Gatherings

The inquiry was built upon collective gatherings as the process for come together to dialogue and story-up. Six research gatherings took place over a five-month time frame, spanning from September 5th to February 3rd, 2019. A final seventh gathering took place on February 5th, 2022 to ascertain permission from the Métis to submit my analysis and interpretations. The six gatherings were held at the Métis Nation of Alberta Métis Local 87 in Calgary. I specifically chose this place as I, and others in the research group, are members of this Local, and possibly more importantly, the Local is a Métis specific space. Because of the nature of the inquiry, I felt it was important to have the gatherings held in a community-based space where a sense of safety and comfortability might reside. A meal, tea, coffee, and water were available at each gathering; the meals were prepared by a Métis community member. The sessions included me, the research kin, the Elders, and the bundle. Additionally, during the six months, one-on-one conversations occurred, at my home, in a coffee shop, and at a Métis event. These ‘side conversations’ were unexpected and unplanned; however, they were essential to the inquiry and subsequently enhanced our understandings of the research topic.

Each gathering was guided by the Elders that were present with each process beginning with prayer and smudge. After opening our process with protocol, we shared and conversed for the entire three hours. Each person would show their photos and videos with a following dialogue. Our discussions were never linear, one photo could spur different conversations and often would lead to the showing of other photos. Although I designed the inquiry to resemble a circular iterative process, I also relied on the research kin (see video: Making relatives, for an explanation of why I use ‘research kin’) to guide me as we moved through each gathering. Circumambulation allowed each of us the ‘time’ and movement we needed to be able to bring our stories to the project. Our stories were reliant on the research kin experiencing their own practices, to then notice them, and story them back to us. The number of gatherings provided entry points for each member to step into the process when they were ready. There were some individuals who were ready with photos and storied experiences at the second gathering and others who needed an additional gathering to come into the process (see in the Lii Nistwayr d'ooschipayihk (stories of where it came from) section with my experience with Matt, Métis research kin) . My master’s research used interviews with family and community members that entailed a one-time sit-down discussion. That was not wrong, but I have come to see the value in iterative cyclical gatherings that offer the opportunity to circumambulate — to share, build, circle, and settle into stories with one another. Through our seven gatherings, we circled together through stories, experiences, we were never in the same place in our lives as we were when we first had the experience. Circumambulation allowed viewpoints to change, to alter, and to meet stories in a ‘new’ way.

At the end of each gathering, we discussed if there was a necessity for another gathering, if so, we would meet the following month. When the collective was satisfied with the process and felt we had discussed enough, we concluded the inquiry gatherings. The second last gathering differed from the previous sessions including a more structured questioning discussion to foster a dialogue about the process and analysis of our stories. The final gathering of the inquiry included four of us as we talked about overall ideas that came through the inquiry as well as how to move forward with dissemination. Thereafter, I assessed the stories and created a narrative of our dialogues with a coinciding interpretation reflected as wisdoms. For the final seventh gathering, I invited my Métis relatives to discuss and decide if the narrative I created captured the vitality of our experiences and was appropriate to share with my committee and larger community, this was facilitated online due to the pandemic.