Do You Believe?

That better is possible? That something can be done? That change is inherent? That we already know what to do? Because we are doing it?

All of our Nations and communities have already started the journey and are making the changes necessary for betterment of our people. We just have further to go along this journey. We have more healing to do, forgiveness to give and accept, tears, shame, hatred, oppression, trauma, pain, racism, etc. to shed. Of ourselves, our families, and settlers. Don’t think that I don’t of bouts of utter anger and hatred for the fact that I have no language to speak and cannot teach my son. And every other Canadian speaks their mother tongue freely around us. That oppression is felt everyday by us because of the Indian Act, policy, colonialism, and that our way is not seen or accepted fully as equal to the non-indigenous world view. I’m not saying that settlers aren’t trying to alleviate some of this and we aren’t working towards Reconciliation. It’s very hard to be in the process sometimes.

But I remind myself constantly that I am a grateful, gifted and privileged Indigenous women. I acknowledge my struggle is real but I have my son, husband, family, communities and Nations with me every day. The land, all beings, all elements and love surround me at all times. That I may use English words but my heart and mind are being and thinking ‘Indigenous’ or specifically for me, as a Kwakwaka’wakw and Squamish women.

We each know this is our hearts, that’s why many of us work so diligently for a better future, just as our parents, grandparents and ancestors did before us. It may not have always have been happy, healthy and functional all the time, but we still stand here today because of them. They suffered through so much. We need to be able to say this, feel this and heal this. For our children, grandchildren and all of the generations to come.

So how to do we take this knowing and channel it into the well-being of children, families, communities and Nations. We do this by owning our truths, our culture, language, and place and translate this into energy for healing and Reconciliation with everyone, starting with ourselves, our families, our Communities and Nations. Hopefully those outside this realm, also do the same. That they to take a very hard look at what they need to do to reconcile their ways of being in this lifetime. Take responsibility for accountability in this process and find space to make real change to their systems in very deep way.

We can only own our work. We also have to look it from our traditional knowing, values and perspective and not through the colonial lens that continues to dominates our lives. Albeit we have to acknowledge that things cannot go back to the way it was before contact. We live in a modern society with advanced technologies. So how to use our innate Indigenous knowing, ways and values as the foundation to build a new interconnected web of Economic Reconciliation?