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Friday, July 14, 2017

Scholastic Spotlight: Tiffany Brunelle


Brunelle, Tiffany
Grade: 8
School: Turtle Mountain Community Middle School. Belcourt, ND Educator: West Clark
AWARD: Gold Key



I am from pure white La Gallette and golden fry bread. 
I come from a big pot of bullets and bangs.
From fierce storms, that make your cheeks cherry red. 

From a big, steep hill covered in ice.

I am from many scary tales.
I'm from different myths
about rougarous, chupacabras and the ghosts of Wales.

 I live by storytelling around a fire.

I am from a green and beautiful reservation, 
that my people grew up on.
It's where there have been many deaths. 
Where my homeland has been taken.

We lost our precious culture.
We stopped speaking our Native language. 

We were forced to stop hunting.
We had to follow their rules.


They sent us to boarding schools. 
They thought we were wild.
All they did was ridicule
us. They wanted us to be mild.


We were called a beast.
They bartered us with the French.
Our full blood count had decreased. 

We were forced to live on reservations. 
Ishgonigan. Leftover land.

When we grew up,
we didn't tell our story.
We were forgotten,
they put our skin color into a category.

That was not fair.

They get us confused with the Crow and Blackfeet. 
We were recognized by our floral moccasins.
Did you find out where I'm from now?
Doonji Siipiising Mickinoc Wajiiw Ishgonigan. 

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