Musical fruit…

The opening of a sacred bundle is a returning…

It cuts through the modern trappings of our lives and releases us into the elemental spiritual way…

The truth is,

we all have Sacred Bundles…

They are our memories,

our stories,

our learning on this journey…

They are everything we hold as special,

as holy,

as timeless…

Each part is vital because it helps make us who we are…

Opening up and sharing them is a ceremony in its purest sense…

That’s true for all of us,

Indian or not…

— in Our Native Life by Richard Wagamese…

 

A little over a year ago,

prior to the post-season of the Canuck’s run into the Stanley Cup,

I was watching the game at a friend’s place…

I had a pit in my stomach the whole time I was there…

A grinding mix of anxiety and fear…

When I got home I found that my house had been broken into…

A crowbar used to get in through the back door…

Despite the fact that my wallet was sitting on the counter,

and my underwear drawer had been emptied onto my bedroom floor,

the only things the person took were my laptop,

some change from Little Gem’s piggy bank,

and the six remaining lucky toonies of the ten,

that my neighbour gave me,

when her father broke down the wall,

that he had been throwing change into,

for five plus years,

in Trail, B.C…

Due to damage,

the door could not be locked that night…

I pushed furniture up against it,

and tried to sleep,

thinking about all of the women and children in the world who have no secure roof over their head,

and spend the darkness in fear of terror…

This isn’t an old story,

it is happening right now,

and it makes me crazy…

I called my father the next day to tell him what had happened…

He said he had prior engagements and wasn’t available to come into town to help…

Spinning class,

or Sunday brunch was already written into the schedule…

His neighbour Jim,

our strata’s carpenter and handy-man,

was willing to miss his grand-daughter’s soccer game,

and ride the bus into Vancouver from Steveston,

as the door needed some woodwork…

But the matter was attended to by my direct neighbours…

Some went to the Home Depot and bought the replacement lock…

Another spent the morning gluing, installing, and reinforcing…

Starshine and Little Gem came home that morning from their half-week with their father and step-mom,

and immediately wanted to leave…

They could feel the energy of the intruder,

and they didn’t like it…

Starshine could smell him,

and she told me the story she picked up through her nose…

She described the man,

and said,

He could tell you were coming home,

and it scared him,

So he left quickly,

And you were spending too much time on your laptop…

It was time for you to let it go…

I’d had a dream a few weeks before this event,

that my laptop exploded,

and I was upset I hadn’t saved any of my work,

and all of our family photos…

In those weeks before the laptop was taken,

I started to send my writing out to different people,

and burned my photos to a disc…

Little Gem called this afternoon to ask what I was having for dinner…

When I said,

Beans with avocado and cheese…

She asked,

The beans that sissy likes???

Yes,

those brown beans that bring sweetness,

to the belly…