ARTICLES BY Xavier Kataquapit

First Nations finally sharing the power

When it comes to having the power to claim, develop and benefit from natural resources, First Nation people have never really been in control of the development that happens on traditional territories. However, the way resource development is handled by private industry and government is changing. Increasingly, First Nations are ... read more ››

A Star Is Born

There has been a new addition to the Kataquapit family. The baby (Cheecheesh) Orion Marcus Jeremy Kataquapit was born October 27, weighing eight pounds and two ounces to my younger brother Joseph and his wife Lynda. The whole family was excited to hear the news and the baby has become ... read more ››

Memories Are Timeless

It feels good to remember things from the past during day-to-day chores or activities. Our minds seem to work in mysterious and random ways to create flashbacks and memories when we least expect them. Recently, I was working with a friend of mine on a woodworking project. Woodworking and construction is ... read more ››

Thanksgiving Means So Much

Thanksgiving was just another holiday for my family up north. When you live in a small, remote First Nation community, every day is an occasion to meet family. It is comforting to know that family is close by and that there is never a great need to bring people together. ... read more ››

The Bear Facts

There has been a lot of news about problem bears lately in Northern Ontario. Specifically, these are problems with black bears or “Muskwa”, as they are known in the Cree language. People I talk to say that many bears are hungry this time of year as they are preparing to ... read more ››

A Walk Through Time

I took a walk through my old elementary school in Attawapiskat recently. The J.R. Nakogee Elementary School is a hard place to miss in a small community. The large, grey-coloured, one-story building sits right in the heart of town. It is a sprawling structure extending from east to west in ... read more ››

A Sense of Movement

The sun is reflecting off clear, rippling lake water in the afternoon. I dip my paddle into the water and pull the canoe forward with every stroke. A loon cries out from across the lake and gulls lazily hover in the breeze blowing over the treetops. I recall lessons from ... read more ››

Trouble in Paradise

I have always had a hard time shopping. Most of my people from up the coast are like me when it comes to going to the mall or to large department stores to make a purchase. There is always a certain amount of fear when I walk into a modern ... read more ››

Mikisew, the Eagle

There are many symbolic animals and birds that are part of Native culture. On the James Bay coast, there is the goose. This bird is highly respected as it has allowed my people to survive for centuries. Since early time my people have been able to count on the arrival ... read more ››

A Traditional Barbecue

I got out the barbecue the other day to cook supper outdoors. I enjoy having a barbecued meal. The food seems to taste better when cooked like this and in some ways it is healthier than pan-frying a meal on the stove. Cooking over a barbecue is a great way ... read more ››

Nokoom and The Moose Head

I visited some friends in Timmins recently and we talked about what kind of food was available to people in the north. I admit that our Cree diet in the north is not as fine or flavorful as those in exotic Asian cultures. My people subsisted on the land based ... read more ››

What Goes Around Comes Around

The spring time goose hunt has always been a big part of our culture and tradition on the James Bay coast. It is a period that has been part of our way of life for thousands of years. People up the coast look forward to seeing the annual migration of ... read more ››

Home Sweet Home

There was less snow this year as compared to others and this was an obvious fact to many hunters on the James Bay coast. Normally, goose-hunting season starts in early April and lasts until the middle of May. This year many hunters were disappointed to find out that the hunting ... read more ››

A Shot In The Dark

I was shocked and saddened at the report of the school shooting at Red Lake First Nation in Minnesota. I read the news reports of the event and I was surprised at the number of people killed in what seemed like a random act of violence. It was sad to ... read more ››

Living With the Cold

Recently, I woke up early in the morning to shovel out the driveway after a long, drawn-out winter storm that had dropped over a foot of snow on the ground. As soon as I stepped out I could feel the cold seep through my layers of clothes. The frigid air ... read more ››

Weathering the Storm

A winter storm, or Kashtin in Cree, is blowing through town and snow is continually falling and covering up the already frozen landscape in a layer of fresh white powder. Gusts of wind flare up every now and again. These powerful bursts flow around the houses and obstacles in our ... read more ››

Imagine all the People

I spent the better part of the holiday season with a shovel in hand moving large piles of snow from the driveway. Whenever I thought my work was done, the municipal plow piled more snow at the end of the driveway for me to clear. The first day or two ... read more ››

A Moving Experience

The fall of 1989 was a period of great change for my family. In 1988 we moved from our original home in the community to a new building my dad had purchased. We were excited to be moving into our new home. It was good in many ways to leave ... read more ››

I’m Being Followed by a Moon Shadow

Most people seldom take the time to look up at the night time sky. I guess we just never think about it much and we assume that there is nothing much worth seeing up there. From time to time, I try to take a few moments to look up and ... read more ››

The Night That Lightning Struck

It is a cold summer night; the wind is blowing wildly across the muskeg and forests surrounding the small community on the banks of the Attawapiskat River. A boy has bedded down for the night with his family and everyone lies awake inside the small canvas prospector’s tent. The wind ... read more ››

Reading Between The Lines

One of my favourite pastimes is to sit back and enjoy a good book. I have always found it comforting. It allows me to slip away and enter into a whole new world by reading through a few chapters and imagining each of the scenes. I feel that reading is ... read more ››

Fields of Grass

Recently, I took some time to bicycle for a few days while on vacation. It was refreshing and exciting to be back on a bike as I spent most of my day riding through trails and parks in the warm weather during the last few days of summer. One afternoon after ... read more ››

Keep Your Pants On

The other night I sat out with friends in the backyard to enjoy the summer weather on a warm evening. My friends were wearing T-shirts and shorts to cool off after a hot sunny day. I had my jeans on. As the sun fell below the horizon and twilight ushered ... read more ››

Babies Are a Lot of Work

I grew up in a large family of two younger brothers, five older brothers and two older sisters. By the time I became a teenager, my older brothers and sisters had started their own families and for several years we were all surrounded by babies and young children. My younger ... read more ››

Sitting With Elders

Recently I had the opportunity to meet two remarkable Elders through two First Nation organizations – Wabun Tribal Council and Mamo-Wichi-Hetiwin Employment and Training. Elders Alex Solomon of Constance Lake First Nation and George Endugesick of Brunswick House First Nation made some time for me and filled me in on ... read more ››

Mooshoom’s Memories

On a bright spring afternoon my grandfather James Kataquapit, or as we call him in Cree, Mooshoom, steps out of our home in the middle of the community. My family has just finished a hurried lunch of moose stew while on a break before returning to school and work. Mooshoom ... read more ››