LITTLE CURRENT—The two-day Indigenous Men’s Wellness Gathering took place on Tuesday, November 14 and Wednesday, November 15. Noojmowin Teg Health Centre hosted the event at the Manitoulin Hotel and Conference Centre in Little Current.
Before the program got underway, William Morin had time to explain the reason for the gathering. “Nurturing for (Indigenous) men tends to be absent or excluded, but it’s equally valid and valuable, and necessary, because of the journey that we go through. There are very few tools to help men in their either self-nurturing or nurturing—to recharge—and it’s hard to recharge your batteries when your batteries have been taken away…and our batteries are our culture.” William Morin is one of the resource people for Noojmowin Teg. He occasionally does workshops for them and also does workshops on language and language camps. His role in the two-day Wellness Gathering was as MC. “Not spinning tunes, but spinning jokes,” he explained.
After opening the two-day gathering with a prayer, led by Josh Eshkawkogan, George Couchie began speaking to those gathered in the circle. Mr. Couchie belongs to the Red-tailed Hawk Clan and his spirit name is Zoongiday, ‘Strong Heart’ in Anishinaabemowin. He was soft spoken, at times needing the microphone to be heard by all present. His message was simple, though carrying out his message, challenging.
“When people see an Indigenous person, they think, ‘Oh, they know about their culture, their history.’ But our communities are really struggling about our own identity. When we talk about reconciliation, we need to reconcile with ourselves.”
“When I grew up, my father was a residential school survivor and he struggled with alcohol, with his own identity,” Mr. Couchie said. “For me, I had to change the way I saw things, his parenting skills. How do we learn to be Anishinaabe. How do we teach our children? When my father went to residential school, all he was taught was punishment and anger, there was no respect. And when he came back, whatever he was taught, he taught that to us. So, how do we change that ripple effect in our community so that it becomes a positive ripple effect. I always say that the negative ripple effect can be changed by a small spark in your community, when you go home at night and tell your kids that you love them. It’s changing that ripple effect in our community. So, when men come together it’s just so important that we’re not here at a funeral; that we’re not here at a court case, but we’re here as kind of a celebration.”
Mr. Couchie spoke for over an hour, using examples in his own life, in changing that ripple effect. And after a short break, he spoke for another hour, using the gifts of the Seven Grandfathers: Wisdom, Truth, Humility, Love, Respect, Bravery and Honesty as tools for one’s life. Mr. Couchie is quite used to addressing groups, during his 33 years as a police officer, 12 of those years were spent delivering award-winning Native Awareness training programs and initiatives. He also created the Walking the Path Program, which gives youth of all backgrounds an understanding of Indigenous culture and history. There are links to this program in the curriculum of Ontario schools from Grades 1 to 12, with the intention of changing that ripple effect through today’s youth.
Day-two of the Wellness Gathering brought more listeners and more participants. Acclaimed actor Glen Gould addressed those in the circle, but not before he sat down at breakfast and shared what his talk would focus on. “I’m going to talk about my story, being a five-time survivor of suicide, and more recently the victim of an abusive relationship with a narcissist. I’m going to talk about the importance of culture, the importance of spirituality, the power of prayer, and also, as men, being able to cry. It’s ok, it’s not cowardly to reach out and ask for help, it actually takes a lot of courage to do that. I’ll talk about my family and my career. I’ll probably cry a few times, telling my story.”
Mr. Gould, a member of the Membertou First Nation in Nova Scotia, was an engaging speaker. He had everyone riveted to his words about his life, his struggles, his acting out in his teen years, and how, when he finally turned to his native culture, embracing its rituals and spirituality, his life was turned around. He talked about his career and the opportunities he’s been given. How important it is to “pray in the morning, do your smudge, put your tobacco down. It’s powerful.” He talked of loss and grief and how to deal with that through ceremony. He feels, as he heard George Couchie mention the day before, there are no young people coming up to be elders-in-training. Mr. Gould considers himself to be an elder-in-training. “I have my pipes,” he said, “I have my regalia, I have my bundle, my bundle travels with me everywhere. The importance of staying clean and sober. There are three things that are important: your mind, your body and your spirit.”
Both men’s messages were important and though seemingly different, they were basically the same: be the change, be the positive ripple that effects the whole community. Embrace the traditions and the culture with a grateful heart, always with a grateful heart.
Following Mr. Gould’s morning talk, Craig Abotossaway, executive director of Mnaamodzawin Health Services, and Anishinabe Knowledge Keeper, addressed the group in the afternoon. Mr. Abotossaway spoke of bundle carriers, their history within Indigenous societies and how to bring a modern understanding of these ancient health practices into the culture today. Derek Debassige brought the two-day gathering to a close discussing chronic disease management in Indigenous health. There was a lot to take in at this gathering, the first of its kind in this area. Those in attendance felt it was time well spent and were glad they had come.
Greg Brown, resolution health support worker at Noojmowin Teg organized the event and, though he would have liked to see more than the 20 participants take part, he felt it was a good beginning.
“It will be as it needs to be,” Will Morin said, with a sage nod. “Those who needed to hear it, are here,” George Couchie added.
by Margery Frisch
