After writing Mystic Visions: Black Elk’s Great Vision Clarified, I was inspired to begin work on a new book four years later called Black Elks 4th Ascent. It was my desire to create a deeper understanding with respect to the fourth ascent. I had every intention of completing this book when I received a phone call from Chris, my third cousin from our Lakota side of the family stating he needed to speak with me about writing his biography.
In early January 2022 Chris, and his wife Marlena came to my home and sat for an interview. I have always known Chris was a wiŋkte, (wink-tay) a Lakota word for hermaphrodite, also known as intersex. Chris explained he was diagnosed with the Klinefelter syndrome having XXY chromosomes instead of the typical XY pair. What I learned is that one out of every 500 to 1,000 newborn males have this condition. That is a lot of wiŋkte people throughout the world. Chris believes many transgender people, are wiŋkte, they just do not understand the condition.
He spoke about how he has always felt a strong feminine pull from as far back as he could remember. He indicated that even though he has some female attributes, the majority of his body is male. While still in his mother’s uterus just before birth, both a male spirit and a female spirit entered his body at the same time, creating the condition, two-spirit (two-soul).
This is the reason so many transgender people feel they were borne in the wrong body.
Chris’s reason for allowing me to write Finding Lara: From the Other Side is to help people understand the plight of the wiŋkte. Being borne a wiŋkte is not a curse, it is possibly an evolution of humankind. What could be better than a man or woman that feels both male and female emotions at the same time?
The first three chapters in this book took place in Chris’s early years. They contain descriptive content with respect to the sexual abuse, and rape he went through. What is important to understand is that throughout each chapter Chris gains immense understanding with respect to his physical body. This would help him find peace of mind and move beyond this horrific abuse; bringing him closer to discovering who Lara is, and where she comes from.