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Jessica Sweetgrass Do you ever look at someone close to you, someone you have known almost your entire life, and wonder if they are the person you think they are, or what they will be like in the future? Since I was a kid, I would look at my friends and family and imagine what they would be like ten years from now. When my cousin Jessica was little, I remember how she would jump up to any old song and dance for us. Whereas a lot of people in my family are sort of shy to express their appreciation of one another, we could always count on Jessica to have a big smile on her face and an excited voice when we would come around. I would look at this kid and take comfort in the thought that her open and childlike spirit wouldn't change and harden the way so many people do. She has had to make some hard choices about what lifestyle she would like. She has turned out to be a beautiful fourteen-year-old girl. I used to believe she would eventually become a dancer of some sort and she has. She travels all over to different pow wows as a jingle dress dancer. She is a little bit shy now, but still spirited by the sound of her voice and the look on her face. I know she has her own hopes and dreams for herself, and so does her mom, and so do I. I hope that from now until she is an adult, she sticks with her dancing, because that will guide her toward a more fulfilled life. I can see her becoming a choreographer someday. Lastly, I hope she never tries to be anyone other than Jessica Sweetgrass and is proud of who she is. - Sable Sweetgrass
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