The red Indian paintbrush

The story of resilience and finding purpose in life

Taken by me with a digital camera in Yellowstone, USA in 2010

When I was travelling in Yellowstone, I came across this plant. I was shocked to see this beautiful plant growing from a pile of dry sand and gravels. Later on, I found out from a friend that it is called the red Indian paintbrush and has a well known legend about how it got its name.

The legend

Many years ago, when the People traveled the Plains, a young Indian boy had a Dream-Vision in which it was revealed that one day he would create a painting that was as pure as the colors of the evening sky at sunset. The boy grew up to become the painter of the tribe, but although he found a pure white buckskin for a canvas and made paints from the brightest flowers and the reddest berries, he could not capture the sunset. Source

The moral of the story is that it is important to recognize the talents and purpose you have in life. While the boy did not have the physical strength to be a warrior, he had the artistic talent to capture great hunting events and nature scenes with paint and brushes.

Source: Red Indian Paintbrush

The red Indian paintbrush is known to be one of important plant in the ecosystem of Yellowstone National Park. It is also one of the beautiful plants found in the wild.

This plant has also been used for hundreds of years as medicine by indigenous groups in North America and South America. The bark of this plant contains a chemical called Alizarin Red 3 which is what gives it its red coloring. Native Americans used this medicine to color skin and hair, relieve pain and help maintain health.

According to this source, the Indian Paintbrush is the Wyoming state flower. It has a distinctive narrow, bright scarlet bloom that is most commonly found from mid-June to early September in the Snake River bottomland. Other species are white, yellow, orange, and pink.