Traditional storytelling continues to thrive in Saskatchewan

Daphie Pooyak from the Sweetgrass First Nation has dedicated her life to storytelling.

For her, traditional storytelling is deeply intertwined with life, serving as both a cultural practice and a way of understanding existence.

“I’ve been learning these stories since I was two years old,” said Pooyak a traditional teacher and cultural presenter.

“For Indigenous people, these creation stories aren’t just stories,” she said. “They are about life – they teach you how to live.”

Pooyak was one of the storytellers who shared their knowledge and history during Indigenous Storytelling Month with audiences both in-person and online in February,

She travels across the country sharing her own stories but also the ones she learned from her grandmother, which are centuries old.

Pooyak’s grandmother also travelled both near and far as a storyteller.

“She taught me the creation stories, natural law, how to pray, reasons for ceremonies, and different prayers we have for problems in our life,” said Pooyak. “Our culture is strong and alive, but perhaps wasn’t shared enough in the past. That’s why (Indigenous Storytelling Month is important), our people need these stories that teach balance and realign themselves.”

She believes the stories helped shape her life.

As a child she protected all those sacred stories against the western education system. Teachers would refer to her traditional stories as ‘myths’, which led to confrontations in school. Ultimately, this led to Pooyak leaving school after Grade 9.

Despite her challenging experience with the education system as a youth, these days, Pooyak is a regular in schools, sharing the very history and stories for which she was once admonished.

“I hope young people can hear these stories and take comfort and healing from them,” she said. “We have a lot of young people who aren’t proud to be Indigenous and feel like they don’t have anything. If they knew these creation stories they would know we come from brilliant people.”

For the past 22 years, Library Services for Saskatchewan Aboriginal People Inc. (LSSAP) have been promoting storytellers like Pooyak as part of their Indigenous Storytelling Month. With partnerships in school divisions across the province and non-profits, it’s a Saskatchewan-wide push to amplify oral history.

“The goal is to promote, protect, and preserve the custom of Indigenous storytelling and highlight the importance of oral history with Indigenous communities,” said Jessica Generoux, Project Coordinator at LSSAP and member of Sturgeon Lake First Nation.

Rural and under-served communities are made a priority, said Generoux, to ensure they don’t miss out on programming. Since COVID, LSSAP has been offering storytelling events virtually as well as in-person – reaching about 300,000 people since that time.

“It’s important to provide that platform to host these voices, to make them stronger,” said Generoux. “We’ve found that over the time working in this area, storytelling has held a great deal of healing and positive energy for the youth.”

Robert Gladue, an Indigenous musician from Waterhen Lake First Nation, kicked off the month-long event in Broadview on February 1.

Gladue has a unique approach to storytelling – combining traditional stories and songs with teachings on mental health and wellness.

“I’ve seen first-hand how our culture and stories can contribute to a positive life, and give you strength to get through difficult times,” he said. “Learning who you are, your identity and culture, through stories can be really empowering.”

Gladue said storytelling and culture has been transformative in his life, struggling with addiction in his younger years. Traditional music and drum eventually led him to storytelling – a combination he blends with powerful results.

“There are so many songs that come with a depth of stories, songs that carry important teachings as well. I think blending the two can entertain people while empowering to have a strong sense of identity.”

Gladue believes events like those of Indigenous Storytelling Month are essential for not only the wellbeing of young people, but the province as a whole.

“Misunderstanding are prevalent. Many people don’t understand who we are as Indigenous people because they haven’t been exposed to our way of life,” he said. “It’s important to get the essence out there of who we are and why we do the things we do to bring more understanding in our communities.”