7 Life Lessons From My Kokum — Who Was Also The First Indigenous Woman In Canada's Senate

As I walked through Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada, I wondered, “How did I get here?”

I was there to serve as a panelist at the Métis Nation’s “Youth Summit on Climate Change,” which was a huge honor. I couldn’t help but reflect on the path that led me to where I am now, in a position that most would consider extremely prestigious. Growing up as a young Indigenous girl with very humble beginnings and a gang-affiliated father, I know that this path could have gone in another direction.

Given the opportunity, my mother would tell you stories of a fierce little girl who climbed tall trees until the tips swayed in the wind. I was ambitious and focused, yes, but it was the women around me who fostered those ideals within me. And when I think about the matriarchs who have guided me over the years, the first one who comes to mind is my kokum (the Cree word for “grandmother”) — or G Ma, as we called her.

When I walked along Ottawa’s canals and stared up at the Parliament Building, I felt her presence. How could I not? She was one of the fiercest advocates for the Métis people. Thelma Chalifoux was the first Indigenous woman appointed to the Senate in Canada. She was also a Mètis woman whose contributions to the country were so enormous that the University of Alberta named a building after her, Canada commemorated her with a stamp, and Edmonton, Alberta, named a school after her.

She was also just my kokum: a woman whose voice, humor, severity, wisdom, and advice forever live inside of me. It’s been seven years since you passed on to the spirit world, G Ma. In honor of her, here are seven lessons that she handed down to me and permeate my bones to this day. I hope they reach all of the women out there looking for motivation