This story of rice harvesting was told to me in 1983 by Nancy
Thompson of Peguis, Manitoba. Click here
to hear Nancy's narration. You can use your player's pause button to temporarily
stop the audio.
| (1) |
A'ii niwii-dazhindaan manoominikewin. |
'Well, I'm going to tell about
ricing.' |
| (2) |
Mewinzha e-gii-manoominikeyaang,
gaawin wiikaa ngii-ani-izhi-maajii-manoominikesiimin: akawe e-gii-nanaakodamowaad
gichi-anishnaabeg ji-bwaa-maajii-manoominikeng. |
'Long ago when we riced, we
never just casually started ricing: always the elders gave thanks before
we started ricing.' |
| (3) |
Akawe niizh gichi-anishnaabeg
gii-bawa'igewag. |
'First, two elders did some
harvesting.' |
| (4) |
Mii gaa-izhi-ozhitoowaad 'a
manoomin. |
'And from this they made rice.' |
| (5) |
Mii zhigo gaa-izhi-wiikwandiwaad. |
'And then the people feasted
together.' |
| (6) |
Gakina awiya ogii-miijin 'owe
gaa-gii-bawa'amowaad ogo gichi-anishnaabeg. |
'Everyone ate this which these
elders had harvested.' |
| (7) |
Akawe gii-nanaakodamoog. |
'But first they gave thanks.' |
| (8) |
Baanimaa mii 'imaa onji-maajii-manoominikeng
bawa'igewaad ogo bemaadiziwaad minik 'o manoominikeng 'imaa eyaawaad. |
'And after that they (the
community) started ricing there, they harvested, those who lived there,
as many as (did ricing), doing the ricing there where they were.' |
| (9) |
Gaawin wiikaa aapiji gii'-baapaataniinosiiwag,
gii-agaansiinowag mewizha gaa-gii-manoominikewaad. |
'They were never many in number,
they were few in number long ago who did ricing.' |
| (10) |
Zhigo gaye gaa-doodamowaad
ogii-bimi-naagajitoonaawaa 'iwe manoomin e-nitaawigininig. |
'And also they nurtured the
rice as it was growing.' |
| (11) |
Aaniish nising adite manoomin. |
'Because the rice ripens three
times.' |
| (12) |
Gaawiin zhemaag gijaaginanziin
aabiding bawa'igeyin. |
'You don't exhaust it right
away the first time when you harvest it.' |
| (13) |
Ogii-ayanawebitoonaawaa 'owe
nitam gaa-nitaawiging, nitam gaa-aditeg. |
'They gave it a rest this
first time that it was growing, the first time that it ripened.' |
| (14) |
Mii we gaa-bawa'amowaad. |
'And then they harvested it.' |
| (15) |
Mii gaa-izhi-anwebitoowaad. |
'And they let it rest.' |
| (16) |
Miinawaa maajii-bawa'igewaad,
miinawaa maagizhaa niso-giizhig, niiwi-giizhig gii'-bawa'igewag, miinawaa
mii gaa-izhi-anwebitoowaad. |
'And then they started harvesting,
again perhaps three days, or four days they harvested, and also they let
it rest.' |
| (17) |
Miinawaa owe gii-adite. |
'And it ripened again.' |
| (18) |
Zhigo 'iwe ishkwaajigaaditeg
baanimaa mii 'i e-gii-giizhitoowaad. |
'And they finished on that
which ripened last.' |
| (19) |
Jiimaanan ogii-aabajitoonaawaan
bawa'igewaad. |
'They used canoes when they
harvested.' |
| (20) |
Mitig gigii-aabajitoon bawa'aman
'i manoomin. |
'You (sg.) used a stick to
harvest the rice.' |
| (21) |
Gibiinji-webaganaandaan biinji-jiimaan. |
'You thrash it into the boat.' |
| (22) |
Gaawiin wiikaa noojigo gegoo
mitigosh ogii-aabajitoosiinaawaa gaawin ogii-bookwaganaandanziinaawaa 'a
manoomin. |
'And they didn't use any old
kind of stick, because they didn't want to crack the rice.' |
| (23) |
Weweni ogii-dazhiikaanaawaa
bawa'igewaad. |
