Hungry, But Still Enjoyed the Day

By Nigel Dubois

I enjoyed the day I went to treaty four even though the day I went to treaty four was short. I was able to see what was new and old or wasn’t there. Like the archery wasn’t there and bannock on a stick was old but still there. This time there was a Parkland College tent there and that was cool, I guess. In the mean time I was bored, so we bought a volleyball there so that was fun for a while; then the fox came to play with us for a while. Then we went back to school for the day.

Now we have returned back to the grounds. There were a lot of people there, and I saw a lot of old friends and birds. I was smelling bannock burgers and coffee. The burgers were making me hungry but I didn’t have any money and I forgot to pack a lunch. So I was walking around the ground hungry just waiting to go home. I had a lot of fun doing nothing but taking to elders and other people and walking around, then I went for a long lunch break doing nothing, just hungry, so I went back to the school to see if my brother had anything to eat. And then I didn’t know what time it was, then the bell rang, so I got on the bus and went home.

I Was Too Scared

By Kai-La Petit

The day started off at the school; I really didn’t want to go since I knew it was going to be cold outside. When we got to the grounds I just wanted to go home and sleep, but I just went to my grandma’s office instead since I was cold after being outside for 15 minutes.

When I finally decided to go back outside she was going there anyways, so I just went back with her. When we got there she was nagging me to do my interview, but I was really nervous to do it since I don’t really like talking to people I don’t know very much. That whole time I felt really pressured to do it since she was really excited that I finally got to do this.

I was too scared to do it so I just tried to push it off for as long as I could but I ended up just not doing it since I was too scared. I feel kinda bad since I wanted to do it, but I just felt too pressured, and having my grandma, and grandpa listening to the questions I had down was just too much pressure for me.

For the rest of the day all I did was just watch what other people were doing and at lunch watching the dancers. I liked watching some of the kids there trying to dance because they just looked so cute, and when that was done I was hanging out with the “fox”. It was cute having to see all the little kids so excited to see the fox and seeing them run it just to get a hug.

Food and Friends

 

By Jordan Pinay

There was really good food at Treaty4 like the bannock burger, hot chocolate, and fries. It was lots of fun to see lots of people I knew. I saw my uncle’s friends. The second day we went was really cold . Lots of other schools were there. The lines for the food booths were really long and the food was really expensive. I’m waiting in line for my food and I almost miss my bus because the food took too long.

 

Our Story Tellers, Our Guidance and Our Knowledge

By Reighlene Peigan

The veterans tent, a big white tent, to me it really stood out because it wasn’t a tipi and it also had two flags on it, a Canadian and a British flag. Seeing our veterans sitting there waiting for the youth to come so they could tell their amazing stories was really beautiful to see.

During my time at Treay 4 I got to meet and interview elders to talk about the gathering; I learned that a lot has changed, according to elder Thomas Desnomie from the Peepeekisis First Nations. He’s been coming to the gatherings for 20 plus years and he says the powwows got shorter, and to him Treaty 4 means the singing of treaty in 1874 and that his grandfather was there when they signed it!

I also interviewed elder Tony Lerat from the Cowessess First Nation; he’s been coming to the gathering for eight years. He said the things that changed were the kids are more open with the questions about First Nations people, unlike the first years he said they were a little afraid to ask. He said the parents held the kids back. I then ask Tony Lerat what treaty meant to him. He said treaty is about people, “You couldn’t have signed a treaty with only one person, you need two, an Indian and a white man.”

As a First Nation personI was always taught you respect elders because they play a very important role in our lives; they’re our story tellers, our guidance and our knowledge. If we need someone to talk to they’re always there. To me elders and veterans are important because of all the things they’ve done for us; they fought for us and they have been through the worst times but are still here with a smile on their face and as gentle as can be!

