The rest of the board nodded in agreement, so the chairperson went to the door and ushered in a scared-looking Danny and Joshua.
The chairperson smiled at them and pulled forward two seats. “Thank you for coming to our meeting, please sit down.”
Danny and Joshua perched uneasily on the edge of their chairs while the chairperson turned to the board members. “This is Danny Budzynski and his friend, Joshua Brokenhorn.”
Everyone looked at them.
“Come on Danny,” whispered Joshua nudging him in the ribs. “Say your bit and let’s get out of here.”
Danny gulped. This was far worse than the class project. He looked around wildly and saw his father and Mr. Berg sitting together. They both smiled encouragingly.
“It’s about the display in the museum, in the First Nations gallery.” His voice came out tight and high in the big room. Danny cleared his throat and started again.
“See… I’ve been to the museum a lot for a couple of years… And… and the thing I liked best was the photograph of the Sundance.”
Everyone nodded understandingly.
“But then I got to know Joshua here and… and I did some research and listened to Joshua and his grandfather… and I found out that the photo shouldn’t be here at all.” He finished in hurry.
“That photo was given to us by the Glenbow Museum in Calgary. What is good enough for them is surely good enough for us,” said Mrs. Saunders flatly.
“But the people at the Glenbow museum aren’t Peigan,” said Danny earnestly. “To First Nations people the Sundance is sacred. It should never have been photographed as it’s too holy. The ceremonies are kept secret and it’s a ceremony that they don’t choose to share with white people.”
“Is this true?” said one of the other board members to Joshua.
Joshua spoke in a voice so soft the board had to strain to hear him. “My grandfather is one of the Peigan elders. He gave Danny the information but he said it’s hard for white people to understand.”
“So what do they want us to do with the photo?” asked another member of the board.
Danny shrugged. “I dunno. I never asked. In fact the elders never asked me to come here… It was just my idea.” he finished miserably. “I just didn’t feel good seeing the photo any more when I knew it was wrong. I think the elders would like it taken down.” Joshua nodded in agreement.
“Thank you Joshua, Danny. We really appreciate you giving us this information. The board will discuss the issue and let you know.” The chairperson rose and opened the door for them. Danny and Joshua filed out and the door closed behind them.
“What now?” Joshua asked, as he and Danny walked moodily down the sidewalk. “Do you think they’ll take the picture down?”
Danny shrugged.
Joshua sighed philosophically. “Well, we tried. See you tomorrow morning?”
“I can’t.” Danny looked uncomfortable. “There’s something I’ve got to do.”
“I’m working for your Dad in the afternoon.”
Danny grinned. “Want me to come and scoop? I’ll teach you how to do a quad.”
“Only if you promise not to touch the till.” Joshua fled, laughing, with Danny in full pursuit.
The next morning Danny had set his alarm early. There was only a hint of daylight as he quietly dressed and tiptoed out of the house. He headed west across the fields jogging through the farm lands until he came to the prairie bluffs on the banks of the Oldman River.
The sunrise was liquid gold. It spilled across the sky, firing the tips of the distant mountains then flooded down across the prairie, gilding every blade of grass.
Danny moved slowly across the bluffs, eyes down, searching. He was looking for something he’d found on a postcard and pasted in his scrapbook, something Joshua had said could be seen on these bluffs. An inconspicuous tipi circle. Slowly and carefully his eyes raked the ground.
There, he found it, a stone half hidden in the grass, and another, and another. A half-buried circle of stones, all that remained of a long-gone tipi encampment on the banks of the Oldman River.
Danny stepped gently into the centre of the stone circle and stood, alone with his thoughts. He then put his hand in his pocket, slowly pulled out the Scottsbluff point and held it up to the sunrise.
It glowed.
“You helped me, but you don’t belong to me,” Danny whispered. “But I can’t bear to give you to a museum. You belong here, on the prairie, with the spirits of the people who made you.” He knelt down, gathered a handful of fragrant sage and wrapped it around the point.
Carefully placing the package on the ground, Danny moved to the edge of the tipi ring and loosened one of the stones. Gently he lifted it out, placed it on the grass, and scratched a hollow in the soft earth where the stone had been. He returned purposefully to the circle centre. Very gently he picked up the fragrant package with one hand and reached into his pocket with the other. He pulled out a willow whistle.
Holding the package before him, Danny blew to the north, the south, the east, and the west, summoning the newly-awakened world to witness his actions, then returned to the hollow.
Tenderly he fitted the package into the earthy nest, replaced the stone and adjusted the surrounding moss and lichen to fit. He blew on the top and the leftover dust scattered. There was nothing to show what he had done.
Danny moved back into the centre of the circle and picked another handful of sage. He crumbled it in his hands, breathing in the heady scent, then he lifted his hands in the air. “I give you back to the earth,” he whispered, “but one day, let someone else like me borrow you for a while.” He spread his fingers and watched the sage dust disperse on the breath of the early morning breeze.
Above him, a black silhouette circled majestically as a bald eagle soared overhead. Danny squinted up with eyes half shut against the brightness as it circled nearer the sun.
As he watched, a small black dot seemed to detach before the eagle disappeared. Danny’s body became at one with the earth. Only his eyes moved, following the black speck as it wafted downwards in slow circles. He held his breath, then expelled it in a great sigh as the eagle feather drifted slowly to his feet.
Glossary
Several names or phrases—aboriginal people, First Nations, First People, Indian, and Native—are currently in use to describe Canada’s original inhabitants. Some names are more acceptable than others to the people themselves, who often prefer aboriginal people or First Nations. The name “Indian” is still in use in the Federal Indian Act and the names of some established organizations. Characters in the story use the names most appropriate to their background and knowledge at the time they are speaking.
Aboriginal—original inhabitant.
