The Gift is in the Making

by Leanne Simpson

  The people didn’t know what to do, so they decided to go and meet with the oldest and wisest people they knew. Those Elders decided to send a delegation of diplomats, spiritual people, and mediators to go and visit the Hoof Clan.

  After some negotiation, the people learned that the Hoof Clan had left their territory because the Nishnaabeg were no longer honouring them. They had been wasting their meat and not treating their bodies with the proper reverence. The Hoof Clan had withdrawn from the territory and their relationship with the Nishnaabeg. They had stopped participating.

  The diplomats, spiritual people, and mediators just listened. They listened to all the stories and teachings the Hoof Clan had to share. They spent several long days of listening, of acknowledging, of discussing, and of negotiating. All the parties thought about what they could give up to restore the relationship. Finally, the Hoof Clan and the Nishnaabeg agreed to honour and respect the lives and beings of the Hoof Clan, in life and in death. They assured the Hoof Clan that they would use the flesh of the Waawaashkeshiwag, Moozoog, and Adikwag wisely and that they would look after and protect deer, moose, and caribou habitat and homes. They told the Hoof Clan that they would share their meat with all in need, take only what they needed, and use everything they took, and they would rely on other food sources when times were tough for the Hoof Clan. The Nishnaabeg promised to leave semaa to acknowledge the anguish they have brought upon the animals for killing one of their members so that they might live, and they told the Hoof Clan they would perform special ceremonies and rituals whenever they took an animal.

  In exchange, the Hoofed Animals would return to our territory so that Nishnaabeg people could feed themselves and their families. They agreed to give up their lives whenever the Nishnaabeg were in need.

  So the Waawaashkeshiwag, Moozoog, and Adikwag returned to the land of the Nishnaabeg. To this day, we still go through the many rituals outlined that day when we kill a member of the Hoof Clan. We remember those original Hoof Clan teachings about how to share land without interfering with other nations. We remember how to take care of the land so we can all bring forth more lives. We honour our treaty relationship with Waawaashkeshiwag, Woozoog, and Adikwag—so we can all live good lives.

  Nishnaabemowin: Waawaashkesh is deer; mooz is moose; adik is caribou; Gchi Nishnaabeg-ogaming is “the place we all live and work together” according to Elder Doug Williams from Curve Lake First Nation; dawaagin is fall; bboon is winter; amikwag is beavers; moozoog are moose plural; makwag are bears; jijaakwag (ajijaakwag) are cranes; migizig are bald eagles; zhigaagwag are skunks; semaa (asemaa) is tobacco; and ziigwan is the early part of spring when the snow is melting, the ice is breaking up and the sap is flowing; niibin is summer; waawaashkeshiwag are deer (plural), adikwag are caribou (plural).

  2

  THE BAAGAATAA’AWA GAME THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

  Usually, things are quiet in bboon. Mama is all rolled up warm in her white blanket in a deep rest after all that creating and then all that celebrating. Shhhhhhhh.

  It’s time for renewal. Makwa is dreaming, others are visiting Zhaawanong. The forest has a quiet, nearly empty feel to it.

  Usually.

  This year there was a kerfuffle. Instead of all quiet, it was all chirpy. Instead of snowflakes softly falling, feathers were flying like mini-tornadoes. Instead of helping, there was only snip-snapping.

  Those Bineshiinyag were hungry, because they couldn’t find enough to eat.

  “Nbakade! Nbakade!” they sang.

  “Nbakade! Nbakade!” they chirped.

  “Nbakade! Nbakade!” they cawed.

  “Nbakade! Nbakade!” they cried.

  And then they started to argue.

  “That’s my seed.”

  “Those are MYYYY dinner.”

  “GET YOUR OWN LUNCH!”

  And then, that big fight got bigger and bigger. Until all the Bineshiinyag were arguing and fighting and being very big meanies. It was like a fire, and everyone was throwing more and more wood onto that fire and it was getting bigger and bigger. And then—it spread to the animals.

  Amik started getting overly chewy.

  Makwa started to be extra growly, even in her sleep!

  Nika got a little too pokey with her beak.

  Giigoonh … oh, that Giigoonh was just slippery, sliding out of all kinds of deals and promises.

