The Secwépemc Nation

Secwépemc translated to English language means ‘the spread out Peoples’ and Secwépemculecw translated means ‘the land of the Secwépemc Peoples’ (Ignace & Ignace, 2017; Michel, 2012). The Secwépemc Nation covers a large geographical area of the southern interior region of BC, Canada (Ignace et al., 2017). Secwépemc Peoples have been originally and continuously occupying these lands for over 10,000 years, which was long before colonizers overtook the land in Canada and BC in 1867 and 1971 (Ignace et al., 2017).

[Original size] Copy of skú7pecen (6)_ed

Re Skú7pecen re Stseptékwlls, The Story of Porcupine

Our Secwépemc stsptékwle (stories/legends) and tellqelmúcw ’ (ancestors) have created a legacy of Knowledges passed on by countless generations (Ignace et al., 2017). Stsptékwle (stories/legends) are the moral and spiritual foundations of our collective communities and the stsqe’ y’ (laws) that teach us how to be in relation with one another. (Ignace, 2008). Within stsptekwle, all of the elements of story are woven together to create a way of teaching and transferring Knowledge.

The story of Skú7pecen (Skoo-kw-pa-kin [Porcupine]) is one of our ancient stories that many of our Secwépemc ancestors and Elders have retold throughout the Secwepemc Nation since time immemorial. Secwépemc storyteller Sexwélecken told the version of the story that was told to James Teit, an anthropologist, in 1900; unfortunately, he rendered it only in English as Teit retold it in his own prose. The Skeetchestn Elders Daniel Calhoun, Leona Calhoun, Amy Slater, Christine Simon, Garlene Dodson, Doris Gage, Ron Ignace, and Julienne Ignace retranslated the Re Skú7pecen re Stseptékwlls into Secwepemctsin. Full story available here.

The story begins with two groups of people, the Elk Peoples and Swan Peoples, who were not interacting or working together and were thinking bad thoughts about one another. The Swan Peoples are the bird People and have different ways of governing and living within their community. The Elk Peoples are the mammal People and have unique ways of governing and living within their community. Each community is unique in its worldview and ways of being and cannot address its differences, so much so that they are unable to live as one, work together, and share the land.

One day the Swan Peoples decide that they do not want to continue to live with conflict any longer because it is the cause of all of their troubles. The Swan People come together to choose who will offer the Elk Peoples an invitation to visit them in the spirit of reconciliation. Sk'elep (Coyote) volunteers to venture out into the cold winter storm to reach the Elk People, but in his trickster ways, he fails to do so a few times. Then Skú7pecen (Porcupine), the small, quiet, and tenacious four-legged creature, volunteers courageously to continue the quest. Skú7pecen (Porcupine) is a successful messenger and invites the Elk Peoples to visit the Swan Peoples to feast and reconcile their differences. The Elk Peoples respond in favour of the invitation to bring the two communities together. The Elk Peoples arrive at the place where the Swan Peoples live, and both communities feast. In this process the two Nations came together to communicate and learn about each other in peace and prosperity, live in harmony, and honour each other’s unique gifts and ways of being. This story also honours Knucwentwecw (helping one another) and Yecwentwecw (looking after one another) by welcoming the opportunity to learn and grow from one another.

I respect Skú7pecen as my relative, guide, and teacher who is at the heart of this community work. I walk alongside and join generations of Secwépemc Peoples who have used the teachings and adventures of story to better understand and interpret the human experience (Michel, 2012).

Guiding Principles

St’uxwstewsemc re St7e7kwen: I come from St’uxwstewsemc (Secwépemc)

As an emerging St’uxwstewsemc (Secwepemc) nursing scholar, I have been taught that Knowledge and Knowledge systems are deeply rooted in our own lived and living experiences in relation to the land, community, family systems, and professions. Therefore, I acknowledge how the St’uxwstews Peoples stories and experiences, combined with my own story, can reveal similarities in our shared connection to the same families, community, culture, and realties (Melnyk, 2022). Despite this shared reality, each story brought forth a unique perspective that guided me to better understand the experiences, which were rich with vulnerability, strength, and perseverance. I often reflect on what Wilson (2008) described as research as ceremony and the importance of relational accountability, respect, responsibility, and reciprocity in my commitment to become a co researcher alongside my home community of St’uxwstews. I have shared throughout this research project Secwépemc methodology and Re Skú7pecen re Stseptékwlls, the Story of the Porcupine, which incorporates epistemology, ‘a way of knowing,’ and ontology, a way of being,’ that are reflexive, relational, and reciprocal; and I critically and ethically look to k’wseltktnéws (all of our relations) to ensure that my own role and obligations, knucwestsut.s, to the Peoples of St’uxwstews are honoured.

As I reflect deeper, I recognize the growth in my understanding of Secwépemc Knowledge systems and envision this journey as my own ‘coming-of-age’ process. Rather than education, young Secwépemc Peoples underwent rigorous etsxe training to grow in their practical skills, values, attitudes, and spiritual beliefs, which enabled them to fulfill their roles and responsibilities within the collective community (Billy, 2009). Someone entering the stage of etsxe, or vision quest, would go high to the mountain and spend four days and nights fasting and meditating in isolation (Billy, 2009; Michel, 2012). I use the terms knucwestsut.s and etsxe as part of my process of connecting back to my Peoples and family, k’wseltktnéws, and evolving as an individual in my unique role within the collective community.

The value and teaching of knucwestsut.s are borrowed from Chief Atahm School’s vision and principles (Billy et al., 2007; as cited in Michel, 2012). The community and Secwépemc Elders developed these principles to guide teaching and curriculum in the development of the language immersion school in Adams Lake, Chase, BC (Michel, 2012). Michel (2012) highlighted that “knucwestsut.s is one of the five Secwépemc principles they have outlined that support the overarching principles of etsxe (Figure 3) or prepare yourself for life” (p. 83): (a) k’weseltktnéws: we are all related; (b) knucwestsut.s: take care of yourself and hone individual strength; (c) slexlexs: develop Knowledge and wisdom; (d) mellelc: take time to relax and regenerate; and (e) qweqwetsin: humble yourself to all creation and give thanks and gratitude for life. To better understand the principles, the figure shows each teaching in a circle format to highlight the parallel ways of how I envision embodying each of the teachings within my own etsxe, vision quest, and growth of Knowledge in relation to knucwestsut.s within this research and the following discussion.