Language, Purposes, Turtle Island Sara General Language, Purposes, Turtle Island Sara General

A Gift of Language

Sge:no Swagwe:goh! Hi everyone! 

I've been holding onto this very exciting news for the last few weeks and now that it is September, I am super excited to share that starting tomorrow, I will be taking a year off to do more intensive language learning! 

Those of you who have been following the blog may know that for the past year or so, my husband and I have been making a concentrated effort to speak more of the Cayuga language in our home. The results of this effort have been really inspiring. The majority of our baby’s new words are all in Cayuga and our three-year old daughter also is able to speak and understand a lot of the language as well. This made us realize that things would moving along faster and even more language would be spoken in our home if I were to become a more proficient speaker. And so that is what we are going to do: take a year and focus on increasing my speaking proficiency.  

Sge:no Swagwe:goh! Hi everyone! 

I've been holding onto this very exciting news for the last few weeks and now that it is September, I am super excited to share that starting tomorrow, I will be taking a year off to do more intensive language learning! 

Those of you who have been following the blog may know that for the past year or so, my husband and I have been making a concentrated effort to speak more of the Cayuga language in our home. The results of this effort have been really inspiring. The majority of our baby’s new words are all in Cayuga and our three-year old daughter also is able to speak and understand a lot of the language as well. This made us realize that things would moving along faster and even more language would be spoken in our home if I were to become a more proficient speaker. And so that is what we are going to do: take a year and focus on increasing my speaking proficiency.  

The core of the approach that we are using to learn is called the Master/Apprentice method. This approach was designed for people who have access to a speaker of an Indigenous language but not necessarily a classroom. One of the ideas that we have really taken to heart with this method is the notion that you have to “create your own language situation” (Hinton, 2002)

A few months back, we went to an Indigenous language symposium in Thunder Bay which I made a video blog about here. The experience was really cathartic because I met many of my old friends and acquaintances from when I worked with the Chiefs of Ontario. It was also a reminder that while there are so many issues we need to be advancing as Indigenous Peoples (and we certainly need everyone, everywhere doing all of the work), the work that I’ve personally gravitated to is language, education, art and storytelling. I want to make a concerted effort now to acquire more language and to do this successfully—I have to give more time to it. 

By and large, the research shows that the most successful language learning happens in an immersion environment. And while we can create an immersion environment in our home, the depth of our conversations has been limited by the amount of things that I can say. We realized we needed to be able to get through the rules of the language more quickly. That I needed to memorize the prefixes, suffixes, negations and other elements of the language that elude me in the time we currently devote to Master/Apprentice.

Once problem I’ve encountered in trying to make a greater commitment to language is that this September, I’m starting the final year of my doctorate degree. I’m therefore not in a position to attend an all-day adult immersion program as I still need to spend a portion of my day doing work on my dissertation. And in both cases, I need to do what Cal Newport refers to as “deep work”. “Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It’s a skill that allows you to quickly master complicated information and produces better results in less time. You work as hard as your brain is capable for an extended amount of time without any distractions.” (Newport, 2012)

Up to now, we have done the majority of our language learning at home with our girls. This is something we plan to continue, but we’re now going to be switch gears because it’s incredibly difficult to do distraction-free work at home. And I am very ready to do deep work where it concerns language—especially since I came back from Thunder Bay. When I was there, it became super clear to me that I need to make a stronger commitment and blend a few approaches together to make a class that was unique to our needs. And so, I decided to take a big leap. 

I saved up the money to rent our class and signed a one-year lease for a room that has three big whiteboards and is just down the hall from one of the most successful language learning programs in our community. Over the next year, I'll spend my afternoons (I’ve blocked out 12-4, Monday to Friday) to do deep work to become more familiar with the rules of Cayuga in an immersion/distraction free environment. Some of this time I will spend with my husband and some of it I will spend working on my own. Most importantly, there will be dedicated time in my day for my learning.

The first day we got our classroom. 

Kehte hanging up paradigm charts. 

Adding some colour & posters. 

Our bookcases. We got a lovely paradigm game from the local immersion school. 

After scrubbing our white boards clean, this was the first thing we wrote on them!

Kehte and I are both very excited about the year ahead, and I’m very grateful for the support I’ve gotten from my work and my school. I’m also somewhat nervous. But all in all, it’s a good nervous and because we’ve already landed on a combination of ways to use audio resources, transcribing, drills, immersion conversation, and other strategies to shape our effort, I feel really positive about our movement forward. 

I’m also happy and grateful because as part of his work, my husband created a program framework and adapted the first year of the successful language program that I mentioned for Cayuga, so we have a strong year of proven curriculum to draw from. It’s super exciting. Anyways. we will share more about our process as our year progresses, but I just wanted to show a few snapshots of our new classroom! Isn’t it gorgeous? Hooray for language learning and wish us luck :).

