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At the end of March 2016 I attended a one-day conference in Winnipeg promoting First Nations Christian Writers. There were many Aboriginal people from all across Canada. It was an extreme encouragement to all in attendance. One of the guest speakers was Les Stobbe from North Carolina. He has many years’ experience in the world of editing and literature review as an editor and literary agent. His talk was encouraging to me because it focused on all the “God Moments” in his l...
The other day I heard an interesting story on the radio. A father and his son were sailing a homemade boat that they had worked diligently on together. The boat managed to drift away from them in the quiet waves and was distancing itself more and more until it became unreachable. The young boy was greatly concerned and asked his daddy what they could do to save the boat. The father began to pick up stones and throw them in the direction of their fragile treasure. As the...
I’ve liked this Proverb since I was in my twenties, because a motherly friend gave me the book, Apples of Gold, to encourage me through some maturing times in my marriage. I still remember reading these words: “Some women are so busy trying to make good husbands that they forget to make good wives.” I had to refocus a couple of things. Words fascinate me. I like word paintings where “wildflowers” and “meadowlarks” fill a “meadow.” I enjoy imaginative words like “kaleidoscop...
Every morning I stand on my porch and toss peanuts to four squirrels that live in the trees in my yard. The squirrels listen for my door to open and scurry out of the bushes and climb down from the trees and come and sit in a line and wait for me to toss each of them a peanut. This morning I only had one peanut left in the bag and I tossed it into the yard expecting the fastest squirrel to grab the nut and run with it. Instead the four squirrels got into a fight and while...
Nidobak (Friends), Spring makes me happy and I dare guess most of you readers as well. Foraging is an ongoing endeavor so it is time to focus on planting so foraging can always be in the background for a while. A big round planter with several herbs is more than useful, it is pretty, easy, and aromatic. Oh, did I mention economical? The way prices of everything are going up we can use all the help we can get. Some herbs I can just go and scoop up with a spoon in the yard to...
David Gulpilil has been around Hollywood movies for a long time. He's the actor most often called when productions need an Australian aborigine (really, it's kind of depressing how often on his IMDB page he's just credited as "Aborigine"), and you've probably seen him in movies like "Crocodile Dundee," "Rabbit-Proof Fence," "Australia," or "Walkabout." He has one of those faces you'll recognize, even if you don't recognize his name. It's easy to see why he keeps getting cast;...
Indian Life Books 150 pages Trade paper Review by Carla McKay This is the story of a young girl living in a remote northern Saskatchewan Cree community. As a child she realized that there are two roads in life. One road is wide and well travelled and the other is narrow and sparsely travelled. She determined she wanted to walk along the path less travelled. The one that led to hope and a forever future. Life was not easy for Rita and her family. There were many difficulties...
IVP, Downers Grove, Illinois 2015 Review by John D Wilson I finished reading this short but challenging book while on a ministry trip in Papua. Here is why Rescuing the Gospel struck me as significant, but also a challenge to read. Canadians and Americans perhaps will feel this as it focuses mainly on the American colonization of North America with some allusions to the Canadian context. It gives a sketch of the history of the Native American encounter with the expanding...
ALBUQUERQUE, NM-Danielle Ta'Sheena Finn from Porcupine, North Dakota and member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe was crowned Miss Indian World 2016 at the 33rd Annual Gathering of Nations, the most prominent Native American powwow in the world. Finn received the honor out of 24 Native American women representing their different tribes and traditions who competed in the areas of tribal knowledge, dancing ability, public speaking, and personality assessment. She is currently att...
It was routine by now. I’d gone through the same steps many times. No nerves. No worries. Very relaxed. I knew what to expect and I was ready to get it over with. It was time to remove my toenail again and I wanted no part in others’ business. A group of five of us were taken to the medical facility, a few miles away from our facility. All five had different reasons to be there, but at this time I truly didn’t care. I was there for me and my toe, not them. When we arriv...
Life has dealt a series of crises in North America, if not the world. In recent days Canadians attention has been fixed on the states of emergencies declared in Pimicikamak Cree Nation, also known as Cross Lake, Manitoba, and Attawapiskat, Ontario, due to a rash of suicides. In the United States, we have the horrifying kidnapping of a nine-year-old Navajo boy and his eleven-year-old sister and the eventual discovery that the young girl was murdered. The community and nation...
My father would have been sixty years old. I wish we got to celebrate his birthday one more time. Although, this is that chance, isn't it, to celebrate him? Celebrate my Dad's life...It's bittersweet. I want to honor my father...and let the light of his life flare before all of you. I hope to do him justice. My father's tale begins when he was born into what would become a large family with six siblings. Dad had many stories to share from that time that always left my brother...
There is a common thread which runs through the frayed cord of men, not only in our time and the last many generations, but in time immemorial: our fathers. Whether good or bad or all-together absent, fathers impact the lives of their sons. My story is, perhaps, a bit unique as I grew up both fatherless and fathered. Where my story is not unique is that, even though I had a good example of living life as a man, growing up, I did not have a complete example. I'm not sure any...
