Kiyâm: PoemsThrough poems that move between the two languages, McIlwraith explores the beauty of the intersection between nêhiyawêwin, the Plains Cree language, and English, âkayâsîmowin. Written to honour her father's facility in nêhiyawêwin and her mother's beauty and generosity as an inheritor of Cree, Ojibwe, Scottish, and English, kiyâm articulates a powerful yearning for family, history, peace, and love. |
Contents
The Road to Writers Block A Poem to Myself | 5 |
Trademark Translation | 12 |
Perfect Not Perfect | 20 |
êwîtisânîhitoyâhk asici pîkiskwêwin | 28 |
Cree Lessons | 43 |
aniki niso nápêwak kâpikiskwêcik Two Men Talking | 49 |
ninitâhtâmon kititwêwiniwâwa I Borrow Your Words | 58 |
êkîpîcicîyâhk | 66 |
maskihkiy maskwa iskwêw ôma wiya ohci For Medicine Bear Woman | 87 |
Take This Rope and This Poem A Letter for Big Bear | 94 |
kâhkîhtwâm Again and Again | 102 |
Spinning | 110 |
ihkatawaw ayitwêhiwêw | 116 |
CREEENGLISH CORRESPONDENCES | 125 |
| 153 | |
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS | 159 |
Common terms and phrases
ahpô aniki niso nâpêwak anima Arok Wolvengrey awiyak ayiwâk Big Bear bread buffalo Cree language Cree syllabics Cree words ê-takahkihtâkwahk ê-wîtisânîhitoyâhk êkâ êkosi êkota êkwa English father Fort Edmonton Park Freda Ahenakew Frog Lake Ghost Dance giggle Grandma grandmother Harold Cardinal hear hide ispîhk itwêwina ka-nisitohtamân kâh-kîhtwâm kahkiyaw kîkway kisê-manitow kiskisi kiskisitota kîspin kiya kiyâm kiyâmapi kôhkomipaninawak laugh learned listen to Cree mâka maskihkiy maskwa iskwêw McIlwraith meat Medicine Bear Woman Métis mîna mistahi-maskwa mother nâkatohkê namôya nâpêw nêhiyaw nêhiyawêwin nikâwiy nipêhtên nipiy nisîmê nîso nitohta nitôtêm nôhkom nohtâwiy North Saskatchewan River ohci ohci kânata otâcimowina ôhi Ojibwe ôki Okimâsis ôma osâm môya pahkwêsikan pemmican pîkiskwê pîkiskwêwin pimîhkân pîsâkanâpiy Plains Cree Plains Cree language poem pounding prairie punky wood rawhide Remember rope Saskatchewan Seneca root sing sister sounds speak Cree story tânisi tâpiskôc tawâw tell thank truth understand Cree University of Alberta verb wiya wool