Letters from the American Empire: July 16, 2026

Dear friends,

Next week begins our annual wiwang waci, the sun dance. The wagacan, the cottonwood, stands at the center of the ceremony. There are many stories about why this tree is so special. Cutting a cottonwood branch in half reveals the perfect shape of a star. For the wiwang waci, only trees with a noticeable “crutch” or Y-shape are used.

During sun dance season, the wanagi canku—the spirit road—arcs across the clear night sky. Some call it the Milky Way. If you look closely, a branch-like Y-shape reaches out from the deep purple star clouds. A sun dance tree in the cosmos. But the magic is equally visible in the light of day. The tree’s bunches of waxy, green leaves shimmer in the breeze like a spinning globe of light, reflecting the sun and twinkling like a cluster of stars.