When Chief Joseph began his 1879 address in Washington, D.C., with these words, he was setting the stage for an entreaty to the U.S. government to allow his people, the Nez Percé American Indian tribe, to return to their land in the Pacific Northwest. His quote here was an effort to show that two differing groups — white people and Indigenous Americans — could understand each other and see one another’s points of view. They are words worth living by on a personal level as well: To forge relationships based on love and understanding, we need to speak from the heart and with honesty.