and when their parents' generation
began to dream of grand children
    and I was one of their dreams

and when their grandparents' generation
began to dream of great grandchildren
    and I was one of their dreams

and so on back in time
each generation emerging in a birch-bark canoe
from the soft mist of the North Saskatchewan River
at dawn

and so on it will go
each generation disappearing in a birch-bark canoe
around the next bend in the life-giving river
at sunset.

I honour the ancestors who took their turns
preserving the decorations on the canoes and tepees
    so I can be who I am
I honour the ancestors who took their turns
preserving the dances and costumes and drum-songs
    so I can be who I am
I honour the ancestors' dreams
  one of which is my child
    one of which is my grandchild
      one of which is my great grandchild

and so on for as long as the waters flow
from the mist to the bend in the river
 
and though the ancestors' view is blocked
     (for a while)
by bridges and buildings
and their peace disturbed
     (for a while)
by the roar and stink of traffic and ball games
and a power plant

if we respect ourselves
we will respect their sacred burial place

beneath the bluffs beside the river

looking upstream in time
and downstream in time

and preserve this place for
those we create in our dreams-
those for whom we are the ancestors.

August 2000