Xavier Kataquapit

As an indigenous person raised in a remote First Nation and on the land I am very familiar with my cultural and traditional roots. It was a steep learning curve for me to adapt, adjust and fit into the non Indigenous world when I first left Attawapiskat to further my education in the south.

The Walk of Sorrow participants arrived in Kirkland Lake, Ontario on Wednesday August 4 to create awareness of the residential school era and to acknowledge the support of local First Nations. The walk was led by Patricia Ballantyne, a First Nation Cree from the Deshchambault Lake community of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. This June she felt a need to do something in light of the discovery of multiple unmarked grave sites near former residential schools across the country.

The news that the graves of 215 children had been discovered near the site of a former residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia came as shock to me, my family and to every First Nation person across the country. As shocking as it was, it was also knowledge we had known about our entire lives.

When I look up at the clear blue sky these days I am missing something. For about a year now during this wretched pandemic I have hardly seen any contrails of national and international flights. For the first time in modern flight history there are hardly any aircraft in the skies. Worldwide air travel has decreased by an average of 80 percent, with Europe last December falling to as much as 98 percent less air travel than the previous year as countries closed their borders. I think we all miss air travel and the ability to move about freely.

I haven’t been out and about much this past winter. It’s been almost a year since I last visited a restaurant or fast food place. I would in more normal times before the pandemic take walks to the local coffee shop or restaurant during the winter. This winter, I’ve been to a some local retail stores but only for quick visits. I do curb side pickup for my groceries mostly but there are times when I do venture inside for specific items. These are quick stressful visits when I wear a mask, latex gloves and use hand sanitization and washing as a followup.