Meshkadoonaawaa Ikidowinan: Exchanging Words
baazhigwaadiziwin—persistence
Ningii-bazhinemin, we have barely escaped
nightly, a threshold looms in the cold.
Again, we sing ourselves strong—
Anishinaabikwewag, women of history and persistence.
Observe: constellations have long illuminated patterns,
relentless stories, adizookanag,
of who we might be, noongom aawiiyaang
gemaa waa-aawiiyang, or become.
Across skies trace belonging, ezhi-dibendagoziyang
in the land of wiindigoo-cannibals, awaken the crumbling spirit.
Become swirling light, motion—where Bagonegiizhig
still lives. This ancient portal a promise.
Become the shadow others expect—aagawaatesen
hiding in significance. Like stars, anangoog, excluded.
Anyone could read this.
No matter this bitter
winter, still.
wiingashk—sweetgrass
How she stitched the rim, gashkigwaadan.
Leaf blades and needle fingers circled,
smallest curve, waaganagamod, of song—
endless like the scent.
Held, there are, atenoon, some parts
one cannot see—
but she knows, gikendaang, what they hold.
Words from bogs and marshes.
Heaven fits neatly, mii gwayak, under
the snug lid, shut tight as lips
long used to gaadood, keeping secrets
of grandmothers and crane companions.
Notes:
The authors write about the collaborative process behind this piece here.
Source: Poetry (November 2021)