Also, today is my birthday! So it seems like an extra special day to celebrate & to give myself a gift of time to try and be a better speaker :). 

S. 

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Write Your Story. Start Today - Part Two

Richard Wagamese has passed away. He was a wonderful and talented Indigenous writer whose books were the recipients of many awards. He was also one of those few authors whose books both my parents and I really liked. I remember reading A Quality of Light as a teenager and just being completely blown away. To this day, it is one of my favourite books. I never met Richard—I only knew him from Facebook and Twitter, but he was always kind in his posts, open about his struggles and his dedication to writing and to helping other writers. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. 

After a week where I did little else but read article after article for my dissertation, his passing reminded me of how wonderful art is and how important it is to take the time to make it. To hone your skills and share what you love and are passionate about with others. 

Richard Wagamese has passed away. He was a wonderful and talented Indigenous writer whose books were the recipients of many awards. He was also one of those few authors whose books both my parents and I really liked. I remember reading A Quality of Light as a teenager and just being completely blown away. To this day, it is one of my favourite books. I never met Richard—I only knew him from Facebook and Twitter, but he was always kind in his posts, open about his struggles and his dedication to writing and to helping other writers. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. 

After a week where I did little else but read article after article for my dissertation, his passing reminded me of how wonderful art is and how important it is to take the time to make it. To hone your skills and share what you love and are passionate about with others. 

In December of last year, I met a lady from my community who was trying to find a printer for a book she had written. It was a memoir. I shared the name of my printer with her and asked her about her work. My baby was coming down with a cold though, so I became distracted and had to leave the event early. I found out later that the lady had passed away at the start of the year. It made me feel so sad. Sad that her book didn’t become a book, even though I know that she was loved and appreciated and will be remembered fondly by many. Still, I've continued to think about her and her story. And to think about other people I know who have creative inclinations and are gearing up to write or to paint or make something. Thinking about what I can do to encourage them or to be more helpful when people are looking for help. I have some plans in mind. Some things I am going to try. This post is one small way of sending a big burst of encouragement to you all. To write your story. To make your art. To start today. And to those of you who have already started—to encourage you to keep going.  

As you may have noticed from my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages—I’ve been doing a lot of art lately. I’ve also been reading and writing and practicing the piano a lot more. I’ve been doing all of these things because there are projects I want to do in each of these mediums. This has come as something of a surprise to me. I've always known I wanted to be a writer and a storyteller, but I didn’t know I wanted to be an illustrator or to tell stories through music. I probably should have known. There were all kinds of signs. (I used to have art shows in our living room when I was a little girl, displaying my work for my parents to come and purchase. My most expensively priced piece was $1. And guess where I displayed them? My old upright piano).

Anyways—it’s wonderful that these things have come back to me as an adult and I am so thankful I’m in a space to pursue these dreams. I’m also grateful they’re the kinds of pursuits I can include my daughters in. My toddler loves to paint and is already playing very cool little songs on the piano that she sings along to. My baby has also taken a special liking to toy instruments. They both love books.

So I’m happy to be able to share my art here. To share about my learning process and the steps I’m taking toward becoming an illustrator, similar to the way I’ve shared my writing journey over the last few years. Especially because I know there is so much learning to come—I’m definitely one of those people who embraces the notion that learning is a lifelong process. Case in point—I’ve learned more about writing in the last five years than in the fifteen preceding them and it seems like the things there are to learn next only multiply. But best of all—it’s fun. The things I’ve learned, I’ve learned by writing. By editing. By re-writing. By reading. I’ve learned by finishing one story and starting the next. By focussing on the work.

I’m trying to take some of these same principles and apply it to my art. To learn by creating things often and regularly. To take online classes (I’ll blog more about those in the future). To play with filters to learn what colour palettes I like and to give me ideas about what I can try next time. All in all, it has been awesome to be able to share the work I’ve finished with my family and friends. Indeed, every single piece of art I’ve made this year has taught me something different. But the biggest thing they’ve taught me is how important it is to just create. To practice. To try new things. To finish what I start.

Hearing about Richard’s passing was a reminder that we never know how long we have and that it's so important to make the most of each moment. To make the art that only we can make. So in honour of that, I thought I would share a few pieces I’ve worked on lately. There's even more on my Art page

Happy creating everyone! And if you haven’t started yet—then consider this your personal message to get going! The world is waiting for your art. So am I :). 

S. 

 

 

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Lights in the Dark

Last week I had my first ever author visit to the wonderful Braemar House School, where my niece attends. I presented to the Junior and Intermediate classes (grades 5-8) on my experiences being a writer, a creator of books and an aspiring language learner. I also read aloud from one of my books. It was awesome to share about how writing has helped me connect with, learn and share about my culture and our history as Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island. It was also nice to realize that I'm really and truly living my dream of being a writer. To be able to look back and see that what I’m doing now—telling stories and starting to make comics—is something I’ve been working toward for thirty years. So yeah. It was an awesome experience and I’m grateful to have had it.  

