"It has been six months since I moved back to the Fort Berthold Reservation in western North Dakota. It’s not as I expected.

I didn’t expect the sky to be so expansive and beautiful. Each day has found me discovering the western Plains all over again.

This year has been unusual because the hills were emerald green with thick grass and a profusion of flowers.

This was a result of the cold winter of ’08-’09 that dumped tons of snow in this area, not something that happens every year.

When I moved back in May, there still was snow in the trees and big drifts in the roadside ditches, but the snow was melting and every little dip and valley was filling with rushing water.

So far this season, the spirits have kept it very dry and warm. So far.

And besides this renewed wonder at the natural world, I also experienced firsthand what it means to live in the middle of the Bakken Formation."

Get the Story:
COLUMNIST DORREEN YELLOW BIRD: Changes continue to jar western N.D. (The Grand Forks Herald 11/25)
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