by Rachel Hutton
Aug 25, 2023
Excerpt:
Tennis shoes brush the hem of a long ribbon skirt as a woman walks along a rural Wisconsin highway, carrying a copper pail of water. Step by millions of steps, the water makes its way around Lake Superior. Small metal cones — the same ones that adorn Ojibwe jingle dresses — dangle from the pail. They sway in sync with her stride, creating a rhythmic tinkle.
It’s Day Two of a monthlong, 1,200-mile Lake Superior Nibi Walk (nibi means water in Ojibwe). This journey isn’t like advocacy walks for, say, breast cancer or Alzheimer’s, with their masses in matching T-shirts raising money and visibility for a cause. The Nibi Walks, which began two decades ago, are Indigenous-led ceremonies that express gratitude for water and pray for its health.
On Day One, the small group dipped the copper pail into Lake Superior (Gichigami) to collect its precious cargo. Now, near Bayfield, the woman carrying the water prepares to hand the pail off to the next walker: the group’s leader, Sharon Day (Nagaamoo Ma’aingen, or Singing Wolf), who has participated in more than 20 water walks since the movement’s inception…
Read the entire original article in the Star Tribune HERE
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