kîkwaya kâ-masinahikâtêki ôta contents
Foreword Jenna Butler ix
The Sounds of Plains Cree: A Guide to Pronunciation xi
Family Poems
The Road to Writer’s Block (A Poem to Myself) 5
Trademark Translation 12
paskwâhk | On the Prairie 13
kiya kâ-pakaski-nîmihitoyan | You Who Dance SoBrightly 15
tawâw | There Is Room, Always Room for One More 17
Perfect Not Perfect 20
tawastêw | The Passage Is Safe 21
pahkwêsikan | Bread 23
ê-wîtisânîhitoyâhk asici pîkiskwêwin | Language Family28
ê-wîtisânîhitoyâhk êkwa ê-pêyâhtakowêyâhk | Relative Clause33
Critical Race Theory at Canadian Tire 39
Reclamation Poems
Cree Lessons 43
tânisi ka-isi-nihtâ-âhpinihkêyan | How to Tan a Hide 45
aniki nîso nâpêwak kâ-pîkiskwêcik | Two Men Talking 49
nohtâwiy opîkiskwêwin | Father Tongue 52
ninitâhtâmon kititwêwiniwâwa | I Borrow Your Words 58
aniki nîso nâpêwak kâ-masinahikêcik | Two Men Writing61
sâpohtawân | Ghost Dance 62
ê-kî-pîcicîyâhk | We Danced Round Dance 66
A Few Ideas fromamiskwacî-wâskahikanihk
The Young Linguist 73
tânisi ka-isi-nihtâ-pimîhkêyan | How to Make Pemmican74
History Poems
maskihkiy maskwa iskwêw ôma wiya ohci | For Medicine BearWoman 87
mistahi-maskwa 91
Take This Rope and This Poem (A Letter for Big Bear) 94
sôhkikâpawi, nitôtêm | Stand Strong, My Friend 98
kâh-kîhtwâm | Again and Again 102
nikî-pê-pimiskân | I Came This Way by Canoe 107
Spinning 110
Practicing for My Defence 112
Like a Bead on a String 115
ihkatawâw ay-itwêhiwêw | The Marsh Sends a Message 116
kakwêcihkêmowin ohci kânata otâcimowina 117
A Question for Canadian History 118
kiskinohamâkêwin ohci kânata otâcimowina 119
An Instruction for Canadian History 120
kiyâm | Let It Be 121
Notes on the Poems 123
Cree-English Correspondences 127
Bibliography 153
Publication Credits 157
Acknowledgements 159
