It has been super busy in shíshálh Ville with the holiday’s coming and longhouse season underway.
I might of mentioned last winter that the winter spirit dancers utilize the communal longhouse for winter ceremony. It is a time for spiritual practice and meditation and as such, our main longhouse, will be booked, but not exclusively, until early spring when the frogs come out.
Tem Swiya Museum and Cultural Centre is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Check out the new exhibit Rediscovery: a review, a reflection and celebration of the native environmental studies school that our community started up in Deserted Bay from 1978 to 1982. This was the first integrated school of aboriginal and non-aboriginal students that focused on native and environmental studies, culture, art and outdoor education. Innovative and before its time, the school successfully operated for three years before funding challenges led to its closure.
We just did our fourth episode Voices of shíshalh on Nov. 29 and the show itself is proving to be a lot of fun. The enthusiasm and momentum is growing with guests such as the Premier Christy Clark, Stephen Hume and on our show in two weeks will be Vaughn Palmer.
Our biggest highlight last Saturday for our community was the honouring ceremony for respected elders Margaret Joe-Dixon and Jamie Dixon at our longhouse. Both elders committed several months of their time and expertise to assist in the shíshálh Nation Title case by providing their life history and their collective memories of our peoples’ lives up Jervis Inlet, Pender Harbour and the various villages.
Prior to this project, Margaret committed much of her life to language revitalization and she is one of the few fluent speakers in our Nation. We like to refer to her as the professor because she speaks the high language, the same language that the “old people” spoke — language not so easily translated into English it is said. My own fluency is novice, but when elders translate for me, it’s like hearing poetry.
Jamie is a true ambassador. He has a thunderously powerful voice, an infectious laugh that could be heard across the community and yet Jamie is one of the nicest, gentle giants one could have a pleasure to ever meet. Jamie is an artist, worked in forestry, as a boat operator and retired in a custodian with School District No. 46.
You are taught to respect your elders in our culture. To show respect for the ones who have lived before you. Today, we love and respect our elders for all that they have endured to give us a better life. We respect our elders for their teachings, guidance and enlightenment. I recall when my aunt Theresa Jefferies was with us and she knew things were going to happen to me before I did. Aunt Theresa would give me one clear decisive sentence on what to do or not to do and I would listen and obey. I distinctly recall thinking how did she possible know.
I sure loved my auntie Theresa and I love all of my uncles and aunties and their cousins. I sometimes wonder if our existing generations can live as gracefully and with such honour as the elders we have today and the elders who have gone before us. I would like to think so. We can aspire. For isn’t that the purpose in life?
