I am Metis. I practice saying these words to myself. Often. Still. I look at my fair skin and my grey eyes and my baby-fine, mousy-brown hair and I say the words. I close my eyes in my cluttered kitchen in my suburban home and picture the swaying grass on the banks of the Red […]
One Small Arrival
by on April 3, 2019 Leave a Comment
Denver March Pow Wow fell at the tail end of a week of sickness in our family. My oldest caught it first and then I spent our spring break in bed. Our three-year-old was just getting over her round when we arrived at the Pow Wow. After exploring the vendors and buying some remembrances for […]
When Terrible Things Have Been Done in the Name of Jesus
by on February 26, 2019 Leave a Comment
[Trigger warning: Violence, trauma, loss, especially as related to indigenous communities.] “You represent the ones who died in violent encounters as settlers took your land.” “You represent the ones who starved after overhunting.” “You represent the thousands who died from diseases spread by the colonizers.” We started out as 15 people, standing on blankets spread […]
Glance with Compassion and Honor, Not Contempt
by on February 11, 2019 Leave a Comment
2019. Tension brewed like a bubbling witch’s cauldron on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. A handful of Black Hebrew Israelites yelled at a bunch of high school students who meandered over after participating in the March for Life earlier that day. The students took the bait, responding to taunts with words and gestures of […]
If Justice Isn’t the Key to Healing, Then What Is?
by on November 20, 2018 12 Comments
In November of 1984, I was eight years old. I remember walking home from school, with the crunch of snow beneath my feet and the sun sinking quickly in the early winter sky. Making the way home seemed ominous and full of danger. It wasn’t just the darkening woods or the long stretch of busy […]