  Maybe that Gidigaa Bizhiw’s claws get out and don’t go back in, and pretty soon, everyone is all snip-snappy-yelly, and fur is flying everywhere.

  Pretty soon, the Nishnaabeg notice, but not the big ones, not this time, not yet. Nope, those big ones don’t notice when things go off balance at the beginning. They always notice too late. It was those little ones that noticed. Those little ones are always paying attention. They notice. Kids notice.

  Those kids noticed, and they did the right thing. They told that old Nokomis, and that old Nokomis knew just what to do.

  That old Nokomis says we’re gonna have a meeting at noon at the big cedar tree. And so Pichi puts up a Facebook group and invites everyone, and everyone confirms they are coming, and then no one shows up at noon at the Chi’giizhikatig.

  So, the next day, that old Nokomis says we’re gonna have another meeting. This time a Talking Circle, and this time Pichi goes from house to house and tells everyone to meet at Chi’giizhikatig. This time everyone comes, and it starts out going good. Then Giigohn starts talking, well, maybe kinda complaining, and maybe kind of going on and on and on and on, and, Bear, she get all mad and start yelling from the other side of the circle and soon fur is flying, and nobody listening, and Nokomis just leaves.

  The next day, that old Nokomis tries ceremony. She gets everyone all lined up by the Chi-gizhiikatig, but, just as she’s lighting the smudge, Nika says it’s her turn to be shkabewis, but Amik and Gidigaa Bizhiw also think it’s their turn, and pretty soon fur is flying and nobody is listening, and Nokomis lights the smudge by herself, but no one is even left for the ceremony.

  The fourth day, Nokomis decides everybody needs to run off some steam. “Everybody meet me at noon at the big gizhiikatig,” she say, “because it’s gonna be all fun and games, and there is a prize.”

  Well, everyone likes a prize, so everyone shows up.

  That old lady split the group into two teams. Animals on one side. Birds on the other.

  Only Pakwaanaajiinh is left standing by the gizhiikatig.

  Nokomis tell the birds, Bat is on their team.

  “Bat can’t be on our team because she has fur,” Bineshiinyag say.

  Nokomis tell the animals the bat is on their team.

  “Bat can’t be on our team because Bat has wings,” Animals say.

  Nokomis tell the birds the bat is on their team.

  The birds say, “That bat is too tiny and way too tired, and she has that baby bat that is always screaming, and she has to spend ALL of her time nursing that little guy just to keep him quiet.”

  Nokomis takes a deep breath.

  Fur just about to fly again, when Waawaashkesh gets the animals together. She tells them that Bat might just be useful, because she can echolocate things in the dark and because she can fly, and, plus, they don’t have to put her on the field, she can just sit on the bench.

  So the animals agree. Even Makwa. The game starts.

  Bat hangs upside down under the tree by the bench nursing her little batling.

  The first day the game doesn’t go so well. A little too rough. Nokomis gets tired blowing her whistle all the time, and there is so much pushing and shoving that no one even hears her whistle. Also, no one even gets close to the net—0-0.

  The second day goes better, only a few scuffles in front of the net—0-0.

  The third day, everyone getting a little tired. Still 0-0.

  People starting to loose interest a bit. Amik start sneaking off to her lodge when no one looking.

  The fourth day, everyone starts wondering why they’re playing. Everyone so tired they forget wh
at the fight is about.

  By sundown, it is looking like the game might never end.

  All this time, Bat been nursing her baby, hanging under that tree. And on that fourth day at sundown, out of the corner of her eye, she sees something coming towards her.

  You know how mamas have super-powerful peripheral vision?

  You know how mamas have super-fast reaction times?

  Well, that bat just kept nursing her baby with one wing. With the other, she stretched out way below her head and caught that ball.

  And then she tucked that nursing baby under her wing and held onto that stick and flew like the wind to right in front of the birds’ net, and she fired that ball right between the goalposts.

  And the crowd erupted with cheers. And the animals came running to congratulate her, and that baby bat just kept right on nursing away. And those Bineshiinyag come and congratulate her too, because they so happy that the game is finally over.

  Then Bineshiinyag go and have a big meeting with Nokomis at the chi-gizhiikatig. They meet with Nokomis because it had become their responsibility to solve the food shortage, a very big responsibility.

