The Grade Six and Seven class at Bobcaygeon Public School had a class outing to experience the 215+ Children Taken Art Installation at the library in person. Members of the Truth and Reconciliation Community – Bobcaygeon were there to share the story behind the 215 stones, what inspired them, how they were made and why this matters. The visiting class learned that there were over 50 community members, young and old, involved in painting the stones. Since the first installation in early Summer the stones have inspired many discussions about the impact of Indian Residential Schools and now the students are continuing the conversations.
The students listened attentitively to Anne Taylor, Language Coordinator from Curve Lake First Nation talk about the significance of introduction protocols and knowing how we are connected to the land, to ancestors, to culture, to spirit and to each other. Both Anne and Mary Taylor spoke about the residential schools and the impact felt today.
The stones speak to everyone who sees them in person because each one has a story to tell – a story of a Little One who didn’t make it home, of a child who was denied a chance to share their gifts in the world and a world that robbed us of so much.
Later in the visit, the group moved to where we could connect better with the land. Anne Taylor shared teachings with the children and adults present about respectful relations with the land and the non-human relations – the plants and the animals.
Elder Mary Taylor is a fluent language speaker (one of a few remaining people in the community who speak Anishinaabemowin fluently) – a drummer – a singer – a teacher. She sang and drummed a Four Direction song while each person made an offering of tobacco to a plant or tree in the area.
Connecting to the land in this way helped us all to understand how we belong to the land and to reframe the Western Colonial view that the land belongs to us.
We were all grateful for this experience and hope to create more of these opportunities going forward.
