Resident Ava

Back in Touch. 

Pathways to Healing.

Ava
Resident • Pathways
Offender • Pathways

When I came here, I started to reconnect. I started to smudge every day. I started attending a drum group. And it just kind of opened my soul back up. It's just a good feeling to be back in touch with something that I lost.

Hi, my name is Ava.

So for me, I pushed away my spirituality, my culture, my family, and I just stayed with what I knew in the city. I quit going home to the reserve. I quit participating in anything that made me feel whole. It took a lot of work for me to get to here. I had to do a lot of programming, a lot of digging deep within myself to touch base with where I wanted to be at from where I was.

Honestly, being here saved my life. I came here and once I realized that all these resources were open to me, I started opening up in my programs. You know, I started going to see the elders every day, being around them, listening and learning. And drum group was a big part of me finding myself again. Being there, drumming, feeling, you know, like the beat of the drum and the songs and learning all the songs that I used to know and I forgot and you know, like just being a part of that. It really helped me to calm myself, to open my heart back up.

You know, walking the red road takes a lot of work. So participating in ceremony and stuff kind of just brings you back to yourself, helps you focus on balancing your medicine wheel.

There's still a lot in there that just needs to come out, but it feels good to be a part of the community again, to be in contact with people who know that this is what I need and they know how to help me. You really have to work for everything you're going to  get. If you want it, you can get it here.

SPIRITUALITY

CULTURE

FAMILY

BALANCING

COMMUNITY