Getting Together and Having Fun

By Evan Lejoure

Treaty 4 was a successful powwow. I notice there was not that much fights and that’s good because Treaty 4 is about getting together and having fun. Not fighting. But anyways the food there was yummy, really yummy! J I wish I can go back and eat more but I can’t! I have to wait till next year. It was fun and I saw a lot of my friends, plus I made new friends. I checked out everything. The teepees, the dancing, the smell of Treaty 4, the fresh air. I saw some elders! And I was trying to snag some girls but they were turning me down.  Just kidding, but anyways, I helped some people, I sold bannock and they gave me 5 bucks, aha for all that hard work too L Like I said, it was FUN! I never had this fun in years; its different now, well not that different. Just a little bit! But there were clothes there and it looked nice! My days there were amazing. I hope I’ll go next year because at the end of this year, I might move L I recommend other people going there!

Through the Eyes of a Dancer

 

By Katie Boucher

I have some friends who are dancers. Sometimes we talk about dancing and they have told me how it feels. This is how I imagine it would feel if I was out there dancing.

I stand in the arbour. Butterflies are in my stomach and I can feel my heart pounding in my chest. This isn’t my first time dancing but I know that I could never get used to this fluttery feeling. I hear the drums throbbing in my ears. The strike of the drum so loud, that I can even feel it in my bones. The sun shines on my face and I close my eyes. I take a deep breath and smell the scent of sweet grass in the distance. The drums beat faster and I know that it’s almost my time. I reopen my eyes and they adjust to the bright beams of the sun. My stomach growls, making me instantly regret not eating. But how can I with all these butterflies?  I look down at my regalia. It’s so beautiful and precious. Each sequin and bead sewn with absolute care and love from my Kokum. I look up and see her and smile. She smiles back and a warm, calming feeling goes through my entire body. All the butterflies die and I’m ready to begin. Ready to work my hardest and hopefully that hard work will pay off. And maybe, just maybe I’ll win something. The drums are starting to slow down and I know it’s my time.

Something New But Something Old

by Zoe Blondeau

I have been going to treaty four now for a while, and I have something new to look at each year. Like this year, there was a career fair tent; my favourite booth there would have had to be, First Nations University; one, because I knew a couple people from that booth, and it was great to see them again.

My other favourite part this year would have to be watching the dancers seeing them get ready with all their stuff, and getting prepared to dance. Climbing the hill was great too because my friend and I thought that it would be fun to go exploring, down the other side of the hill, which caused a few falls, but was worth it.

On Tuesday morning I was dressing up as Bert the Fox, which was pretty fun, but very hot in there. But one of the things that was kind of funny, but sad, was that I was walking around as the fox and saw these two little girls, so I went up to say hello, and the one little girl screamed and ran away, and the other girl started to cry, so that was my experience as Bert the Fox.

Then on Wednesday we were there for just about the whole day and it was very cold that day, but we went anyways. I really enjoyed eating the fries from Minnie’s; they are well known for their food each year they are there for treaty four.

Many of the children that go to Treaty Four really enjoy all the activities in the teepees; there is a variety of different actives in each teepee; for example, the SGI Roll Over Car activity or the face painting, or even the bannock on a stick. Each child had something to do.   

Like I said before I have been going to Treaty Four for a while, and one thing that nobody will ever forget about Treaty Four is, Minnie’s food truck, that is the one thing people look forward to every year.

Overall, It Was a Good Day

By Andrew Flett

At Treaty Four it was very interesting because  I saw lots of different things like food stations,  buses, kids from Cupar and Southey, lots of young  city kids. I saw many trucks, like Ford Powerstrokes, Dodge Cummins, and lots of gas cars and gas Chevy’s. I saw lots of people who buy bales from   us and I saw lots of the town’s history. The guy I interviewed was a friend of  my dad and he goes to the winter festival so my grandpa knows him too. I saw the ski hill and all the trees; leaves are falling off already. I saw lots of different people, lots of tepees and lots of garbage, and it was a crappy day till I left because of the weather, but the most interesting thing of the day was that a friend of my dad was there. There were lots of elders.  there was only one tepee that was heated, but we were not allowed in it. The crappiest part of the day was that there were no horses to interview, but it worked out good, and I saw lots and smelled lots and heard lots that day. I heard music the most. I smelled lots of meat, and I think that they should get more organized, and the kids should not be allowed to run around and bigger fire. But overall, it was a good day.

