CMHA Kelowna

Supporting a Mentally Healthy Kelowna

  • Mental Health
    • Find Help Now
    • Learn About Mental Illnesses
    • Explore Your Mental Health
    • Talking to Teens About Mental Health
    • Supporting a Friend or Family Member
    • Workplace Mental Health
    • Preventing Suicide
  • Programs & Services
    • Youth & Families
      • Foundry Kelowna
      • Foundry Kelowna’s Wellness on Wheels
      • Youth Housing & Services
    • Housing
      • CMHA Kelowna Housing
      • Youth Housing & Services
      • Central Okanagan Rent Bank
      • Rent Supplements
      • Case Management
      • Homelessness Outreach Navigator
      • Scattered Sites Program
    • Wellness
    • Virtual Counselling Services
  • Community Education
  • Ways to Get Involved
    • Donate
    • Events & Activities Calendar
    • Host, Sponsor or Support an Event
    • The Payton & Dillon Budd Memorial Ride
    • Volunteer
  • Discovery College
  • About Us

Home » Mental Health Week 2021 » Healing Water (By Jasmine Peone, In Collaboration with Grouse Barnes)

April 30, 2021 By Grouse Barnes Leave a Comment

Change is all around us. It never seems to stop, rather it evolves like clouds amassing, shifting shape, and then disappearing before our eyes. The Earth lives through cycles. Seasons come and go, the land transforms from being frozen to being lush and green, from hot and dry to cool and withering, and finally back to frozen again. Everything that lives is bound by these cycles, and so we too are bound by our own cycles. Birth, life, creation, the sharing of wisdom, and of course the inevitable phase of death.

During my years in this world I have seen many loved ones go through this phase. Many that were once here have since left, some of those I’ve seen come have since gone. It is never easy to witness this phase. It can be very difficult for those of us who are left behind to let go, to grieve, and to move on through our stage in life. During these, and other difficult times I go to the water. It’s here that it is again clear to me that within these continuous cycles, some things remain constant. The earth remains at the edge of the water. The sun continues to rise above the mountaintops of the east, shine above the lake and then set below the hills of the west. My feet once again sink into the sand, and it begins to squish between my toes as I transcend the cusp of dry and wet.

Water is medicine. I talk to it. I express my gratitude for it sharing its healing, life-giving energy. I let it know of my hurts, my struggles, and anything that’s bothering me. It is usually in the morning hours just before sunrise, or in the later evening hours into the night. I will crouch down to the water, cup my hands, and gently wash my face. At times, I will strip down to my shorts and go for a swim, regardless of the season. The moonlight shines across the surface of the lake and once in a while you can see bats fluttering about. I often get visited here by ducks, geese, and even swans. Sometimes a muskrat will come swimming by. All of this life moving around while the rest of the world sleeps.

This reminds me that there is no end to these cycles, that just as night becomes day, from death comes rebirth, and everyone carries on through their next phase. With this thought I look over and see a trail of ducklings following their mother. They are a hopeful sign of renewal, of re-growth, of a continuation of this cycle we call life.

Limlemt
All my relations

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Grouse Barnes is a syilx knowledge keeper, fluent nsyilxcn speaker and teacher. He is an adjunct professor at UBCO School of Nursing and an Okanagan College Honorary Fellow.

Jasmine Peone practices and works in the revitalization of syilx language and culture.

Filed Under: Mental Health Week 2021, News Tagged With: bc, change, emotions, indigenous mental health, mental health, mental health week 2021, okanagan nation, sylix nation, westbank, westbank first nation

More Recent News

Community rallies for Ride
News
June 14, 2022

Community rallies for Ride

Coming together for a common cause was the theme Sunday morning, June 12, as 250 riders and walkers took part in The Payton & Dillon Budd Memorial Ride, presented by the Thomas Alan Budd Foundation. The event raised $106,000 for the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna for essential programs and services for mental health […]

Read More
New CEO announced for CMHA Kelowna
News
April 20, 2022

New CEO announced for CMHA Kelowna

April 20, 2022 ~ A new CEO for CMHA Kelowna has been announced. Mike Gawliuk, currently the Director of Service Delivery and Program Innovation at the organization, has accepted the role of CEO effective June 1, 2022. After completing a rigorous selection process, CMHA Kelowna Board Chair Stuart Yanow says Mike’s incredible experience, knowledge of […]

Read More
Feel like you're running on empty these days? You're not alone.
News
March 1, 2022

Feel like you’re running on empty these days? You’re not alone.

For two years, COVID-19 has plagued us. And for two years, CMHA and UBC have been asking Canadians how they’re doing. Now, in the latest round of research, Canadians are saying they are stressed about what’s coming next. They’re concerned COVID-19 is here to stay. According to the research, 64% of people in Canada are […]

Read More

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

WHO WE ARE

ABOUT CMHA KELOWNA
MISSION VISION & VALUES
OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OUR TEAM


WHAT WE DO

REPORTS & IMPACT
LATEST NEWS
NEWSLETTER
COMPLAINTS


GET INVOLVED

CAREERS
EVENTS
GET INVOLVED
MEDIA LIBRARY


CONTACT

CMHA Kelowna
504 Sutherland Avenue, Kelowna, BC. V1Y 5X1
Phone: 250-861-3644
Fax: 250-763-4827
E-mail: [email protected]

CMHA Kelowna Charitable #: 10686 3392 RR0001

contact us | resources | privacy | site map

Imagin Canada Logo

The Standards Program Trustmark is a mark of Imagine Canada used under licence by Canadian Mental Health Association - Kelowna Branch.

The CMHA Kelowna offices are located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded lands of the Okanagan Nation and Syilx peoples. We are committed to sustaining relationships with Indigenous people based on respect, dignity, trust, and cooperation in the process of advancing truth and reconciliation.


Copyright © 2022 Canadian Mental Health Association, Kelowna