Starting Somewhere…
By Julie, North End Resident
Session host, Jesse Benjamin, dancing fancy shawl.
My first thought about the Every One Every Day fall program is that it was perfectly named: Abundance. Between October 21 and November 26, more than thirty sessions, programs, events and ways to gather were offered to the community. I was able to participate in eight of these. I cooked and drew and beaded and shared and listened and learned. Each experience was different but one thing was the same—the generosity and openness with which we were welcomed.
I noticed another common thread running through the sessions and I noticed it because it is not otherwise all that common. The programming brought together a diverse group of participants, diverse in age and gender, Indigenous and settler and newcomer backgrounds. It’s hard to describe the Neighbourhood Shop, how the vibe works, but I feel it is intentionally created, and unique.
I have good things to say about everything I attended; for reasons of space I’ll focus on two sessions that continue, weeks later, to stay in my mind. I went to Powwow Etiquette because I’ve never been to an actual powwow. I told myself it was because I didn’t want to act like a tourist, or invade space. I didn’t really believe the dancers wanted “outsiders” there, why would they, why would anyone? (This kind of thinking is as old as the ass in assume and about as helpful.) By way of contrast, the session leader, Jesse, bowled us over with her enthusiasm and encouragement while gently making a few key points. The respectful term for what the dancers wear is regalia. It’s not a costume, a powwow is not theatre and nobody is playing dress-up. She spoke from her own experience so we would really get why you do not try to examine or touch the regalia without permission. Killa, one of the Project Designers, explained why, if an eagle feather falls, don’t touch that either, there may be a ceremonial way to recover it. It was useful to learn that a group of chairs might be reserved for Elders (so check), that Elders eat first, that the powwow announcer will guide you through the gathering, including when everyone is welcome to dance. Because of this session, and also the joy Jesse emanated when she talked about dancing fancy shawl, I will, gratefully, go to a powwow this summer.
The other session I want to mention is Acknowledging Traditional Territories, led by Wyatt. Wyatt has the heart and mind of someone who educates by engaging your heart and mind. He modeled what makes a good land acknowledgement by giving one for his home community of Listuguj First Nation and providing a handout of a city (Pickering, Ontario) that is getting it right. He spoke of the crucial difference between a rote “courtesy” before an event and a statement of intent, of action, where what is acknowledged is not only the physical land but a responsibility for both the land itself and for improving the relationships among the people who live there. I realized within the first minutes of this session that what Wyatt did for Listuguj, including the effect of the Peace and Friendship Treaty, I couldn’t do for my home town, because I didn’t know. I’ve been part of Kjipuktuk, and Mi’kma’ki, for almost forty years, this is home. Still, the landscape of your childhood and youth shapes you. As Rebecca Thomas says, in her poem “A thousand”, “Everyone comes from somewhere.” I knew where I came from but I had never wondered, until now, whose land it is. As if reading my mind, Wyatt suggested finding out, as an act of reconciliAction. I’ve since learned that where I grew up, in south central Ontario, is the traditional territory of the Michi Saagiig Anishinaabeg (Mississauga Anishnabeg). I’ve learned something, just enough to keep going, about the Gunshot Treaty of 1787 and the Williams Treaties of 1923.
Because of these two sessions, I relearned that what we call ourselves, how we name, matters. Because of all the Abundance program, I also learned new ways to have fun, and to engage, in community. Thank you, so glad it’s spring!
