Learning Story – How does the Land shape who we are?
The Week of October 15, 2024
What Happened?
Today we asked the question:
How does the Land shape who we are?
We read a piece from We Are A River by Paul Andrew and Patrick Scott.
“I am deeply rooted here in Tulita. This is home. And even more deeply rooted in the Shúhtaot’iné way of life. That’s who I am. The land here is what makes me who I am. So whenever I come back here, it’s not just visiting people or talking to people in communities, it’s also talking about music, laughter, language, stories, you name it all. Everything that makes me Dene happens here.
…My parents are buried here. My grandparents are buried here. People I come from are here. They’re all around in the clouds, in the wind and in the sand. So that’s what connection happens. One of the things that Indigenous people have been trying to teach people for a long time is you need to be connected to your life. If you wander all over the place, you can never have a home, they said, never have a Ko! (Home).”
Paul Andrew joined us via FaceTime. What a gift it was to have Paul share with us! The Bushkids were very attentive and respectful while Paul spoke about the Land and how it made him who he is, and all we can learn from the Land.
Paul spoke about how the Land takes care of the people. Even the black flies and mosquitoes help the people. “How do they do that?” He asked the bushkids. The black flies and mosquitoes chase the moose out of the bush, so that the people can hunt them and then use everything from the moose to survive on the Land.
Following our session with Paul, some of the bushkids chose to stay inside and play with the clay, while others went outdoors to play in the mud!
After lunch, Larry returned with a gift for the bushkids: tipis! Mahsı cho. Larry shared stories about his family and several photos of tipis that his family had used and how they were constructed.
The bushkids had so much fun creating camps with people, animals, clothes and fires out of clay.
Why is it Important?
We want to make space for people from all across the territory to share about who they are and where they are from. The Bushkids can begin to appreciate how different peoples identify and how important Land is in shaping many aspects of their identity. Paul taught us that going home is important for him because of the connection that brings – most significantly with his ancestors. We hope the Bushkids see themselves reflected in the people who are visiting us as they share about who they are,where they are from and why it’s important to them. The Bushkids can feel empowered to be proud of who they are and to find ways to learn about and connect with where they are from if that’s accessible to them.
What Does This Mean For Next Time?
We will continue to bring people together to share about what shapes their identity. Next week, Tanya Snow will join us and we really look forward to learning about who she is, where she is from and how she expresses this through her beautiful songs. We will also give opportunities for the Bushkids to tell us about their own family, where they are from and/or what they feel is shaping their identity. The Bushkids have built strong relationships with each other over the past few years, and as educators, we notice that the Bushkids feel comfortable to share their thoughts and ideas with each other.