Anthropologist—a person who studies the origins, development and behaviour of people.
Archaeologist—a person who excavates and studies the buried remains of human activity.
Arrowhead—a piece of stone, bone or other material shaped to a point and attached to the head of an arrow.
Atlatl—a short stick with a handle at one end and a hook at the other. It can be used to increase the power and distance with which a lance can be thrown, by extending the natural reach of the thrower’s arm.
Bannock—an unleavened bread (made without yeast or other rising agent) originating in Europe but widely used by First Nations.
Beadwork—decorative patterns created by sewing colored beads to clothing, moccasins etc.
Blood—(or Kainaawa) One of three nations belonging to the Blackfoot Confederacy, now with a reserve north of Cardston, Alberta.
Blackfoot—(or Siksikawa) One of three nations belonging to the Blackfoot Confederacy, now with a reserve near Gleichen, Alberta.
Blackfoot Confederacy—a group of First Nations most recently living in what is now Southern Alberta and Northern Montana, comprising the Blackfoot, Blood, and Peigan. All speak the Blackfoot language.
Breech cloth—a cloth worn
below the waist.
Buckskin—tanned leather from deer.
Buffalo Jump—a place used in ancient times to catch buffalo, by driving them across level ground and stampeding them over the edge of a cliff.
Chert—a flint-like mineral which flakes leaving sharp edges, and was often used before metals were available for making arrowheads and other tools.
Confederacy—a group of people joined together.
Coulee—a dry valley in the prairies.
Cree Nation—a group of First Peoples most recently living in the central and eastern prairies and adjacent forests.
Donor—people who give things to museums are called donors. The museum keeps records of the sources of its collections.
First Nations/First People—The original people of North America before European settlement. Many different nations occupied different areas of what is now Canada and the United States.
Flint—a hard mineral which makes a spark against metal, and was used for making fire, for tools in prehistoric times, and for the flints of flintlock guns into the last century.
Flint knapping—the art of shaping flint into tools, by striking raw flint with another stone or metal tool.
Grass dance—a dance of prairie First Nations, in which groups of people dance in a circle, frequently performed at pow wows.
Indian—term once commonly used for First Nations. It reflects the error made by Columbus, who thought he had arrived in India when he reached islands off North America. Although still used, it is generally being replaced by the more accurate terms Aboriginal, First Nations or First People.
Iniskim—a small buffalo-shaped stone, formerly used by First Nations in ceremonies associated with buffalo jumps.
Interpretive Centre—a building with an exhibit designed to tell the story of a site or region.
Irrigation ditch—a ditch dug to carry water for irrigation from a river or lake to dry fields.
Lance point—a point like a large arrowhead, made to be attached to a lance, or throwing spear.
Learning Disability—a mental dysfunction distinct from intelligence which makes it difficult for someone to learn.
L.D.—a common abbreviation for Learning Disability.
Moccasin—a shoe made of leather, originally by First Nations people. Moccasins are often decorated with beadwork.
Naaahsa—Blackfoot name for grandfather.
Native—original inhabitant.
North West Mounted Police—the original police force created in 1873 and sent to the prairies by the Government of Canada.
Oldman River—a river running through southern Alberta, named after the Old Man, a divine trickster of the Blackfoot religion.
Palisade—a barrier made of upright tree trunks set in the ground.
Peigan—one of the three nations belonging to the Blackfoot Confederacy, now with a reserve near Brocket, west of Fort Macleod, Alberta.
Perogy, perogies—a dumpling containing a meat, cheese or vegetable filling, associated in Canada with people of Ukrainian descent.
Pow Wow—a First Nations gathering, which may include religious, ceremonial and social aspects.
Prairie—level or rolling land largely covered with grass and sometimes sage.
Reserve—short for Indian Reserve. A piece of land set aside by the government, usually by treaty, for the exclusive use of one or more groups of First Peoples.
Runs—an area marked off by piles of stones, through which buffalo were stampeded to a buffalo jump.
Scottsbluff point—a lance point of a particular kind, used around 8500 years ago.
Sinew—a tough tissue that connects bones and muscles. Sinew from bison and deer was often used for attaching lance points to lances.
Slough (pronounced sloo)—a low area in the prairies full of water in wet periods, but often drying out in summer.
Stetson—a wide-brimmed hat commonly worn on the prairies.
Stockade—a palisaded enclosure. A stockade known as a pound was often used to catch buffalo where no cliffs were available.
Sweetgrass—a grass used ceremonially by First Nations. It is collected by elders, dried, and burnt as incense on ceremonial occasions.
Tipi—a collapsible tent made originally of buffalo hides, supported on a conical framework of tree trunks. The covers were traditionally painted with designs of great significance to the owners.
Tipi rings—a ring of stones once used to hold down the edges of a tipi. When the tipi is removed, these are left on the prairie, and if undisturbed, show the former presence of traditional camping places.
Acknowledgements
This book would not have been possible without help from the following people and organizations: Alberta Foundation for the Literary Arts, Canada Council, Alberta Culture, Alberta Historic Sites, Bob Kidd at the Provincial Museum of Alberta, Chris Williams, Kenneth Eagle Speaker, Wilford the storyteller, Joe Crowshoe and other members of the staff and volunteers at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, Fort Macleod Museum, Lethbridge Community College, Eldon Yellowhorn, David and Ian Rowe, Rika Ruebsaat and Karen Kovach from Learning Disabled Student Services at the University of Alberta. Special acknowledgement to Guy Chadsey and Antonia Banyard at Beach Holme for their enthusiastic support.
A very special thanks is due to David and Lucy Spalding who untiringly read, re-read and commented on the many drafts. Without Dave’s untiring correction of my garbled spelling that baffles spell checkers, this book would not have happened. David also prepared the glossary.
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