Sunday, April 9, 2017

Ceremony Passing Panels Responsibility to Langara College

So we did it!

Friday was the completion of our responsibility in creating, designing, carving, caring for the red cedar panels and the yellow cedar circles.

Since September 2016 when I won a Carving Award to attend Langara's Reconciliation Carving Cohort, 17 brave souls have been learning and carving together from Justin Wilson, Aaron Nelson Moody, Shane Pointe and many other beautiful souls to create these sacred panels.

Langara was given a sacred name https://mylangaratrccarvingjourney.blogspot.ca/2016/09/musqueam-naming-ceremony-for-langara.html



These sacred pieces were created to honor the children of the Residential Schools who never came home and those Survivors who live with the trauma the rest of their lives and also honor the Missing and Murdered Indigenous women.

This has been a very difficult journey. One I find so hard to put into words.
We had our ceremony yesterday..I had to speak and it was so hard to voice anything of the billions of thoughts racing through my mind. I just told everyone I loved them.

It was such a beautiful ceremony...I cried through nearly all of it.

It is really hard to explain and so I won't try. Garwin Sanford is working on a documentary so we will see how that all goes.

I am going to make a video too but right now I am so exhausted from so much emotion.

"Just know that some people said we shouldn't do this, some thought we couldn't do it, but we have shown everyone we can! "


We have demonstrated that people of all backgrounds and beliefs can come together and work together to try right wrongs. We can acknowledge the terrible truths and we were all witnesses and now we must work with the education systems and all social networks to share the truths and help those who don't know, to  understand the evilness of the past (and present) and help those suffering to cope. There is still so much work to be done but this is a baby step in the right direction.


Here's some photos.

Carvings for Reconciliation.
One panel honors the  murdered and missing indigenous women. One panel honors the children who never returned home from residential school, or who came home forever changed... 
#mmiw #carving4reconciliation

I will add the names of the artists/carvers  to pieces in a bit.  Just so you understand the piece. In the center is a design by Aaron Nelson Moody http://splashingeagle.ca/ it is of salmon and all they represent with there struggle to survive and being a life source and life giver. Each of our cohort created a piece to represent themselves. The panel represents all of us. One heart, one mind. Nautsamat!! We are one!

Sacred Panels honoring the Missing Children and Survivors of Residential School

Me and some of my Carving Buddies!