Poetry on the Land

I started writing poetry when I was 12. Llidlii Kue is a small isolated community.
There were challenges. Writing was a way to think about those challenges.

Think about how our ancestors learned from the land. It was about witnessing,
it was about paying attention and seeing how the land communicates with us.

Our Elders don't say: "I'm going to teach you." You have to watch, you witness.
Be observant of the land and understand the teaching it offers to you.

You can start by thinking about your favourite memory on the land, or a
teaching you learned from your own Elders, or a place that you connect with.

I love spruce trees and ravens. Spruce makes me think of the sap it shares
that heals us. I admire the cleverness of ravens. Both offer us teachings.

When I write, I think of it as a love letter to the land. Spend a few minutes
to write three words that you would use to describe how you love the land.

You can feel that energy, right? You can use only three words,
but it creates an image. That's powerful.