And of course, the students themselves were nothing short of amazing. I’m always so impressed with young people, the questions they ask and their incredible capacity for compassion, understanding and imagination.

 

Last week I had my first ever author visit to the wonderful Braemar House School, where my niece attends. I presented to the Junior and Intermediate classes (grades 5-8) on my experiences being a writer, a creator of books and an aspiring language learner. I also read aloud from one of my books. It was awesome to share about how writing has helped me connect with, learn and share about my culture and our history as Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island. It was also nice to realize that I'm really and truly living my dream of being a writer. To be able to look back and see that what I’m doing now—telling stories and starting to make comics—is something I’ve been working toward for thirty years. So yeah. It was an awesome experience and I’m grateful to have had it.  

And of course, the students themselves were nothing short of amazing. I’m always so impressed with young people, the questions they ask and their incredible capacity for compassion, understanding and imagination. They are lights in the dark. Being around young people is also an important reminder that the land and water is something we borrow from future generations and that we should be mindful of how the decisions we make today can impact their well-being now and for years to come. 

It made me realize that I want young people, including my daughters, nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephew, to have hope for the future. And that means doing my part now. To help find, share and create knowledge that empowers us to have compassionate discussions, to be who we are meant to be, and to hold a respectful place in our hearts for those around us. How to do this, especially right now, is a question I’ve thought a lot about over the last few weeks. 

I don’t know about you, but lately I’ve found it challenging to read the news on Facebook and Twitter. I’ve tried to bring balance to my use of social media and establish some boundaries because as much as I enjoy the break from reading so many dismal reports, I also think it’s important to be informed. So for example, I will be looking to subscribe to one or two newspapers in the very near future, to help bring more balance to my life and help feel more prepared to interact with the world for the months ahead. Right now I feel like I’m reading everything, all of the time, which is great because there are so many important perspectives, but not so great in that it also really crowds out my own sense of self—especially when there are so many terrible things happening. I want to be a force for good and to be able to encourage others. To do that, I need to have some light to share. 

So at this time, creating is so important and making time to be creative is vital. Writing, painting, playing piano. These are things I can do to transform my space and because I’m connected to the world, it will spread :). 

In the meantime, I’ll keep doing my best to be supportive and compassionate, learn our languages, learn more about our culture with my daughters and share what I can with others so I can help build positive relationships and a sense of community for us all. 

I’m also focussing on my dissertation research. Right now, this means a lot of reading and thinking and revisiting aspects of research paradigms such as ontology and epistemology. I’ve started working on a series of paintings that can help me capture those ideas in a visual way and will hopefully reinforce my learning. It’s a way of staying active with my art practice and also moving forward with the work. 

This is the first painting I'll share. It’s a picture I drew while listening to a presentation about Indigenous research methods. The speaker talked about how the land is a teacher and that it teaches us things even if we don't recognize it right away. It was a really beautiful teaching that resonated and reinforced others I've heard from elders and speakers before. 

I hope you like it! Until next time!

Happy creating!

Sara

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The Fortune Teller's Daughter - Now Available!

Hi Everyone!

Wow. What a week it's been. I've been reading a lot. News. Blogs. Books. Facebook posts. I've also been thinking a lot - about the days ahead and what I want to do to support and empower my daughters and my nieces and nephews. About what I want to do to make sure they are able to speak our languages, know our stories and our ways of honouring creation. I've also been thinking a lot about water and the climate, and what I can do to reduce my footprint and live more sustainably. About how we can really transform the way our little family lives and demonstrate how grateful I am for the many blessings we have in our lives.

For all these reasons and more it seems strange to launch a book today, but I am happy to share this one. It's called The Fortune Teller's Daughter and it's about a young Haudenosaunee girl named Cora who is yanked out of her everyday life when her mother goes missing and she suddenly acquires the power of lightning.

Hi Everyone!

Wow. What a week it's been. I've been reading a lot. News. Blogs. Books. Facebook posts. I've also been thinking a lot - about the days ahead and what I want to do to support and empower my daughters and my nieces and nephews. About what I want to do to make sure they are able to speak our languages, know our stories and our ways of honouring creation. I've also been thinking a lot about water and the climate, and what I can do to reduce my footprint and live more sustainably. About how we can really transform the way our little family lives and demonstrate how grateful I am for the many blessings we have in our lives.

For all these reasons and more it seems strange to launch a book today, but I am happy to share this one. It's called The Fortune Teller's Daughter and it's about a young Haudenosaunee girl named Cora who is yanked out of her everyday life when her mother goes missing and she suddenly acquires the power of lightning. She has to figure out how to navigate that power, save her mother and decide whether or not she is going to join this larger battle between good and evil - a battle that started long before she was born but will have all kinds of bearings on her future.

