AUTUMN DAYE-FRASER

Autumn is a 16-year-old Mi’kmaq and Black woman originally from Nova Scotia, now residing in Southern Ontario. She has supported White Owl and Wisahk-otewinowak’s vision and cared for the gardens for the 2020 and 2021 growing seasons. She writes poetry and shares her joy with the Collective. Autumn is known for her beautiful dance, her deep passion for all life, and her love of tea.

Together in this Garden
By Autumn Daye-Fraser

In this garden
So many summer days simultaneously spent
We’ve been here together 100%
You, the garden, the land, the plants
The weeds, the seeds, the leaves, the ants
And me?
Well, I’m a human 
Of Indigenous history

I have a mouth that can speak
A nose that can smell
Ears that can listen 
To the lies people tell

I have feet that reach places, that run and skip
I have hands that hold the world at my fingertips
I have eyes that can see my father and mother
If only you knew the beauty of colour
But of course,
You’re just a plant
Do you even understand?
I live for decades 
You live for months
Or even less if you’re a weed
So I’ll give you the respect you need
That’s the way of native culture
We care for the land and each other

If I could 
I would plug my earbuds 
Into the land
And listen real good
Maybe it would tell me something 
Something
Something
Something along the lines of
Us?
We are the Land
Of infinite history

We listen without ears
To crying trees and their tears
We see without eyes
The genocide and demise

We’ve felt blood seep in like acid
You pollute us yet stay placid
We don’t hate you for what you’ve done
We’re above the ways you hate and shun
But of course,
You’re just human
Do you even understand?
We live for eons 
You live for decades
We’ve been here 
Together, In this garden