swellblitz

I'm really not hating on you here; your story is very nice and you definitely should be proud of the things you've accomplished so far. However, I think you need to take a step back and evaluate what you've missed. Reading your story on an emotional level is one thing, but are you aware of how your writing completely reflects your level of formal education? I'm not saying I'm the best at writing either, but your writing clearly shows your lack of education. Moving forward, literacy will be one of your strongest assets. It means more than money. Consider hiring tutors with your wealth who can teach you in ways that you can learn by. I believe this is the best investment you can make at this stage; in yourself. A side note, how did your parents think you could get into college without a high school diploma? You can't just up and go into college or university at 18 after having dropped out of high school. You have a lot to learn yet, formally and otherwise, please don't deny yourself education.

Perhaps in the tribes around OP there weren't rain dances, but that's not a blanket statement as there are a very wide variety of indigenous people throughout North America. It would be like trying to blanket all the cultures of Europe as one thing. I'm plains Cree in Canada and can confirm thirst dances are a thing here, which can bring sun or rain. There are many other cultural dances aside from that. There are so many different beliefs and traditions it's pretty hard to be aware of them all haha.