The Land that Raised Me

We would beat the sunrise and be at the farm to irrigate, pull weeds and plant seeds in the soil, all before it got too hot.

I have grown corn, melons, squash and leafy greens for most of my life. I vividly remember a photo of me sitting on my mom's lap and my aunties and cousins taking a break from the farm I was a baby. Then

this is home, the land that raised me.

My dinner. Relatives have been aching to reconnect to their traditional knowledge, to restore their connections with the land and their health. Settler colonization has disrupted our relationship with the land and our Navajo lifeways. Assimilation practices, cultural suppression and historical trauma have impacted our health and well being,

and all of these issues have led to diet related health problems, obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

A few of us are growing our traditional foods as a form of resistance and teaching others.

It's evident. Shiprock is my home.

My ancestors are rooted here, planted here for many centuries, the land, the water, the animals and the deities know who we are.

My life has evolved around the land, the water and growing food.

I understand the interconnectedness, the importance and responsibility of my Dene food ways, the land, the animals, the water and my people.

I want to revitalize and reclaim our indigenous food systems by strengthening food sovereignty using indigenous knowledge and advocating for food and environmental justice.

Overall, I want my indigenous people to have access to healthy and culturally appropriate foods that will ultimately improve their health and well being.

The land is waiting for us to be reconnected, to nourish the land, to restore our health.

The environment is changing, and so are we.

I still honor the ways of my ancestors, but I've added a new tool, such as hydroponics. Today I grow food without soil, conserving up to 90% of water and using less space,

you can grow all year around and exist in places where climate is changing.

I still grow our traditional foods to nourish our bodies, to heal the land and to revitalize and reclaim our indigenous food systems.

This is home,

the land that raised me.