Bozhoo Nijii

At one point in my life I decided that I would learn another language..the language I chose was Annishinaabeemowin..the language of the Annishinaabee (Ojibwe)Nation.

(Stormy Sunset on Rainy Lake)


It was a language I'd heard early in my life-growing up on Rainy Lake in NW Ontario..sometimes spoken by Native fisherman paddling thru the bay in front of our cabins..but more often mispoken on non-Native tongues speaking the Annishinaabee names of lakes and bays named long before their relatives had come to live in the Canadian wilderness.

(Little Falls,Gakaabikaansing, Atikokan Ontario by Patti Kryzanowski)


People often learn words of greeting first when studying a new language..hello. In Annishinaabee language this can be either Bozhoo
(bah zhoo)..similar to the French bon jour, or it can be ainiin (a knee) which is a little more formal and perhaps less common greeting. This word Ainiin..combined with the word "nijii" (nah zhee) which means friend..opened the door to a beautiful friendship for me.

My father's journey was changing and he had recently been hospitalized after living a rich life exploring the wonders of the Canadian wilderness. I went to ease this transition for both of my parents. En route, I beaded a small medicine bag, working in a rosette pattern from the inside out..adding circles like a stone does when thrown into a calm pond..I had no plan for this bag..it was merely something to pass the time.



As the nursing staff cared for my father, we were asked to leave the room. My mom and I entered a small patient sitting area, which could also be accessed by patients living in the extended care ward. One woman shared lunch with her disabled husband, while others visited with family members or friends. Alone in the corner was a beautiful little Gramma..alone but smiling happily. Mom said..let's join that little Gramma..she might enjoy some company.

We approached and I reached out my hand to shake hands with the woman, asking if we could join her..her warm smile said we could. Her reply was not in English, but in Annishinaabeemowin..so I spoke her words-words new to my tongue..ainiin nijii..her eyes sparkled and her smile engulfed the room. We spoke as much as we could..stored conversations came to life as her native tongue rolled freely from her lips, feeble attempts to understand and respond came from mine. All the while I translated for my mother. Doris, as I'd later learn her name, pulled my chair closer to her, and held my hand as we spoke..forgiving my misprounced words, correcting me with kindness. Laughter and smiles accompanied our words.

When it came time to go back to my father's room, Doris kissed my hands over and over, and held them close to her face. I told my mom-NOW I know why I beaded that bag..it is for her..and I told my mom I'd join them shortly, but that first I have a gift to give. I returned to the sun room and held the medicine bag out for my new friend. She took it gently, and then motioned for me to help her put it on. As I did, tears rolled down her beautiful old face. She held my hands against the side of her soft cheeks momentarily.

As I left the room, I told her giga-waabamin (see you later). She smiled and knodded her head. The woman who had been feeding her husband stepped in front of me at the door..she said..I heard you talking to her..she doesn't speak English you know so we can't talk to her, is she your Gramma..I responded that in Native culture all elders are your relatives and are to be treated with that level of respect..she said-so she's YOUR Gramma and I said..no she is my Kokomis, then I turned and winked at Doris..the woman said..well you know NOBODY talks to her, nobody comes to visit her..and I said-well today someone came to visit her..and with that I walked by her.

Every day for the next two weeks, I found an excuse to visit Doris Whitefish..she held my hands, kissing them gently..and I called her Gokim which is another version of the word for grandmother.
If I picked blueberries I'd bring a bowl for my friend.
(blueberry photo by raceytay on etsy)

If I came during lunch, I'd stir her soup to cool it off. If I came in the evening, we'd pull a chair by the window and watch the sunset. Sometimes I'd bring my beading and we'd just sit together. She taught me new words..pointing to things in pictures and telling me what they were.
When it came time to leave Canada and return to Colorado, I was sad to leave my parents and Doris behind.. I explained the best I could that I would be back to see her the following summer.

(sweatlodge is artwork done by dkjart on etsy)






In the months that passed, I spoke her name in my sweat lodge prayers..asking that she was well and that she would know my heart was thinking of her.




