gishpin, eta

resurgence

regeneration

indigenous revival

it’s all about survival

 

from below we follow cyber trails

uplink to the milky way via smoke trails    

downlink from star relations like the good ol’ days

 

hashtag the shit outta aking

like it’s only the land that needs saving.

it’s really just us #ohthehumanity

#becauseits2016 

and we are 

indigenous

 

what? 

is that a duck-lipped ndn selfie?

yep, i guess so.

and that’s how our spirits flow

to infinity and beyond

that one hundred and eighth like

  

…throw back to skinning rabbits

               gishpin eta, if only

 

…throwing back handfuls of blueberries

               gishpin eta, if only

 

…if only we remember who we are

               aanikoobijiganag aabaakawiig

 

ancestors revive

               standing tall among us

               maamwi, we follow the beat

               gishpin eta,

               if only

Vera Wabegijig is a nishnaabe writer, blogger, media artist and mother living in Nepean, Ontario. Her roots come from Missisauga First Nation and also from Wiikwemikoong Unceded Territory. She is passionate about writing, reading and researching. She is a nishnaabemowin language enthusiast. Wild Rice Dreams is her first collection of poetry (BookLand Press, 2013). Her poetry has been printed in many anthologies including Yellow Medicine Review, XXX NDN and Breaking the Surface, to name a few. Vera has performed poetry at the Ottawa International Writers Festival, Canadian Spoken Word Festival, Talking Stick Festival, Banff Centre for the Arts, VerseFest and Voices of Venus.