  By the light of that big Nokomis-Giizis, the Bineshiinyag decide that those that can fly to visit their friends in the Zhaawanong will do so every dagwaagin. In the spring they will return to Kina Gchi Nishnaabeg-ogaming, and it has been that way ever since. They’re excited for their adventure. The ones that will stay are happy too, because they will have enough food. Everybody is happy.

  Even Nokomis.

  Actually, especially Nokomis, because all her children are happy and healthy—and nothing is better than that.

  Nishnaabemowin: Bagaataa’awe refers to the action of passing a ball back and forth and is the Nishnaabe name for lacrosse; bboon is winter; makwa is bear; zhaawanong is south; bineshiinyag are birds; nbakade means I’m hungry; amik means beaver; nika means goose; gidigaa bizhiw means spotted lynx or bobcat; giigonh is fish, pichi (opichi) is a robin; Nokomis is Grandmother; chi’giizhikatig is big cedar tree; shkabewis (oshkabewis) is a helper in a ceremony; pakwaanaajiinh (apakwaanaajiinh) is a bat; waawaashkesh (waawaashkeshi) is a deer; Nokomis Giizis is the moon; dawaagin is the fall; and Kina Gchi Nishnaabeg-ogaming means the “big place where we all live and work together” or Nishnaabeg territory, according to Curve Lake Elder Doug Williams.

  3

  ALL OUR RELATIONS

  The old people say that we are all related—not just to the people that live in our house, but to the plants, the animals, the air, the water, and the land.

  Our Nokomis is the moon. The earth is our first mama. Our father is the sky. Our Mishomis is the sun.

  We are just one big, beautiful family, with many different branches.

  The Nishnaabeg have always known this. Because of this knowledge, we have lived a fantastic, marvellous life here on Chi’Mikinakong for a cabillion generations.

  But, sometimes, just sometimes, we get busy. We forget the small things, and, when we do, we learn that they are actually big, important things.

  This is exactly what happened a long, long time ago.

  Our ancestors were very smart people, and they knew more than anybody about how to live in our territory in a good way because they paid attention to the Elders and to the animals and to the plants. They paid attention to each other.

  Usually, things were very good in the Niibin, but one summer, the Nishnaabeg were finding it very hard to find food. The ode’minan had bloomed, but there were no berries. It was the same with the miskominag and the miinan. Many of the flowers were missing, and many of the insects, too. The hunters had caught a bear to eat, but the meat was very sour. The people were worried.

  They called all the Elders, the Grandmothers, the Grandfathers and the Medicine People together and asked for advice. After a ceremony and a meeting, the Elders and the Grandmothers and the Grandfathers and the Medicine People suggested that the people go and ask Makwa.

  So they went and talked with Makwa.

  Makwa said, “Don’t ask me. Ask Aamoo.”

  So the people went and visited Aamoo.

  Aamoo said, “Don’t ask me. Ask Waawaasgonenh.”

  So the people went and visited with Waawaasgoneh, and Waawaasgoneh told them a very sad story about the rose, Ginii.

  “A long time ago, there were lots and lots of flowers,” Waawaasgoneh began. “There were lots and lots of roses. All summer long, they bloomed and smiled and waited for the Nishnaabeg to notice. But no one ever did. Not until the fall, when it was time to pick the rose hips so the Nishnaabeg would have vitamin C all winter long. The roses felt lonely, unappreciated, and taken for granted. They felt miserable and used. So the roses, they left.”

  The Nishnaabeg realized what they had done.

  Waawaasgoneh continued: “Then Aamoo couldn’t find any nectar to make honey, and then Makwa couldn’t find any honey to help her get through the long winter, and now you, the Nishnaabeg, are very hungry.”

  The Nishnaabeg listened and thought about this problem. They asked those Old People what to do. The Elders, the Grandmothers, the Grandfathers and the Medicine People had a big, long, kinda-boring-for-the-kids meeting. At the end, they all agreed. They told the people to go and see the Bineshiinyag. They told the people to ask Bineshiinyag to fly all around and find a Ginii and bring it back.

  So the Nishnaabeg went to talk to the birds, and those birds agreed to help. They got up very early in the morning and went out in every direction, searching for Ginii. They searched for long hours, day after day, in the north, the south, the east, and the west. But, day after day, they returned with empty beaks.

