"In the old days we used to respect everything… This isn’t done today, that’s why we are lost."
"kíyaté-mana kahkiyaw kikway ni-kí-kistéyihtamak… ékwa óma anohc namowiya ékohsi itócikatwéw, ékoci óma éyakohk ésa ká-wanisiniyak."
ISIAH BEAR, MUSKODAY FIRST NATION
My thoughts:
Respect Everything!
It is really just that simple and yet, like all simple things it requires a radical amount of change and work. I wonder if we listened to a recording of ourselves speaking we could recognize all of the endemic myths we perpetuate by our careless, disrespectful, stereotyping language.
I wonder if we can turn 'their' problem that 'they' can't learn to deal with our reality, into "everyone's" opportunity to learn to hear what the reality of other people is and to imagine if we grew up in those circumstances what our reality might be. If we can get inside that experience I think we could learn to grow, feel, speak and act with empathy.
This is the only way that we can come close to realizing the truth of the pain and irrevocable damage to generations of families, an entire culture, belief system and way of life that has been caused by the systemic attempts by colonial Canada right up to the present time to devalue and wipe out an entire nation.
Whether we are directly accountable or not is irrelevant. We are all responsible to acknowledge what happened and to work on reconciliation.
A simple google search brings up these definitions:
Reconciliation:
- the restoration of friendly relations.
- In Canada, the process of reconciliation is tied to the federal government's relationship with Indigenous peoples. The term has come to describe attempts made by individuals and institutions to raise awareness about colonization and its ongoing effects on Indigenous peoples.
- Reconciliation in Practice reminds us that reconciliation is an ongoing process, not an event, and that decolonizing our relationships and building new ones based on understanding and respect is empowering for all of us.
- How to practice reconciliation: research First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in your area to understand their history and contributions to society. watch movies by Indigenous filmmakers or read Indigenous literature. learn more about Indigenous arts and artists. attend local Indigenous cultural events open to the public.
Respect is an action that needs a really good workout these days!!
“The best arguments in the world won’t change a person’s mind. The only thing that can do that is a good story.”
The Overstory
The Overstory
I am grateful to all of the people who speak their story, who share their humiliations and pain to try to effect change, begin the healing process and educate the rest of us so hopefully we can recognize and make certain that Every child's life matters. We all live together, are all part of the same family under the same sun, are all responsible for our collective actions and the results of these.
Today is Canada National Truth and Reconciliation Day:
"Over the last several years, I am learning that my beloved Canada is not the Canada I once thought it was. I am learning that history must be re-written so we can see the picture in its fullness, not the one painted through the colonizers’ rose-rimmed glasses.
I am learning that I have an active role in this, too. While I hold our government and the Catholic church responsible for much of this carnage, I must hold myself accountable, too.
As a settler, it is my responsibility to do the work to learn more and advocate for Indigenous People — I may not have caused it, but I have benefited from their suffering. I must acknowledge the sins on which this country has accumulated its wealth and prosperity. I must acknowledge the privilege I am granted in my children’s well-being and safety has come at an immeasurably grave cost to other children. It is not enough to say every child matters. We must act like every child matters."
By Meera Estrada Special to Global News
Posted June 6, 2021 11:00 amUpdated June 4, 2021 7:40 pm
Today's hero (people who make a difference): Thank you Phyllis for sharing your story and starting the Orange Shirt Society.
Phyllis (Jack) Webstad's story in her own words...
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I went to the Mission for one school year in 1973/1974. I had just turned 6 years old. I lived with my grandmother on the Dog Creek reserve. We never had very much money, but somehow my granny managed to buy me a new outfit to go to the Mission school. I remember going to Robinson’s store and picking out a shiny orange shirt. It had string laced up in front, and was so bright and exciting – just like I felt to be going to school!
When I got to the Mission, they stripped me, and took away my clothes, including the orange shirt! I never wore it again. I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t give it back to me, it was mine! The color orange has always reminded me of that and how my feelings didn’t matter, how no one cared and how I felt like I was worth nothing. All of us little children were crying and no one cared.
I was 13.8 years old and in grade 8 when my son Jeremy was born. Because my grandmother and mother both attended residential school for 10 years each, I never knew what a parent was supposed to be like. With the help of my aunt, Agness Jack, I was able to raise my son and have him know me as his mother.
I went to a treatment centre for healing when I was 27 and have been on this healing journey since then. I finally get it, that the feeling of worthlessness and insignificance, ingrained in me from my first day at the mission, affected the way I lived my life for many years. Even now, when I know nothing could be further than the truth, I still sometimes feel that I don’t matter. Even with all the work I’ve done!
I am honored to be able to tell my story so that others may benefit and understand, and maybe other survivors will feel comfortable enough to share their stories.
When I got to the Mission, they stripped me, and took away my clothes, including the orange shirt! I never wore it again. I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t give it back to me, it was mine! The color orange has always reminded me of that and how my feelings didn’t matter, how no one cared and how I felt like I was worth nothing. All of us little children were crying and no one cared.
I was 13.8 years old and in grade 8 when my son Jeremy was born. Because my grandmother and mother both attended residential school for 10 years each, I never knew what a parent was supposed to be like. With the help of my aunt, Agness Jack, I was able to raise my son and have him know me as his mother.
I went to a treatment centre for healing when I was 27 and have been on this healing journey since then. I finally get it, that the feeling of worthlessness and insignificance, ingrained in me from my first day at the mission, affected the way I lived my life for many years. Even now, when I know nothing could be further than the truth, I still sometimes feel that I don’t matter. Even with all the work I’ve done!
I am honored to be able to tell my story so that others may benefit and understand, and maybe other survivors will feel comfortable enough to share their stories.
Today...
Phyllis Webstad is Northern Secwpemc (Shuswap) from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation (Canoe Creek Indian Band). She comes from mixed Secwepemc and Irish/French heritage, was born in Dog Creek, and lives in Williams Lake, BC. Today, Phyllis is married, has one son, a step-son and five grandchildren. She is the Executive Director of the Orange Shirt Society, and tours the country telling her story and raising awareness about the impacts of the residential school system. She has now published two books, the "Orange Shirt Story" and "Phyllis's Orange Shirt" for younger children.
She earned diplomas in Business Administration from the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology; and in Accounting from Thompson Rivers University. Phyllis received the 2017 TRU Distinguished Alumni Award for her unprecedented impact on local, provincial, national and international communities through the sharing of her orange shirt story.
She earned diplomas in Business Administration from the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology; and in Accounting from Thompson Rivers University. Phyllis received the 2017 TRU Distinguished Alumni Award for her unprecedented impact on local, provincial, national and international communities through the sharing of her orange shirt story.
Check this out:
Cheers
Jeanne
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