Remembering My Father, Mato Gi, Brown Bear, on His Birthday

January 11th, 1915 - January 11th, 2004

My beloved father, Mato Gi, Brown Bear, Phil Sr. was born in Wakpala, South Dakota, 103 years old today. Happy Birthday, Dad. Looking forward to being with you, mom, friends and relatives in the "Other Side Camp", when my time comes!

Dad, I always remember you laughing in your older days and saying, " Son, none of us are going to get out of here alive!" or another truth you always shared with me, "Son, we are only here for a short time!" Finally, at 73, I really do understand what you were wisely sharing with me!

A man in a full feather headdress and fringed buckskin sits on a horse beside a child in beaded regalia on a spotted Appaloosa, under large trees.

Phil Lane Sr. as an elder in a white cowboy hat and patterned neckerchief, smiling and holding an eagle feather fan.

Vintage black-and-white photo of a young man in jeans and boots carrying a saddle beside a wooden building.

Black-and-white studio portrait of a smiling young woman with a bow in her hair beside a man holding a baby.

Phil Lane Sr. in a white cowboy hat and neckerchief smiling beside a man in a rodeo cap and denim jacket, with others behind them.

A woman in a colorful dress, a man in a feather headdress and beaded regalia, and Phil Lane Sr. in a cowboy hat and blue jacket, before a woven blanket.

Black-and-white photo of two boxers exchanging punches in a ring, one leaning forward into the ropes.

Phil Lane Sr. in a cowboy hat holding an eagle feather fan, with a man in beaded regalia, two women and a man in a suit, posed indoors.

A rider in a cowboy hat on a chestnut horse cutting a calf from a herd of cattle in a dirt arena.

Phil Lane Sr. in a teal shirt and jeans raising his cowboy hat high in a crowded hall.

Phil Lane Sr. in a cowboy hat and patterned western shirt sharing a drink with a long-haired man in a red vest outdoors.

Oval black-and-white portrait of Phil Lane Sr. as an elder holding up an eagle feather fan.

Phil Lane Sr. in a cowboy hat and red neckerchief talking with an older man in a plaid shirt and a young boy on the open prairie beside a car.

Vintage photo of two young men in white shirts, one in suspenders, standing in front of a brick building.