The strawberries are coming
Courtesy: Kahnawà:ke Collective Impact
Story told by watsenNi:ne McComber
Long ago, the people lived in small villages, sometimes bigger ones depending on the sizes of the families. And they lived in longhouses.
There was an extraordinarily cold winter with a lot of snow and the people suffered. They did what they could. They hunted when they could. They survived as best they could.
Come springtime, the Creator felt sorry for the people for them having to go through that cold winter. He wanted to do something for them to make up for it so he sent the strawberry to Earth.
The strawberry is shaped like his heart; it’s red, like his blood, and it’s sweet because he loves us.
Ever since then, every spring when you find the white flowers growing, it’s his promise that the strawberries are coming.
The wild strawberry is what we see when we’re going for walks. Just pick it and eat it. They’re tiny, tiny, tiny.
Every person in Kahnawake makes strawberry juice. They buy crates of strawberries and put them in baggies and freeze them for the winter. Then come winter, they have strawberry juice to drink.
Takón:ne’ ne ken’ niiohontésha
Credit: Melissa Stacey
Ni:ne McComber iakoká:raton
Wahón:nise’ tsi náhe’, ken’ nikanatà:sa ie’terón:tonhkwe’ ne onkwehshòn:’a. Sewatié:rens sénha kanatowá:nen’s ne ki’ tkawenní:io tó: nikahwatsí:ra’s. Tánon’ kanonhsésne ie’terón:tonhkwe’.
Énksa ki’ shiiohserá:te’ kwah í:ken tsi iohseratshahnihtòn:ne’ tsi niió:re tsi iothó:rehkwe’ tánon’ é:so kanié:ien. Iakoieshà:’on ne onkwe’shòn:’a. Wahonte’nién:ten’ tsi nihotikwénion. Enhontó:rate’ nó:nen enwá:ton’. Wa’thontóhetste’ ki’ tsi nihotikwénion.
Sha’kakwí:te’ne’, Shonkwaia’tíson wahshakó:tenre’ ne onkwehshòn:’a tsi wa’thontóhetste’ ne iohseratshà:ni. Tehotonhontsoníhne’ tiok nahò:ten’ aontahshakó:ion’ ne ken’ na’taiá:wen’ne’ aonsaká:nahne’ tsi nahò:ten’ iah tehotiién:tahkwe’, tho ká:ti’ tahaténniehte’ ne ken’ niiohontésha wa’kà:nio’ tsi ionhontsá:te’.
Rawé:ri tsi nikaieron’tò:ten’ ne ken’ niiohontésha; onekwénhtara’ niwahsohkò:ten’ tsi ní:ioht ne raonekwénhsa’, tánon’ teiotsikhè:tare’ ase’kén shonkwanorónhkhwa’.
Eh tho náhe’, thia’tekakwitehserá:ke nó:nen enhsetshén:ri’ ne katsi’tsarà:ken’s katsi’tsontónnion, ne’ kaienterehstáhkwen tsi rohrharátston tsi takón:ne’ ne ken’ niiohontésha.
Watatewenní:io ken’ niiohontésha ne tewatkáhthos nó:nen ionkwathahitákhe’. Kwah nek ísko tánon’ í:sek. Kwah ken’k nikón:na ki’.
Akwé:kon ne Kahnawa’kehró:non teionhiahríhtha’ ne ken’ niiohontésha naiehnekì:ra’. Enie’nerohkwahninónnion’ ne ken’ niiohontésha tánon’ kaiarakónhshon eniaketárion’ tánon’ enienennio’kwanohstánion’ nakohserà:ke aiakoién:take’. Sok ki’ nó:nen enióhserate’, eniakoién:take’ tewahiahríhton naiehnekì:ra’.
Translation by Sahawisó:ko’ Arquette