For the next three summers I visited Doris each time I went home..I took a CD of powwow music for her..and I introduced my daughter to her..Doris motioned for Jaryl to dance when a fast powwow song came on..Jaryl obliged..fancy shawling with a tablecloth as her shawl..while staff and other patients watched..Doris smiling proudly and inviting them all to stay..at the end of that visit we all joined in a round dance..the dance of friends.

(Eagle shadow picture taken of my daughter by Peggy)

I will share more about my special friendship with my beloved Gokim and about all the gifts that learning a new language has brought me..so please come back and I will say giga-waabamin..because in Native languages there are no words as harsh as goodbye.

Where in the World? ....my dream destination

The other day I asked a friend-if you could go anywhere in the world where would you go.. his answer-oh, I don’t know….my head must have swiveled around like the possessed girl in the exorcist-because shortly after that he did come up with an answer..the Caribbean…he never asked where I would go-but I felt compelled to tell him anyway..and now I will share my dream destination with you too....we are going on a trip…

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=65399450


Let's pack those suitcases and catch our plane

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41904057


The origins of this trip began 26 years ago..two young mothers had taken their sons to the park by the lake for a day of play..One boy was named Jamal, the other Maligiaq. At first the mothers smiled from across the playground at each other. Soon the boys began playing together..then as children do, they engaged their mothers to come push them on swings. Both moms noticed that the other was pregnant. Smiles widened..bonded by their membership in the "big belly club", the mothers began to talk as they pushed their sons into the clouds.

Later that day, they shared picnic lunches.. One mother was from Canada, the other from Greenland, and both had come to the lake park because they were missing the waters of their homelands...they both laughed at how small this "lake" was..hardly worth mentioning, the smallest of waves and no fish either..

Months went by, bellies got bigger, a season changed, friendships grew, and the babies were born..a sister for Maligiaq and a brother for Jamal.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41534562


Greenland came alive as one mother told the other stories of her country..she told of the trickery in how Iceland and Greenland were named, she remembered the canneries where she worked alongside her sisters, and the other Native women of her village. She spoke proudly of her father's dogs..and their coveted status as sled dogs in her village. She talked of getting together in humble homes darkened in the Winter light creating beatiful beadwork with the women she knew from the cannery. She painted pictures of surreal beauty..icebergs, fierce ocean waves, rocky inlets, open landscapes, and beautiful brown faces..her heart always followed her words as they faded away.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=60050402

Homesickness is a powerful illness, and one day the mother from Greenland called to tell the other that she could no longer pretend that she didn't prefer the sound of wind in the trees over the sound of traffic, she could no longer pretend that she thought the pond at the park was a lake..she told the other mother...I have decided to raise my children in my village..can you please help me pack?

The children climbed in and out, playing in the empty boxes, until one by one all of the boxes were full but one. The mother from Greenland had saved the beautiful beadwork for the last box..she held it out in her hands to her Canadian friend and said..you are my only friend here..please take something to remind you of me..but the Canadian mother could not..she was too sad to hold something that her friend had made with her beautiful hands.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41800398


The two women hugged, with tears rolling down their faces..the children looked bewildered-they had only known joy and laughter between their two mothers..The mother from Greenland spoke at last...I will always keep two of my father's sled dogs..one for Jamal, another for Eric and when they come..they will have status in my village...and my people will love them as I do.

Dark Winters came to Greenland as the years passed..some letters passed between the two women..both divorced the fathers of their beautiful children..and sometimes their hearts remembered a friendship now separated by time and distance...life got in the way and they lost contact eventually.

Under the stars, years later, the Canadian mother thought of her dear friend..and was comforted to know that they still saw the same stars..she wondered if she would ever see her friend from Greenland again..just then a shooting star hurried across the night sky..assuring her that she would..

Within four short days thanks to the wonders of the Internet the friends were connected..before they hung up..the voice in Greenland said-hurry and come to Greenland..Maligiaq will take you in the sea kayak and you can see your beloved polar bears..but hurry because they don't have much time here..

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=53273574



and now you know why Greenland is my dream destination

Maligiaq Padilla is Greenland's champion sea kayaker and Jamal Allen played professional football in Finland, but this is the closest they have been since they once played together.