I am super excited to be releasing it, although I cannot help but think the timing is ironic.

Today also marks the one year anniversary of my sharing my books and launching an art production company with my sister. I have learned so much over the last year and hope to learn even more, become an even better storyteller and an even better supporter of other creative people. People who write, draw, paint, make music and comics and all of the other wonderful things that you are making.

Art is incredible. Art helps us learn and heal and relate to and have compassion for one another. And so I want to say thank you to everyone who has been a part of my writing journey or who has taken the time to read some of my work. It has truly meant the world to me. 

With that said, here is my first offering of the year! It's available on Amazon and Kobo. And you can also order it on my book page :). Here are the links!

Amazon: The Fortune Teller's Daughter

Kobo: The Fortune Teller's Daughter

Wishing you all peace, health and happiness. Happy creating!

S. 

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My Creative Goals for 2017

2016 was a difficult year for the world, filled with loss and change. In some ways, it was difficult for us too but it was also a tremendously special year and I’m grateful for all the wonder and happiness that entered our lives. 

My husband and I celebrated our one year anniversary in September. We welcomed our second daughter in May. And we moved into our new house in October—all very wonderful things.

2016 was also the year that I made the most progress with realizing my writing dreams. I launched my publishing company on January 21st, 2016 and published six books over the course of the year. 

2016 was a difficult year for the world, filled with loss and change. In some ways, it was difficult for us too but it was also a tremendously special year and I’m grateful for all the wonder and happiness that entered our lives. 

My husband and I celebrated our one year anniversary in September. We welcomed our second daughter in May. And we moved into our new house in October—all very wonderful things.

2016 was also the year that I made the most progress with realizing my writing dreams. I launched my production company on January 21st, 2016 and published six books over the course of the year.  

I also formatted and designed a book for a fellow artist and writer from my community, Elizabeth Doxtator. We launched our books together at the Woodland Cultural Centre in November of 2016 which was a really great experience. Our friends and family came out to support us along with local MPP, Dave Levac who also gave us a very kind congratulatory certificate to mark the occasion.

I continued my language learning and started to make comics in the Cayuga language with my husband. 

I bought some recording equipment and began learning how to record some of the piano music I’ve written.  

I set-up as a vendor at three events: The Six Nations Language Conference, The Grand River Champions of Champions Powwow and The Everlasting Tree School’s Healing & Wellness event. 

And finally, I finished the first year of my doctorate program and started into the second year. 

Needless to say—it was a busy, busy year and 2017 shows every sign of being just as busy! 

 

Looking ahead to 2017

 

My goals for 2017 are to do more of what made 2016 as great as it was. To spend time with my husband and daughters. To write more. To paint more. To record my piano music as well as my books. To learn more language. To read more about Indigenous language revitalization. To read more legends and do more research. To be a healthy creative person who eats well and exercises regularly. And to share the positive energy I gain from creating things with the world.

I have specific goals, too. They are:

1. To write 500 plus words a day

2. To edit for an hour.

3. To write two novels, one novella, two short stories and three essays.

4. To publish three books. 

5. To read 25 books. 

6. To record an audio book of Spirit & Intent. 

7. To make a short album of piano music. 

8. To continue to learn more about writing and publishing.

9. To continue working in the area of language revitalization.

But my big goal in has everything to do with art. Over the last few months I’ve realized that while I have a lot of writing and publishing goals—I have just as many goals when it comes to drawing an painting and illustrating. There is a lot of art that I want to create. Art for essays I’m thinking of writing. Art for my book covers. Art for Cayuga language books I want to write for myself and my girls. Art on canvas. Art for print. Digital art. 

Some of the work I did in 2016.

 

I have so much to learn when it comes to art that it sounds weird to say that I have a dream of being an illustrator—but it’s true. I have a dream of being an illustrator. So 2017 marks the start of a more intensive concentration on my art practice. I’m not ready to define my goals here yet but overall, I'm looking to amass a body of work that I'm happy with and to learn new techniques and experiment with more tools. I’m very much looking forward to sharing what I learn and I'll be sharing my work on my Instagram so come check it out!  

Phew. So there they are. My goals for 2017. I am super excited for them all and for the wonderful new space we have to work on them all in. Building our house was a long and challenging process but having a home of our own is something I am immensely grateful for every day.

Here's one last thing before I go. Since 2013, a few key words have helped me to really determine the direction I want to move my life in. I thought I would share them with you, because although they’re just words, but they really did help me quite a lot. So here they are—in picture form :). 

 

What about you? What are your goals for 2017?

Til next time, happy writing & creating!

S. 

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