  “There are none left,” reported Migizi.

  No sooner had the bald eagle spoken than little Naanooshkeshiinh, the ruby-throated hummingbird, flew up with a wilted rose plant in her mouth.

  “Naanooshkeshiinh! Naanooshkeshiinh!” the people said softly.

  The Nishnaabeg gently took the plant and put Ginii’s roots in soil. They were so worried because Ginii just lay there on the soil, tired and sad.

  They sang to her.

  They gave her nibiish.

  They made sure her leaves felt the morning sun. Most importantly, and in their quietest and most gentle voices, they talked to her. They told her how much they had missed her, how much they loved her.

  They talked about the deep raspberry colour of her petals. They talked about how soft those petals were on their cheeks. They talked about the tea they loved to make out of her rose hips.

  After a few days, Ginii began to get stronger, and, in a few more days, she stood up. When she was strong, the Nishnaabeg used her roots to plant more flowers. Soon, those flowers spread to more parts of the bush.

  Then the Nishnaabeg found the Aamoog and showed them where all the new plants were. Those Aamoog got busy pollinating. Soon there were lots of roses, lots of fat Aamoog, and there was lots of sweet, sweet honey.

  This made Makwa very happy, because he was also getting fat from eating all of that good honey.

  And, soon, the Nishnaabeg were feeling much stronger and much healthier, too, because they ate that good, sweet, bear meat. After that, the Nishnaabeg remembered Ginii and all the flowers in their land.

  So, you see how important each one of those plants and animals are? We should never destroy anything.

  That’s what those old Elders always say.

  Nishnaabemowin: Nokomis is Grandmother; Mishomis is Grandfather; Chi’Mikinakong is the big place of the turtle, or turtle island and is a Mississauga name for North America according to Curve Lake Elder Doug Williams; niibin is summer; ode’minan (ode’iminan) are strawberries; miskominag are raspberries; and miinan are blueberries; makwa means bear; aamoo is a bee; aamoog are bees; waawaasgonenh is a flower; ginii (oginii-waabigwan) is a rose; bineshiinyag are birds; migizi is a bald eagle; naanooshkeshiinh is a ruby-throated humming bird; and nibiish is water.

  4

  A GIFT FROM A VERY SMART LITTLE GREEN FROG


  One day, Kwezens was out with Kokum picking berries, when they came across Ginebig looking for her lunch.

  Ginebig was slithering around on the ground, moving in and out of the berry bushes, when she came across a little green zhaawshko-magkiins.

  “Watch,” said Kokum.

  Kwezens watched, feeling nervous and scared for that cutey—little green omakakii. Ginebig was moving fast, dreaming of that tasty zhaawshko-magkiins in her mouth. But that little zhaawshko-magkiins wasn’t just cute—he was also very smart, and he hopped right into a patch of Niimkiibag.

  Ginebig stopped dead in her tracks.

  Zhaawshko-magkiins waited.

  Ginebig’s mom had told her to never, ever go into a patch of Niimkiibag; otherwise she’d feel the itchy burning pain of thunderbolts all over her skin for days. So Ginebig knew she’d just have to wait.

  Ginebig waited and waited and waited and waited, and then she was so bored from all that waiting that she felt like she was going to explode if she waited even one more second.

  Finally, she gave up and slithered away, dreaming of a different kind of lunch.

  When Zhaawshko-magkiins was sure that Ginebig was gone, Zhaawshko-magkiins hopped out of the Niimkiibag and directly into a patch of Majimashkikinaandawi’on, jewelweed, which usually grows right beside the poison ivy. He chewed off a stem and then lathered his whole body in that good medicine.

  “Nahow,” said Kokum, “if you should ever find yourself in the same situation as Zhaawshko-magkiins, covered in Niimkiibag, you’ll know just what to do”.

  And that is how our Medicine People learned the antidote to Niimkiibag.

  Nishnaabemowin: Kwezens (ikwezens) is a girl; Kokum is Grandma; Ginebig is snake; zhaawshko-magkiins is a small green frog (Curve Lake); omakakii is frog; Niimkiibag is literally “thunder plant” or poison ivy; majimashkikinaandawi’on is jewelweed; and nahow is okay.