March 2, 2021
I have recently been reading up on the life of the Apache Geronimo. His life, when contrasted with that of a modern person in America, was an intense endeavor of survival. Weapons, food, clothing, and shelter were all part of Geronimo's environment. He could hunt rabbits and other small game with throwing sticks and rocks. He could run down larger game on foot or on horseback, and he was comfortable eating whatever was placed before him be it horse, mule, or rat. He would not; however, eat fish, frogs, or snakes for religious reasons, (look it up).
He was a true warrior in every way and it was not within his sphere of contemplation to surrender for the most part. He was a man driven at times by hate and a desire for revenge and according to him, became a Christian before he died.
What is amazing to denote about Geronimo was the fact that he was able to run circles around the great invading army of the United States of America. They never actually defeated him, though they made a valiant effort to do so. Instead they finally had to make peace with him. Here are three habits of Geronimo that made him such a fierce foe and which became the downfall of other Native Americans who weren't quite as successful as he was.
1. He travelled light. As I stated earlier, Geronimo was able to survive with nothing but what he could find lying on the ground. A truly feral people, the Apache were pros at being able to find what they needed in nature on one hand, but by not needing much for survival on the other.
2. He negated dependency. As listed above, Geronimo wasn't dependent on others for any needs, nor was he dependent on them for companionship or backup in a fight. He learned to be completely self sufficient and wasn't prone to trusting others.
3. He was unpredictable. By ending dependencies, he became unpredictable and would basically just go where whim took him. He was; therefore, impossible to outmaneuver and trap.