'They worked very carefully
when they harvested.' |
| (24) |
Gaawiin niin ogii-babaa-boopookwaganaandaziinaawaa. |
'They didn't just go around
cracking the rice.' |
| (25) |
Noongom waabandaman manoomin,
miziwe bookwaganaanjigaade, gaye gizhiibidegin jiimaanan e-aabadakin. |
'Today when you see rice,
it's been cracked all over, and fast running boats are used to harvest it.' |
| (26) |
Nanaandog odoodaanaawaa banaajitoowaad
manoomin. |
'They do all kinds of things
that damage the rice.' |
| (27) |
Ambe iwe e-gaa-gii-bawa'igaadeg
manoomin gaye aapiji weweni ogii-dazhiikaanaawaa e-gii-gaapizamowaad. |
'But before when they harvested
the rice, they worked at it very carefully when they parched it.' |
| (28) |
Gii-boodaweyag, biiwaabikoon
ogii-aabajitoonaawaan gaapizigewaad. |
'They made a fire, and used
sheet metal tins when they parched.' |
| (29) |
Ambe ininiwag ogii-bawishkaanaawaa
'i manoomin. |
'And then people trampled
on the rice.' |
| (30) |
Oshki-makazinan mewizha gaa-gii-izhinikaadegin
bimibatoowakizinan gii-izhinikaadewan gomaa na bashkweginwekizinan ogii-gigishkaanaawaan. |
'They wore new shoes, light
running shoes or leather moccasins.' |
| (31) |
Ji-bekakin makizinan ogii-ozhitoonaawaa
a'ii endazhi-bawishkamowaad ji-bekak 'i waanikaanensan ogii-ozhijiishkiiwaginaanaawaa
imaa endazhi-bawishkamowaad, ji-bekak i manoomin. |
'The shoes had to be clean,
and they made little holes, they molded a spot, there where they were trampling,
so that the rice would be clean.' |
| (32) |
Mii gaa-izhi-bawaasitoowaad
wiigwaasinaaganan ogii-aabajitoonaawaan e'-bawaasitoowaad 'i manoomin. |
'And then they fanned it,
they used birch bark bowls when they harvested the rice.' |
| (33) |
Niizhing gii-aanji-bawishkigaade
'o manoomin, weweni ji-bekak. |
'Twice this rice was trampled,
to make it very clean.' |
| (34) |
Mii 'i niizhing gii-bawishkigaadeg
bawaasijigaadeg, mii i aazha gii-onozhishing ji-giizizigaadeg. |
'And when it had been trampled
on twice it was fanned, and then it was ready to be cooked.' |
| (35) |
Gaawin wiikaa onji-makadewaasinoon
manoomin. |
'The rice was never black.' |
| (36) |
Askibagon gii-izhinaagwan
daabida. |
'It always looked like a green
leaf.' |
| (37) |
Aaniish e-oshki-bawa'igeyan
aazha zhemaag gii-ani-gaapizigaadeg. |
'Because when you first harvested,
right away it was parched.' |
| (38) |
Gaawin ingoji gii'-dazhi-banaadasinoon. |
'It wasn't stored anywhere
where it would spoil.' |
| (39) |
Noongom gaa-adaawaagewaad
manoomin makadewaa agwaagosin gaye ginwezh ingoji bimi-ayate jibwaa-giizhichigaadeg. |
'Nowadays the rice they sell
is black and moldy, and is stored for a long time before it's finished.' |
| (40) |
Ambe niibiwa iidog aapiji
inaginde. |
'And nowadays it seems that
it's really expensive.' |
| (41) |
Mewizha gii-wendaginde aapiji. |
'Long ago it was really inexpensive.' |
| (42) |
Weweni dash ogii-ozhitoonaawaan,
Anishnaabe gaa-gii-ozhitoowaad. |
'They made it correctly, those
Indians who used to make it.' |
| (43) |
Gii-bekan, aaniish zhemaag
gii-ani-gaapizigaade, zhemaag gii-ani-giizhichigaade. |
'It was clean, because right
away it was parched, the processed was completed right away.' |
| (44) |
Gaawin gii-agwaakosinziinoon. |
'It wasn't moldy.' |