Spring Equinox Feast
- Date
- March 28, 2024
- Time
- 5:00 PM EDT - 7:00 PM EDT
- Location
- POD-250, Podium building (350 Victoria Street)
- Open To
- Students, faculty, staff and community members
- Contact
- Brian Norton bnorton@torontomu.ca
The Spring Equinox (which takes place on March 19, 2024) marks the beginning of the annual cycle. All TMU community members are invited to celebrate the coming of spring with ceremony and visioning. We gather to celebrate the waters, to feast our clans and helpers, and share the learning we’ve done during our time of quiet reflection in the winter months. Now it’s time to plant new seeds for the year to come!
Amy Desjarlais Waabishka Kakaki Zhaawshko Shkeezhgokwe (White Raven Woman with Turquoise Eyes), Lead, Rebirthed Teachings, Indigenous Initiatives in the Office of the Vice-President, Equity and Community Inclusion, will share teachings about the significance of the changing seasons and why the Spring Equinox signals a time for growth and renewal. Amy will also share more about sacred medicines and ways to honour and feast sacred items.
Food and refreshments will be available.
This event is organized by Gdoo-maawnjidimi Mompii Indigenous Student Services in the Indigenous Initiatives unit of the Office of the Vice-President, Equity and Community Inclusion (OVPECI) and the Indigenous Education Council in the Office of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic.
What to expect
Amy will share teachings about the Spring Equinox. Teachings about the Spring Equinox can vary across different communities, so what Amy shares may differ from what is traditionally observed in your community.
For Indigenous community members
This event aims to empower you to learn more about traditional Indigenous ceremonies. Amy will guide you through the practice of feasting as we gather.
For non-Indigenous community members
This is an opportunity for you to gather with Indigenous and non-Indigenous peers in the spirit of learning and respect. Attending this event can help to increase your awareness of sacred Indigenous practices.
About Amy Desjarlais Waabishka Kakaki Zhaawshko Shkeezhgokwe (White Raven Woman with Turquoise Eyes)
Amy currently works at Toronto Metropolitan University as the Lead facilitator for Rebirthed Teachings, in the Indigenous Initiatives unit of the OVPECI. Rebirthed Teachings is a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous staff working together to educate about our shared history together.
Amy is an instructor for Anishnawbe Health Toronto’s Community Health Worker Training Program. Her community work includes sitting as an executive board member at the Centre for World Indigenous Studies, and a general board member for Community Music Schools of Toronto. She is a member of Spiritwind singers with performances all over Tkaronto as a group and individual hand drummer.
Guidelines
- When you arrive, please enter the eastern doorway to the ceremony, and travel around the ceremony in the direction you are most comfortable doing so. Visitors may follow the sun, or the earth rotation (move around the ceremony space either clockwise or counter clockwise). Anishinaabe, Nehiyawak and Haudenosaunee peoples have a longstanding relationship with one another, thus we uphold and extend this respect for one another’s ceremonial protocols while in mixed company with other nations.
- Absolutely no drugs or alcohol permitted while in attendance.
- Photos are permitted, however we ask that you request direction from the facilitator.
- Refrain from touching the Elders’ and helpers’ sacred bundle items (e.g. drums, feathers, etc.) unless asked to do so.
This event is wheelchair accessible
The university is committed to the accessibility and inclusion of persons with disabilities. If you require any additional accessibility accommodations to ensure your full participation, please email Brian Norton, Program Manager, Gdoo-maawnjidimi Mompii Indigenous Student Services, at bnorton@torontomu.ca.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please email Brian Norton, Program Manager, Gdoo-maawnjidimi Mompii Indigenous Student Services, at bnorton@torontomu.ca.