Youth will lead the way

More than 100 youth from across Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) territory were in Thunder Bay Jan. 31 to Feb. 3 learning traditional strength building practices.

February 7, 2008: Volume 35 #03

The Seven Sacred Teachings Youth Gathering, hosted by the NAN Decade for Youth and Development program and the NAN Decade for Youth Council, brought together traditional teachers and youth to engage in the teachings of the Anishnabe and Mushkego.

During his opening remarks, Stan Beardy, grand chief of NAN, said the traditional teachings shared during the gathering have helped and guided the people of NAN for thousands of years.

“If we practise them and understand them, they will lead us into the future,” Beardy told the youth of the ancient teachings.

Sharing an old adage, Beardy said, “We can’t know where we are going unless we know where we came from.”
Resiliency among young people was a common theme throughout the four-day gathering.

Beardy said it is resiliency – the ability to overcome hard times in a healthy manner – that has helped the Anishnabe and Mushkego of northern Ontario survive from the past into the present.

Keynote speaker and presenter Emily Faries also shared a message of resiliency. During her presentation on a prophecy that speaks of the seventh generation, Faries said Aboriginal people have lost so much throughout history. Culture, lands, spirituality, family structures and governing systems have all been lost. It’s now up to the current generation to reconnect with the teachings of their ancestors, she said.

“As young people, you can make the change,” Faries said of the work needed to restore balance and well-being in Aboriginal communities.

But action is needed to ensure the prophecy is fulfilled, she added.

“We can talk about the prophecy, but to actually go and do it will make it happen.”

Various workshops and presentations were made throughout the gathering, including drum teachings, self-esteem workshops, sharing circles, and morning and sweat lodge ceremonies.