My First Time at Treaty 4

Dear Manly Diary,

          This was my first time at Treaty 4 Gathering and I’ve got to say, I kind of want to come back next year. It was a wonderful experience and next year I’m sure will be tons more fun. I interviewed one of the dancers and he said he dances mainly for the money, which intrigued me, so I questioned further. He said that he usually gets a couple hundred at each pow wow if he dances at his best. I never thought of pow wows that way, a “job”. Probably you can make a killing at pow wows if you dance a lot and are good at it. It’d be interesting to hear what the cooks at the pow wows make though. Maybe next year I’ll go and interview a cook on my own time to see how much they make. For my first time at Treaty 4 it was pretty refreshing coming from BC. Kamloopa is one of the bigger pow wows and coming to this pow wow kind of pales in comparison. Treaty 4 was still great though. I would recommend it for anyone else who wishes to partake in the activities offered at Treaty 4. There’s tons to do at T4!

Thanks for reading.

Seth Lafond

The Treaty 4 Family Reunion

By Breanne McCarron

          Wednesday, the 17^th was the first time I went to Treaty 4 and it was an absolutely amazing experience. Although I nearly froze to death, I learned way more than I thought I would have.

 Walking around with all kids from my class and Bert the Fox was really cool because it kept us warm and we got to see all the different things happening at the gathering. Some of the things going on at the gathering were the career fair, dances, singing, food trucks and tug o’ war, which -- by the way --  was really fun! 
 

I did not think I would fit in that well because I am not First Nations, but it was the complete opposite, I felt totally in place, part of their big familyJ. Some of my favorite things happening at the gathering were eating the french fries from Minnie’s Grill and the traditional dances; they had some little kids who looked about seven dancing for one song and it was seriously the cutest thing ever.

 I’ve never been to a powwow or anything like that so the dances were another first for me, and the regalia are so pretty and make the dances ten times better!

 As I said before it was utterly freezing that day and I just wore a sweater and pants so I was even colder. Some of the things that helped me keep from getting hypothermia were the yummy hot chocolate that tastes like chocolate pudding and the fire which was going all day for people who wanted to cook bannock on a stick.

After the whole day I learned that everybody should have gatherings like these, even if it’s just a family reunion at someone’s house; it really brings everyone together, well the food does, mostly.Everything was so inspiring, it really made me want to get my whole family together because Treaty 4 is like one huge family.

I Would Be Honoured to Go Back Another Year

By McKenzie McNaughton

We got on the bus and headed to Treaty 4; I remember the bus driver opened the doors at the tracks and looked then drove off; it was really confusing. Once we got there we walked around, and I met the person we were going to interview, Curtis Delorme. Curtis Delorme is my mom and dad’s friend; they grew up together in Fort Qu’Appelle. After we met Curtis, we walked around for a bit. We listened to the music that played. We also tried food such as bannock burgers, fries, hot chocolate, and cherry coke. It tasted amazing.

          Treaty 4 smelled so good; when we got there it smelled like fries and burgers it made me so hungry. Also, it was freezing cold. I had checked the weather network, and it had said it was supposed to be nice out, but no, it was freezing. I hugged the fox the whole time to stay warm. I also saw a bunch of people I knew such as Delvin and Cheryl Bitternose also known as Uncle Doc. Treaty 4 is beautiful. The tipis were very warm inside and had beautiful painting on the side. I would be honored to go back another year.

My Week at Treaty Four

By Maddy Montgrand

I go to Treaty Four gathering because I like to watch the different kinds of cultural dancing,uch as fancy, grass dance, and traditional. My favorite is jingle. I also really enjoy the food (especially the bannock burgers), listening to the music, and hanging out with all of my friends. This was not my first year at Treaty Four, but I enjoyed going when I was younger more than I do now. I liked it better when I was younger because our whole school would go; it would be so much fun hanging out with all of my friends from different grades! We did more activities when I was younger like going into the tipi’s, listening to presentations, and playing games like tag or red rover.  

I thought this year was different from others because NAIG gave away clothes and bags to everyone, which I think was a really good idea. This year I didn’t go into any of the tipi’s or make bannock on a stick. I did go to the career tent and I really liked that idea. It was always busy and people were really taking the time to learn about the possible job ideas for their future.

