THE TRANSFORMATION
It’s a little different in Richmond now. The speed skating team has been making trips to the west since the Spring of 2006. Each visit presented a different form of the same place. Upon arrival on Monday, it was evident even at the airport that something big is happening. Yes, the Olympics are coming to town, and I am one of the lucky guests invited to this worldwide spectacle.
With a few Olympic experiences under my belt, I am accustomed to the transformations which take place in Olympic cities. There is a palpable buzz in the air. After witnessing the re-paving of streets, construction of facilities, zoning plans shaping up and general awareness heightened as the Games creep closer, it feels so good to come here now and see everything fall into place.
It feels like our turf. It feels like home. The city feels almost ready, just as I feel close to being ready, to show the final product of so much preparation. This is definitely different than any other Games. I can feel it already. Yes, this feeling, it is the sensation of competing in a home Olympics. And this is only the beginning.
It’s not just all things Olympic that pleases me being here right now. A few months ago, I received a special invitation from my good friend Tewanee Joseph. Tewanee is the head of the Four Host First Nations. I came to meet him and other people from the group a few years ago. I wanted to be involved with their initiatives leading into the games and hopefully, in my own small way, help connect Aboriginal youth with the good side of the Olympic movement.
From that meeting, and between my sporadic visits out west for training camps and races, we managed a few fantastic events at the oval. Seeing kids from all walks of life feel the joy of skating, shuffling, just being in the beautiful Richmond Olympic Oval gave me something unique. It allowed me to feel a different kind of meaning in what I was there to do. Far greater than winning any race, this feeling of sharing my experiences and my own love for skating with young people will always give me fulfillment that money or medals cannot buy.
Back to the invitation. Tewanee offered a special ‘Brushing Off’ ceremony for myself and Peter, as well as any other person I wanted to invite. He said ‘it will help clear your mind and spirit before your competition’ and that the Four Host and Vanoc AP staff had all been through this same process to help them prepare for the Games.
One of the respected Elders was to conduct the traditional work. On Wednesday afternoon, a group of us set out to the North Shore of Vancouver to experience this very special ceremony.
We made our way through rush hour traffic and soon entered the Squamish First Nations Reservation Land. Many cars were parked outside of Tewanee’s house and many more smiling faces and warm hugs greeted us in the foyer. The impact of walking into an atmosphere of such abundant kindness had a powerful affect on all of us. At that moment, I knew it was the right decision to come, and an even better decision to have invited a few of my ‘team’ along for the experience. It made me realize, once again, how fortunate I am to have such goodness in my life.
It was a family affair as we went through the brushing off ceremony. Kids of all ages laughing and playing were heard in the background as the healer told a story to us in his native tongue. Though we could not understand, his gestures and the soothing tone of his narrative made me think he was telling the story of the earth, wind, sun and the rain. His voice sounded like mother nature and all the tones in which she speaks. I could only sit and smile, taking in the energy and the calmness of the Elder’s voice. We all sat in concentrated awe, appreciating greatly the time and the place, being completely within the moment.
We all had our turn to sit and be cleansed, to receive the energy of the flame and have a chance to clear our minds. The Elder told us ‘I cannot heal you of your pain, but if you come with an open heart and an open mind, that is all that I can ask of you. I thank you for this. You can welcome the energy of the flame to give you strength. You can only heal yourself with this open heart and mind.’
I won’t go into too many details, because to be honest, this was a very sacred experience that needs to be felt more than articulated through written or spoken words, but I do want to share a few of the things that resonated with me.
‘Something not often asked for is the strength to be kind. This is perhaps the most important strength to have.’
‘It is important to want your opponents to be strong. To wish them from your heart to be the best that they can. When you wish good things for others, this comes back to you.’
‘All of us have lightness and darkness, it is constantly shifting. That is part of being human.’
These and many other universal truths were shared with us last night. The depth of warmth, rich kindness that the Four Host First Nations has offered me the past few years has left me feeling calm, clear and in some ways, complete. They have allowed me to establish a connection with the land and the people and these Territorial Lands. And in turn, I feel so much more depth in these Games.
Tewanee’s youngest son left me with a gift last night. It is a silver pendant of a hummingbird. Tewanee’s wife, Rianne, said ‘we didn’t know what to get you, earings, a ring or a pendant, but we knew we wanted you to have the hummingbird.’ This beautiful little bird will stay on my neck for the entire Games. My friends of the FHFN have given me wings in more ways than one.
