices. Right choice is wisdom. Although watching and listening to the birds is enjoyable, don’t let the supper get cold before you head home. A good choice — that’s wisdom. Suffer the fool gladly, because those possessed of right choice know when to leave for dinner and sound conversation, or at least words they understand. I don’t know that the birds are really that foolish in their chatter, but I do know it is important both to choose well and to let others have their say. The chatter may be quite enjoyable once I know my place.

This is my place now. I may be a bit foolish in my statements and actions, but I do notice others are patient with me and appear to suffer me gladly.  I am thankful for that and for the wise sayings of the Wichiyena.

It is good to have friends along the bluffs of the Minnesota.

Grandpa Jim