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Free admission for kids 12 and under Dec. 27-Jan. 5 | Free entry for all Sundays

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Cree teachings with Knowledge Keeper Marilyn Dykstra

Saturday, September 23, 2023

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The cut cross-section of an old tree reveals its many, many rings and splits in the wood that developed over time. Partially obscured.

Photo: davidgsteadman, New Forest – Tree Rings, Public Domain Mark 1.0

Cost:
Free, registration required
Location:
Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Bonnie & John Buhler Hall, Level 1
Language and Accessibility:
This event is offered in English.

Much like the rings in a tree, relations do not step over one another but rather respect connectedness, inter‐relatedness and thankfulness. Each year, we learn and add to our understanding of our place on earth. 

This workshop will explore the complexity of relating within Wahkowtowin. Some teachings of the traditional matriarch will be discussed. Traditional does not mean old and out of date but rather tried, tested and perfected. Let’s investigate how the matriarch is still viable and how to date, mate and relate in a modern world while we enjoy some Elderberry tea.

Workshop

This workshop is part of a monthly Wahkowtowin and Ways of Being series led by Knowledge Keeper Marilyn Dykstra. Each month, we will explore a variety of moon, pole and tea teachings in the Cree tradition.

Wahkowtowin – which translates to kinship – highlights how relationships, communities and the natural world are all interconnected.

Participants will discover and reflect on their connections with each other, with balance and with human rights through teachings and a traditional tea.

Marilyn Dykstra is a status Bill C‑31 First Nations woman from northern Manitoba. She has been immersed in a working matriarchal system that practiced Indigenous ways of thinking and being since she was born. Alongside her family, she has participated in many peaceful social justice movements.

Marilyn uses her matriarchal knowledge as a foundation for her work in the Indigenous community, which has been ongoing for over thirty years. She still follows her matriarchal teachings, but she has also spent her life learning traditional knowledge and passing the teachings on.

She is a pow wow dancer, knowledge keeper, and she carries the responsibility of a bundle. She happily participates in naming ceremonies, sweats, pipe ceremonies, moon teachings and more.

Find out more about this series

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