I also spent most of my time walking around the grounds with my friends. I saw buses, drums, elders, and dancers dressed in their beautiful regalia. I tasted the bannock, iced tea, and candy apples. My favorite part of the day was playing tug of war with Shantel, Gordie, and Chloe. I also played volleyball, drank hot chocolate, sat on the bleachers, and froze to death! I smelled sweet grass, fire, and lake water.

To end off the day I interviewed Mrs. Smith, one of my old teachers from elementary school. I was really nervous because I wasn’t that prepared. It was actually sort of a last minute thing.

To end off the week I went to the powwow on Saturday with my cousin Serenity. I saw many tipi’s and the flags. I heard the announcer, music, and many people talking. At the powwow I walked around and saw a few of my friends; it was really fun!

The History and Experience at Treaty 4

By Sterling Smith
 

I go to the Treaty 4 gathering because it’s part of my town’s history and I like the food, but the fact that a small valley sitting in Saskatchewan could have such a significance for the treaties signed, being the  4^th numbered one to be signed in Canada, that makes going to the Gathering even more significant.

The treaty was signed between the British Government on behalf of the Canadian Government and the Cree and Salteaux aboriginal peoples.

I find Treaty 4 a really interesting gathering because of the way it brings so many people together, and in the past few years it has grown considerably more popular in exhibits and the overall audience of students, teachers, and anyone interested in the gathering.  The variety of exhibits that show up to Treaty 4 is awesome; it has games for kids and more mature things to look at for adults, and I can’t forget the food. Whether you want a burger and fries to Tim Horton’s coffee, the food there is amazing. 

I really enjoy the fact that it still, to this day, has so much spirituality in the entire gathering, but they’ve made it interactive and fun for everyone I respect and it makes it seem very unique and special.

I really enjoyed Treaty 4 this year and I’m glad I got to go. 

Journalism: A Job I might Like When I'm Older

By Logan Sanderson

My very first time reporting was this year at Treaty Four for my English class. It was one of the best things I’ve ever done; I really liked being a reporter; I got to meet a really nice veteran named Tony Lerat and he told me about his time in the Royal Canadian infantry and many other things he has done.

Being a journalist seems like a job I might like to do when I’m older because for some of the job you get to do research, track down leads and you are partly responsible for making sure the people who read your article find out the truth about that subject. It was also a huge bonus that I got to report at Treaty Four because I got to see more of my culture first hand. The fact that I actually really like journalism shocks me because until I had actually done it I thought it would be extremely boring, but my experience changed how I look at journalism.

Reporting at Treaty Four was an amazing experience for me because I loved seeing all of my culture, just all the things that you could do. There is always music playing and the Emcee Howie Thompson was funny last year. My partner Evan and I had actually planned to do an interview with Howie, him but I’m glad that we interviewed Tony Lerat instead; he gave us a lot to make a report on, before we even asked him a question.

Overall the whole experience reporting and Treaty Four was pretty great.

Traditions Flourish under Umbrella of Safety at Treaty 4

by Amber Chang

It was my privilege to interview one of the security officers at Treaty Four this year. Security personal provide a safe and stable environment for Treaty Four participants and guests. Wrapped in warm layers to keep out the fall chilly air, visitors mingled amid First Nations’ traditions, and my class and I made among them.

We stopped in our tracks to observe a freshly skinned moose, wondering whether the hide would become mukluks and the rich red meat would make a succulent savory stew. Maybe jerky was its intent.

I longed for my native Korean at the Cree language station, trying out a few ancient Cree words. May our cherished languages never be forgotten. Fires blazed as ethereal dancers synchronized to primordial drum rhythms.

The tempting aromas of fresh hot bannock was too strong to resist.

Before I attended Treaty Four it meant nothing to me. I had never had the opportunity to go before, but fortunately this year thanks to my grade 10 ELA class which makes an annual trek there, I now have an enriching experience of a life time. I learned more about traditional prairie Cree dances, songs, and foods; I realized I was missing out on a very special Canadian event. Treaty Four in Fort Qu’Appelle Saskatchewan, every September, is the place to learn about First Nations’ culture while having fun. I will never forget it.