Muses From The North

Taryn Cook As an Indigenous person, my relationship to the land is spiritual, cultural, and traditional. Growing up in an Indigenous community teaches many people how to hunt, fish, cook, and go to ceremonies. I grew up being taught by my parents and grandparents all the survival skills for living on the land, as they…

Lance Laycock Today I decided to take my grandson to an old, secret fishing spot of our family. The same place my grandfather took me to as a kid and his grandfather did before him. Fishing at that spot is our family tradition, and it has been passed down from one generation to the next,…

Sandreka Kaczoroski Away from my landNo regrets that I’m feelingJust the hope, prayer, and desireFor strength and self-healing My Island, my homeOut of many, we are onebut how could this be when we lack brotherly love and suffer greatly because of a country misrun One love and one heartIt is the mantra we teachBut it…

Madison Gurniak Northern lights are one of the astronomical mysteries that occur in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The lights, also known as the polar lights or aurora polaris, are natural phenomena with great significance to the planet and landscape. During an episode of northern lights, shafts or curtains of colored lights are seen in…

Kelly Laybolt The gate was closed when Brent and I pulled up to the scout camp. I parked in the grass on the side of the dirt road and grabbed my cap off of the dash. It was summer, and even though we’d be under the tree canopy, I knew my bald head would still…

Kailyn Coutts-Ramstead The wind blows through the willows,calm, and then mighty, it shows.The sky, speckled with clouds,and full of wonder; each person, I hope, knows. The water ripples with movement of air,and an eagle soars.His shadow cast on the ground below,as waves crash on the nearby shores. It is easy to forget,this is so true,just…

Christine McKay As an Indigenous woman, I have been fascinated by women’s power for creation. The idea of “Nurture=Nature” started from the concept of “Sky Woman” in the Haudenosaunee creation story. The first woman who, with her children, helped the existing animals shape the land onto Great Turtle’s back. From there, it expanded to embrace…

Darlene Wilson I was born and raised in a small, northern community built on a rock called “The Sunless City,” which originated from a strange, fictional character, Josiah Flintabbatey Flonatin. The book was said to have been recovered in the boreal forest of Flin Flon, where the land is beaded with coniferous trees, and lakes…

Sydney Bjorndalen To be an escapist is to escape everything that surrounds you physically, emotionally and mentally through the conscious and unconscious mind. Wilby is portrayed as an escapist throughout the short story “Folie à Deux” by William Trevor (2007). This paper explores how Wilby is an escapist, and what an escapist means to him…

Recently, there has been a growing concern that local cultures are being dominated by global forces. As global brands make their way into communities across the world, some people may fear that eventually, local brands will not be able to compete. However, Bryant Simon, the author of “Global Brands Contend with Appreciation for the Local,”…