ninitohtênân / We Listen (Nôhkom series)

Written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson

Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

Groundwood Books

978-1-77306-859-6

24 pp.

Ages 3+

April 2024 

Caitlin Dale Nicholson's Nôhkom series honours the Cree grandmothers and elders who share their wisdom, their traditions, and their learning with younger generations. In ninitohtênân / We Listen, Caitlin Dale Nicholson, with translation by Leona Morin-Neilson, a teacher of Cree in BC, reflects on an outing with nôhkom during which the younger people watch and listen and learn.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

There are few words in ninitohtênân / We Listen, though each phrase is told in both standard roman orthography and syllabic Cree, as well as English. The phrases are simple, taking us from "Nôhkom gets ready" and "We get ready"–phrases are paired to reflect what nôhkom does and then what the young people do–to a day out with a picnic and collecting the plant called Labrador Tea. It's a day of following and learning.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

Even though the young people occasionally deviate from what nôhkom does, like playing in the water when their elders rest, the girls usually follow her lead, recognizing the value in her way of doing things. In that way, ninitohtênân / We Listen is very much a tribute to nôhkom and what she imparts to them in her traditional ways.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

The Nôhkom series from Caitlin Dale Nicholson is extraordinary in the depth of its esteem  for the contributions made by elders to younger generations, and the respect afforded them by their sharing of those traditions. As in the earlier books, nipêhon / I Wait and niwîcihâw / I Help, the text is minimal but powerful, even more so for the Cree in both standard roman orthography and syllabic forms. But, it is always Caitlin Dale Nicholson's artwork, acrylics on canvas, that ground the story in family, traditional customs, intergenerational relationships, and Indigenous culture. The family of multiple generations gathers for simple pleasures, but they are profound in their connections with each other and with the natural world as well as their Cree culture. (Recipes for tea and ointment made from the plant Labrador Tea are included.)

 

For young readers, ninitohtênân / We Listen allows us the privilege of a glimpse into a very special relationship and witness the learning that comes from that positive connection. It may not be dramatic or thundering but it is mighty, if you listen.

• • • • • • •

Nôhkom series

nipêhon / I Wait  (2008/2017)

niwîcihâw / I Help (2018)

ninitohtênân / We Listen

nipêhon/I Wait

Written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson

Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

Translated by Leona Morin-Neilson

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-914-0

24 pp.

Ages 4-7

September 2017

The waiting that happens in nipêhon/I Wait is not of the onerous variety but one that is reserved for companions coming together to complete a task.  It's a part of the process and one gladly done to achieve something worthwhile.

In nipêhon/I Wait, three generations travel by RV to a site where they will pick yarrow flowers and leaves in order to produce a tea used for medicinal purposes. (A recipe is appended to the story.)  It is evident that Nôhkom (grandmother) leads, as daughter and granddaughter wait for her to gather her supplies.  Then, with every action that Nôhkom makes, the narrator and granddaughter follows as does Mom.  When she walks, they walk.  When she takes out her Medicine Bundle and prays, so too do her granddaughter and daughter.  But, when Nôhkom picks, placing the white flowers and leaves in her paper bag, it is only her granddaughter who follows.  Mom is busy blowing the seed heads from what looks like a Tragopogon.  So now Nôhkom and the narrator must wait. Eventually Mom begins to pick the yarrow and the three complete their task, ending the simple story of family coming together with the words, "We are done!"

Caitlin Dale Nicholson, a teacher and student of UNBC instructor of Cree Leona Morin-Neilson, takes her lessons of traditional plant medicines and her observations about generations connecting to create the unique story that is nipêhon/I Wait.  Nôhkom, undoubtedly modelled after Leona Morin-Neilson, is the elder who guides the trio on their journey of collection and family as she did in their first picture book collaboration, niwîcihâw/I Help (Groundwood, 2008).  The story is told in English and Cree (the Y dialect), with the Cree text presented in both standard roman orthography and syllabics, the translation provided by Leona Morin-Neilson.

From nipêhon/I Wait

Written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson and Leona Morin-Neilson

  Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

The acrylic illustrations are the work of Caitlin Dale Nicholson who ensures accuracy and reality while going beyond true likeness and sharing the feel of the people and the place.  The patience and connection between the three generations is palpable, even as they work separately and seemingly silently.  Like the few words that tell the story, few words are needed between them.  They understand each other without verbalizing it every moment. It is calming and still intense with kinship.  (Those social media hounds who feel the need to overshare could take a lesson here.)  The strokes of Caitlin Dale Nicholson's paint give movement to the grasses, the trees, the plants, and of course the people and dog.  From Mom rubbing the dog's belly with her foot to the picking of the yarrow, life is going on, telling a story of a bond borne in tradition and affection.

From nipêhon/I Wait

Written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson and Leona Morin-Neilson

  Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson