Making Room for the New
This fall season, I was able to step back from current events and look at nature in a new way, the death of the old and the re-birth of the new.
We are the dying leaves.
We see our friends fall, to make room for new life.
We hear people crunch down on us, breaking us up.
We feel the cold breeze weighing us down.
We are the door you shut, to open another.
We smell the fresh rain, nutrient filled.
We hear ourselves breaking, falling apart.
We are the dying leaves
We dream of blue skies and evergreen trees.
We fear permanent darkness and broken down stumps.
We hope new will come, and growth will be re-born.
We are the door you shut, to open another.
We were the bright green lights of the trees up above.
We will be the knights to replace the broken, to re-awoken the lights you write of.
Beyond the death of old nature, and the re-birth of new leaves to come, there is more. This past year, 2021, has welcomed in with the new ideas of truth and reconciliation, and out with a society where reconciliation had no place. It was important reflecting on Canada's past where I am a settler, and to learn more about history and where I can help improve today's world. It made me wonder how I as a single person, can help reconcile and contribute to the growth and completion of the 94 calls to action. While we have completed 13 of these calls to action, which is a step in the right direction, that still barely scratches the surface of making a positive impact. It made me wonder about how Canada considers itself a developed nation. How can a developed nation still have no access to clean running water in little-none of their Indigenous reserves? When I was younger and lived in Nova Scotia, I did not think much about it. Looking back, the reserve in my town was placed by a pulp mill, better known as the "pollution cloud factory" which was certainly harmful to both the environment and the population and they had no access to clean water. I know that every person has the ability to make their positive actions ripple into affect globally, which is why each of us can help reconcile, especially when It comes to the above example of environmental racism.
That being said, when you have a moment, while I am absolutely not an expert of any kind, I would encourage everyone (including myself) to take a minute and acknowledge what they can do as personal acts of reconciliation. To aid in this reflection, here are some resources which I found helpful:
http://www.fnesc.ca/irsr/ - For Education
https://education.afn.ca/afntoolkit/ - For Education, mobile devices only
https://reconciliationcanada.ca/resources/toolkits/
Also, here is a free online course to learn more about Indigenous histories and contemporary issues in Canada.
https://www.ualberta.ca/admissions-programs/online-courses/indigenous-canada/index.html
Together, we can make a difference in our society with our growth to achieve reconciliation. Let's walk into the new year of 2022, to leave the old behind and make room for the new.