Bannock Bread and Birchbark Biting

I stood face to face with what might be the most beautiful art I’ve ever seen. It was birch bark that was folded and bitten into patterns.  I was in awe because not only was it mesmerizing, but it was the most eco-conscious art I had ever seen.  Birchbark biting is an Indigenous art form used in storytelling with spiritual significance.

As I stood in the museum, I could not help but think about how the colonial empire has destroyed and endangered these practices across many cultures.  Our job is to protect our friends and help keep them, their art, and their culture alive. 

While in Montreal, my partner and I visited a place called Roundhouse Café.  Montreal’s only Indigenous café designed to empower people and provide opportunities for Indigenous folks who are homeless or at risk.

The food was delicious and the atmosphere gave a true glimpse of life in Montreal.  Situated in the heart of Cabot Square, people buzzed by, and others meandered.  It’s a thruway, a meeting point, and it’s also where people take shelter and survive.

We sat inside a train cargo car that was converted to café seating.  I had the Indigenous Taco.  It was Bannock bread, stuffed with seasoned beef and topped with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, and cilantro.  I thought it was going to feel heavy, but it was light and refreshing.  The menu also boasted a smoked caramel latte and Indigenous pogo. 

As I sunk my teeth into the bread, I kept thinking about birchbark biting artworks I saw in Ottawa.   Birchbark biting is an Indigenous art form made by Anishinaabeg, including Ojibwe people, Potawatomi, Odawa, Cree, and other Algonquian peoples from the Subarctic and Great Lakes regions of Canada and the United States.

Artists choose thin and flexible pieces of birch bark, which are easiest to find in early spring.  Using their eyeteeth (the canine teeth), they bite the bark to create intricate designs. The bite pressure can either pierce the bark into a lace or make certain areas thinner to allow light to pass through.  If the bark piece is carefully folded, symmetrical designs can also be made.

I sat in Cabot Square with my partner, thinking of the circular patterns, thinking about Palestine, thinking about the settlers and where we are now- thinking about how interconnected these experiences are and how the colonial wheel turns. 

At this time, I am here to encourage you to discover how you may interrupt the colonial wheel.  What does it mean to you and how can you play a role in the future of our world?  I am still discovering the answers for myself.  They keep changing as I learn more.