TORONTO, ON—Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day says a Pikangikum house fire tragedy, which claimed the lives of six adults and three children, is the direct result of chronic poverty and third world living conditions. “On behalf of the Chiefs of Ontario I want to pass along our condolences to the family and community of Pikangikum,” said Ontario Regional Chief Day. “Our people are living in substandard living conditions and this is the result: a fire that claimed the life of seven people, three of them children. We need to...
ALBUQUERQUE, NM (ANS)-Without a doubt the Gathering of Nations is a stirring event, one that must be experienced live to understand its full impact. With over 3,000 native dancers and singers representing 700 tribes from across North America all dancing and singing in immaculate costumes and dress on the floor of an arena is something to behold. I've been many times to the Gathering, and on each occasion when the grand entrance occurs (the moment when all the dancers descend...
ALBUQUERQUE, NM-Emmett Garcia, internationally-renowned children's book author, is helping to share the art of Native American storytelling among future generations. Garcia recently completed a "Giving Back to the Community" project in which he traveled throughout New Mexico and performed storytelling to students and children at schools and nonprofit organizations. "It is my goal to help keep our oral tradition alive by sharing it with our youth," said Emmett Garcia,...
ALBUQUERUQUE, NM (ANS)-New Mexicans were horrified with the news that eleven-year-old Ashlynne Mike was kidnapped, assaulted, and killed near Shiprock, (which means, "rock with wings" or "winged rock" in Navajo) on the Navajo Nation in northern New Mexico. The incident sent shock waves around the region and country with newscasts, vigils, and TV transmissions of her funeral being broadcast live. I, like most New Mexicans woke up early to an Amber alert, and then followed the...
Laura Grizzlypaws from Lillooet, British Columbia, performed at the 33rd annual Gathering of Nations, the world's largest gathering of Native American and Indigenous peoples. The only female Grizzly Bear dancer in the world is of St'át'imc descent. The Gathering of Nations powwow, considered the most prominent Native American event in North America, hosted hundreds of thousands of people and more than 700 tribes from throughout the United States, Canada, and around the world...
PHOENIX-Nakotah LaRance (Hopi/Tewa/Assiniboine) of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, N.M., earned 237 points to win his second consecutive adult world hoop dance title at the 26th annual Heard Museum World Championship Hoop Dance Contest Feb. 14. The honor also included $3,500 in prize money. LaRance's total, out of a maximum of 250 points, bested that of the second-place finisher, former champion Dallas Arcand (Cree/Nakota Sioux/Metis), of Kipohtakaw First Nation, Alberta, Canada. Arcand...
TRAVERSE CITY, MI-The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2016 Summit titled "Looking Back and Looking Ahead: The State of Cancer Control in American Indian and Alaska Native Communities" was held for current CDC grantees April 26-28, 2016 at the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City, Michigan. CDC grantees from five CDC regions across the country collaborated to discuss cancer health policy implementation in Indian Country. The Grantees included Fond du Lac Band of...
The 2016 Philanthropy Institute will be May 25-27, 2016 at Catamaran Resort & Spa Hotel, San Diego, CA. Native Americans in Philanthropy will support the pipeline of Native philanthropy leaders and provide philanthropic expertise; create issue-driven partnerships and deepen existing relationships within networks; educate mainstream philanthropy on funding inequities and how they can be a part of community-based solutions; and inform foundation staff about pressing Native...
OUJE-BOUJOUMOU, QC-A rare and fragile beaded hood that is more than 166 years old made its way back home Monday, finally reunited with the descendants of its original owner in Quebec's James Bay region. "I am so emotional," said Dinah Simard, the granddaughter of Jane Gunner, believed to be the original owner of the hood. Jane was the wife of Joseph Gunner, then the chief of Mistassini (now Mistissini). "It's like meeting my Kookum [grandmother]," she said. "This is how I...
OTTAWA, ON-One of the most maligned pieces of legislation in Canadian history turns 140 this week, but few First Nations are celebrating, chiefs say. First passed in 1876, the Indian Act received royal assent on April 12, 1876, under a Liberal government headed by Prime Minister Alexander McKenzie. The Indian Act ("An Act respecting Indians"), is the primary legislation used by the federal government to administer everything from laws to membership and elections in First...
KAZIRANGA NATIONAL PARK, INDIA-The National Park and Tiger Reserve that Britain's Prince William and Duchess Katherine visited in April, was the focus of a brutal "shoot to kill" policy that has seen 62 people shot dead by wildlife guards in just nine years. Kaziranga National Park in Assam state has become infamous across India for its extrajudicial executions. Armed guards summarily execute anyone they suspect of poaching, and local people are reportedly offered cash...
OTTAWA, ON-After a long 17-year fight for recognition, the Supreme Court of Canada handed down a major ruling on who bears responsibility for Indigenous Peoples of Canada. It declared on April 14 that the Government of Canada is responsible for all Indigenous peoples in Canada, including Métis and non-status Indians. When the ruling was announced, there was rejoicing and emotion from the Métis and non-status leaders who were crowded into the foyer of the Supreme Court. With t...
