Description:
"Never let anything or anyone stop you from following where your Spirit says it belongs..."
Spirit exists in everything on Mother Earth. If we are open to it, Spirit may guide us through even the darkest of moments, to experience the illumination of healing and connection.
In this innovative blend of poetry and story, Ojibway and Mohawk Elder Dawn Smoke offers readers to share in all that lives in her heart, mind, and soul. With unwavering honesty, Dawn shares her life-story, and her passionate words of protection for Mother Earth and her people, while advocating against the ongoing violence faced by the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island.
As a young girl confronted with the loneliness, anger and pain of being scooped from her birth family, Dawn courageously discovers her truth and the path towards healing. Reclaiming what was taken is not an easy feat, yet in doing so, Dawn powerfully reminds us of the Spirit in all around us, and the importance of community--of the family and friends that fill up all the empty corners of life.
Medicine Wheel Publishing is committed to sharing diverse voices and perspectives, creating a platform for stories that celebrate Indigenous cultures and inspire understanding and respect among readers of all ages.
Brief description: Jacqueline "Jackie" Traverse was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She is Ojibway from the Lake St. Martin First Nation. Jackie began drawing as a child and was inspired from a field trip to the Wahsa Gallery when she was 13 years old. It wasn't until she was 32 years old that she decided to submit a portfolio of her works to the University of Manitoba where she studied Fine Arts and graduated with a diploma in May of 2009. Jackie Traverse is widely known in art communities across Canada. Her paintings, drawings, documentaries, and sculptures speak to the realities of being an Indigenous woman. To Jackie, painting is truly where her heart lies.