As Native people we have to deal with so many addictions. That makes life more difficult than it should be. We are relatively new to the concept of money as compared to other cultures who have been dealing with financial systems for hundreds if not thousands of years.
One of the big obstacles in our way has been a very naive understanding of how the money system works.
There are many success stories across Canada when it comes to resource development agreements and partnerships between First Nations, companies and government. Most non-Native people don’t realize this. Even in my home community of Attawapiskat negotiations in general between my people and Debeers has benefited many. The process is obviously not perfect but at the very least, the company, First Nation leadership and governments have bargained in good faith to make a very large project happen in the middle of pristine wilderness.
I can’t believe I am writing words dedicated to the passing of my dad, Marius Kataquapit (October 26, 1938 – March 13, 2013). His death of a heart attack has left a hole in me that I know will never be fully healed but will get better with time. Dad was very much a bigger than life, fun filled character in the life of my family and whenever we were with him, he often found it necessary to punctuate our time with laughter and lots of smiles.
A new First Nation music production has been launched by Midnight Shine, which features an old friend of mine, Attawapiskat resident Adrian Sutherland. A lot of great music has come from James Bay over the past few decades and Midnight Shine represents a new crop of Aboriginal performers to add to this tradition. Midnight Shine, which is also the album title, is the first release by this group of First Nation musicians.
I find travelling liberating. When I first started to visit other countries I did so with a minimal knowledge of history. The more I travelled, I realized I wasn’t getting a good sense of where I was. It was wonderful to climb up to the Acropolis and view Athens from the ancient ruins but I did so initially without really knowing much about where I was.
I have been watching some good movies lately. One titled ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ was about a group of older English retirees who move to Jaipur, a city in India, to live in a hotel converted into a senior citizen’s home. A line from that movie “Things will work out in the end. If they do not then it is not the end” made me realize how important it is never to give up.
I have been growing my hair now for the past 24 years. It all started for a very practical reason. I decided one day that I couldn’t take any more of the peer pressure concerning hairstyles and looks. It seemed easier to me to simply grow my hair long and I felt very comfortable with the idea.
Recently a terrible helicopter accident near the airport in Moosonee took the lives of four dedicated heroes of health for the far north Ontario James Bay First Nations. All First Nations are very grateful for the hard work and dedication of flight and paramedic crews that service remote Native communities all across Canada. In particular we give thanks and we honour the memories of the Ornge Ontario air ambulance service staff who lost their lives recently including Capt.
The Sah-kah-mel or mosquitoes are really, really bad this year. I think I have used up every swear word I ever learned in Cree, English and even French complaining about these little insects. No matter what I do they manage to find me out on the land and even when I am inside my camp.
I was in Istanbul, Turkey this past winter and I had the pleasure to walk in Taksim Square. I was impressed with the city in general as compared to major centres in Morocco and Egypt I have seen. The ancient city, once known as Constantinople for the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, was modern, clean, well organized and generally safe.
When I was a boy growing up in my home community of Attawapiskat on the James Bay coast, I was deathly afraid of looking at the full moon.
I grew up...
I’m happy to see the ongoing support and assistance in our northern remote communities to help our people cope with so many lifelong and generational issues...