From September 2016 to April 2017 I attended Langara Reconciliation Carving Cohort. This was my online journey- a collection of research, thoughts, feelings, work and anything that would aid me and others to help the next 7 generations.
I must admit I read the legend recorded by Pauline Johnson here, long ago and did not quite understand all and had to read it a few times, but it makes so much more sense now. Now I have just discovered the link below, I must read ALL, but I have chores to do...but tonight...until then I leave you with this.
Do you know the legend about Siwash Rock?
"Do you think it stands straight–like a man?" he asked.
"Yes, like some noble-spirited, upright warrior," I replied.
"It is a man," he said, "and a warrior man, too; a man who fought for everything that was noble and upright."
"What do you regard as everything that is noble and upright, chief?" I
asked, curious as to his ideas. I shall not forget the reply; it was but
two words–astounding, amazing words. He said simply:
"Clean fatherhood."
Pauline Johnson
Author's Foreword http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/johnson/vancouver/vancouver.html#ch-02
"THESE
legends (with two or three exceptions) were told to me personally by my
honoured friend, the late Chief Joe Capilano, of Vancouver, whom I had
the privilege of first meeting in London in 1906, when he visited
England and was received at Buckingham Palace by their Majesties King
Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
To the fact that I was able to greet Chief Capilano in the Chinook
tongue, while we were both many thousands of miles from home, I owe the
friendship and the confidence which he so freely gave me when I came to
reside on the Pacific coast. These legends he told me from time to time,
just as the mood possessed him, and he frequently remarked that they
had never been revealed to any other English-speaking person save
myself.
E. PAULINE JOHNSON (Tekahionwake)
These legends are printed by courtesy of the "Vancouver Daily Province,"
in which journal they first appeared.
Here's a painting I made 5 or 6 years ago...
"Siwash
Rock stands to remind them, set there by the Deity as a monument to one
who kept his own life clean, that cleanliness might be the heritage of
the generations to come."
"a monument to one man's fidelity to a generation yet unborn–and will endure from everlasting to everlasting"
I love Siwash Rock! I have painted it and photographed and I do believe we need to honor Siwash Rock and make sure that everyone knows about it and the beautiful story that is told about it by the Squamish Nation.
This painting is from 2001 I believe.
This is a little video made of photos in Stanley Park and around the Seawall.
" Fish skin parka (qasperrluk in Yup'ik; derived from qaspeq "parka cover kuspuk" and the postbase-rrluk "N that has departed from its natural state (often, though not always, with an undesirable connotation)", amirag in Cup'ig) is a kind of fish-skin clothing (amiragglugaq) also that could serve as a tent.[2][20]
Fish skin parkas in the past were worn by both men and women when
hunting and traveling. In winter they were worn over a fur parka just as
cloth covers have been in more recent times.[8] A Yukon fish skin parka made of dog salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) skin.[21] Nunivaarmiut men wore parkas made of silver salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) skin, while those of women were made of salmon trout (charr) (Salvelinus malma) skin and often had a white fox ruff on the hood.[8]
The Nunivaarmiut Cup'ig did not prepare their own fish skins for
parkas, but bought them, already prepared, from Yup'ik people on the
Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers. These imported skins had been stretched,
smoke-dried, and scaled.[8]
"
Mitten (aliiman, aliuman, aritvak, kauman in Yup'ik, aritvag in Cup'ig). Child's mitten of any sort is aritvacuar or aritvacuarar (in Cup'ig). Long waterproof dehaired sealskin or fish-skin (salmon-skin)[18] mitten is (arilluk sg arilluuk dual arilluut pl, arin in Yup'ik, arillugar in Cup'ig). Fish skin mittens with grass liners used for kayak travel during spring in bad weather.[41] Man's short skin mitten used when going on a kayak trip is arikarer (in Cup'ig).
Fish-skin boots (amirak ~ amiraq sg amiriik dual
in Yup'ik and Cup'ik) are waterproof skin boot made of fish skin. In
the past fish-skin boots were made with depilated soles of bearded seal,
ankle straps, and a casing sewb to the upper edge of the leg. Large
salmon skins were prepared for boots by sewing up the fin holes. A round
needle was used because a triangular needle would split the skin.[6][20]
Food
The Kalapuyas were hunters and gatherers. Women did most
of the gathering, while men were the hunters. Salmon, trout,
and eels were part of their diet as were birds, small game,
deer, bear, and elk. Grasshoppers and a type of caterpillar
were considered delicacies. Other food items included hazel
nuts, berries, tarweed seeds, and wapato. (Zenk, page 547-548)
Camas root was the Kalapuyas' most abundant and important
staple. This "bulbous root plant resembles an onion in
shape and consistency but is considerably more bland in taste,"
according to "Cooking up Camas," an article in Historic
Marion. A member of the lily family, "camassia quamash"
still grows in the Willamette Valley; it is known for its
beautiful blue spring time blooms.
Kalapuya women dug the camas with forked wooden sticks and
then roasted and dried the root in pit-ovens. This mixture
was also pressed into cakes or loaves for later use as food
or as a valuable trade item.
