After completing the readings I started to really reflect on my identity and what I believe I encompass. This reflection was pretty out of my comfort zone as this was something that throughout the years I had felt an unusual feeling of guilt and misunderstanding towards. After conversations with friends and specifically family about this topic, I have felt this new sense of pride and understanding of “who I am” and “where I come from”.
Who Do You Think You Are?
When asked this question the first words that had come to my mind after reading the readings are; young, white, and settler. I am a fourth generation settler in Canada due to the settlement of my great-grandparents. While there are those facts about me that is not all that I think I am. I identify as a young white female that loves being active, the outdoors, kindness, and a good book.
Who Are Your Ancestors?
My ancestors going back as far as my great-grandparents settled in Canada from many different locations. Julius Holter and Ida Melbey came from Norway to Badger, Minnesota then settled in Northern Saskatchewan. My other great-grandparents Blanche Plamondon (1890-1964) and Peter Henry Bourque (1894-1966) settled in Saskatchewan from Manitoba. We could not find where they were before Manitoba.
Odilon Bourque (1852-1940) and Adelia LeBlanc (1854-1942) are my great-great-grandparents, Peter Henry Bourque’s mother and father. My mother’s side does not have any information as to where they settled to or from.
William Hall came from Scotland to New Market, Ontario then married Laura Greensides born in Ontario settled in New Market.
Franklin Wesley Hall was the son of William And Laurena. He was born in New Market, Ontario then he settled in Readlyn, Sk after the death of his parents when he was only six years old. At the age of sixteen, he moved away to Naicam, Sk where he met and married Annie Elizabeth Massey. They had three children Mary Evelyn, Douglas Wesley, and Beverley Joan, who is my grandmother.
My great-great-grandparents, John Conrad and Mary Baer had one child named Kathryn Conrad, I was not able to find birth dates or locations. Kathryn Conrad settled from the United States to Englefeld, Sk. She then married Michael Henry Fouhse who was already settled in Saskatchewan. (My grandma Joan believes that the Fouhse settled in Saskatchewan after coming over from Germany but that might not be completely accurate.)
Where is Your Family From?
My immediate family lives in Neilburg, Sk where I was born and raised. My extended family is all based in Naicam, Sk where my ancestors settled many years ago as I had stated above.
What Are Your Social Positions?
My social positions include; middle-class, full-time student, heterosexual, non-religious, female and employed seasonal full-time and part-time.
How Do You Identify in Relation to Treaty?
Before I truly understood what it meant to identify as a treaty person I felt confused and unknowledgeable about the land I walk on every day. I realize now and hope to have even more knowledge and perspective growth throughout my life that when we acknowledge the treaty land we are on we acknowledge the past, the privileges, and the treaty rights. When we talk about these things, it involves everyone in our community. This acknowledgement is not to appease First Nations peoples, it is a message for everyone to hear. I identify as a treaty person because I take, am privileged by, and respect the land in which the treaties were made.
How is miskâsowin helpful in this context?
With the definition of miskâsowin being “Finding one’s sense of origin and belonging, finding ‘one’s sense’, or finding ‘one’s centre” it truly helped as I was speaking with my grandmother and mother about my families past. The information that I received from them was very helpful and opened my eyes to the journey my ancestors took before settling here in Saskatchewan. Keeping the theme word miskâsowin and it’s definition in my head as I wrote and thought through this blog post really helped as I tried my hardest to get the most knowledge and understanding of my past, mostly for myself and my developing identity.