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The youth on the land

Antoine Mountain
Guest columnist
Monday, June 9, 2008

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I would like to say a word in support of News/North reporter John Curran, who has written some excellent pieces over the last few months, beginning with a long road-trip he took to the Sahtu Region last winter, all the way from Somba K'e, Yellowknife.

His recent piece, 'Fort Good Hope youth go traditional' brings to light a little known fact, unless that is you have a teenage member of your own family who has taken to going out into the country and loves this life.

It is good to know young people these days have really caught on to a genuine feeling for the country.

When it happens at a younger age it simply stays with you and you continue to appreciate it later on.

Over the last few years of writing this column I have been rather hard on the youth, making it seem all they want to do is play their video games and hang around town.

Now I am learning otherwise, and am glad to be proven wrong.

One of the things that we at the GNWT's ITI Department here have been doing as part of our community workshops is to go into the schools, to talk with the students about their possible futures in the arts.

Believe it or not my life as a writer is being recognized even before these young people know me as an artist.

Another thing we are finding out, beginning in Radilih Koe/Fort Good Hope and now in Deline, is that the Youth are right here with us when we talk about their economic future, but they definitely do not want to be left out when it comes to their cultural roots. In fact, we get just as much of a response when we talk about our cultural hero, Yamoria, as when the subject is one's life as a professional artist.

From John Curran's one story to do with the Youth of Radilih Koe/Fort Good Hope, I was glad to hear some mention of my ole' time buddy Gene Rabesca and his wife Camilla. Unfortunately, I am also just learning that this man of the land now has cancer. Whichever way that goes I do know that when I needed to know about my Dene life this man was there.

I recall travelling with him when it was 80 degrees below and he talked to me about never giving up.

He said "when you think you have given it all you've got you still have to go that one more mile, and that's what makes you especially involved in life."

Of course I will never forget that one lesson and I am also grateful that we have people like John Curran, too, to tell us all about it in print.

Mahsi cho!

- Antoine Mountain is a Dene artist and writer originally from Radilih Koe'/Fort Good Hope. He can be reached at www.amountainarts.com