There is evidence of a fortified village existing at Finlayson Point in Beacon Hill Park
prior to the arrival of Europeans in the late eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries. The Songhees' traditional foods included salmon,
shellfish, whale, deer, duck, berries, camas root, and herbs. The Coast Salish traditionally lived in bighouses, which were large rectangular communal houses of cedar planks, adorned with carved and jointed totem posts.[1]"
Sir James Douglas, governor of Vancouver Island
negotiated a treaty with the Songhees in 1850. Much of the traditional
territory of the Songhees now forms the core of the urbanized area of
Victoria and surrounding municipalities. The development of British
Columbia's capital city caused considerable disruption to the Songhees'
traditional economy and livelihood.
Recently the Songhees considered that the government of British
Columbia had failed to honour the 1850 treaty and commenced a legal
action against the province and the government of Canada
for redress. A settlement of the action was announced in November 2006
by Songhees Chief Robert Sam, the federal Minister of Indian Affairs and
Northern Development Jim Prentice and the provincial Minister of
Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, Mike de Jong.
"
So back in October, I had a really bad day at class, it had been emotionally exhausting and I really was a mess. I climbed in the tub and as I was trying to wash away the day, this vision came to me.
(As soon as I got out of the tub I wrote it down on the first thing I found because I didn't want to forget it.)
I put it on my tablet on paint ha!...which you can see I am not very good on it...!
I have some very important info about estuaries and salmon that I will share in a bit. Tired. I did a lot today!! So happy to get it as far as I did.
So I have been watching this play out. To be honest I did not and really do not know very much about Joseph Boyden, basically just what I have learned in the last little while. I have been sharing the different articles and trying to understand it all. I didn't want to make a judgement, I just wanted to put the info out there and hope people will read it for themselves and form their own opinion.
The radio podcasts are really good so definitely listen.
I posted one of my old posts at the bottom. This is a very complicated subject and I have thought about many of these issues.
I have had a very hard time tracing my roots and part of the process is being a part of the Reconciliation Carving Course I am taking. I feel/felt very disconnected and that is why I am trying to enlighten myself and other about what has happened and is happening. I have thought about the DNA, but I myself have not reached out to the Songhees Nation yet and I am not sure about my Great Grandma's side because part of it's in the US and well it's complicated... but people have reached out to me..and there's supposed to be a big family reunion in 2020 so I am looking forward to connecting with people. https://mylangaratrccarvingjourney.blogspot.ca/2016/11/enos-poirier-ancestry-kalapuya-iroquois.html
I had to learn about the different terms/labels and why they are used, why it would be nice not to have them in someways but how very important they are in other. It is an extremely complex issue and if one good thing can come from this is that it started a conversation.
A very very important conversation has begun and as we go forth into this supposed 150 years of so called Canada then it is a very good conversation to have and one that everyone needs to be talking about, regardless if you are indigenous or not.
Love what he has to say! They definitely need to make a movie about this and share this incredible story of how peaceful warriors overcame horrific odds.
Obviously the fossil fuels fight will continue but the strength demonstrated by the Water Protectors is hugely inspirational and a sign that we will win this. We have to win, we have to do it for our children and children's children. #WaterIsLife
2016 Turk of the Year
Congratulations! Thank you for all your courage, bravery and commitment.
We've been at the along time already, ...there's too much at stake...we will do what it takes!!
We must protect our children and their children's children. 7 generations, we have to think about the future, not the money and the moment. Mother Earth is in trouble, she needs our help. It's that simple.
Stewart Phillip, Grand Chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, says Carr's remarks Wednesday to an audience in Calgary were "stupid, stupid, stupid."
"I think it was an incredibly stupid and clumsy statement to make in an already volatile situation, [on] a deeply emotional issue here in British Columbia. And it's just absolutely senseless, counter-productive and unhelpful," Phillip said in an interview with Evan Solomon, host of CTV's Question Period.
Reconciliation Carving Cohort : A visit to the Lattimer Gallery
Last class for the semester and as a treat Aaron Nelson Moody invited us all to go to the Lattimer Gallery http://www.lattimergallery.com/ where Peter was our gracious host.
We got to see the Charity Bentwood Boxes
From the website:
Join us for the final night of bidding for our
Annual Charity Bentwood Boxes event. Artists will be in attendance,
refreshments will be served, and you will be able to witness the frenzy
of the last minute bids on these amazing steam-bent boxes.
Lattimer Gallery has the unique, warm atmosphere of a Northwest
Longhouse. We offer a fascinating display of gold and silver jewellery,
argillite carvings, soapstone sculptures, bentwood boxes, masks, totem
poles, and much more. In our "longhouse" we also feature a large
selection of original paintings and limited edition prints by many well
known Native artists. We want you to be swept away by the selection and
quality of art that we house here at Lattimer Gallery.
With Aaron Nelson Moody's help I have made some GREAT tools and I am GRATEFUL!!
Thank you Aaron.
The truth is I thought I was going to get some funding to help with tools, but there was none...and GOOD THING Aaron taught us how to MAKE OUR OWN because I am truly AMAZED with what I have learned and what I have actually been able to create with them.
That said, Aaron is great at sharpening...me...not so good and sharpening is a big part so that is something I still must conquer.
Anyways, I wanted to share with you a few photos and videos.
