By Derek Cornet

Author speaks of role storytelling plays in reconciliation

Mar 14, 2018 | 12:00 PM

Pulling back the layers of stories people carry with them was the theme of a workshop last night at La Ronge’s Alex Robertson Public Library.

The two-hour session with local author Nancy Lafleur was part of the Reconciliation Through Art program, which has been underway since February and is wrapping up next week. Lafleur spoke about how retelling personal stories can connect people to other worlds around them.

“It’s about how the story you grew up with and my story, although they may be different, at some point coincide and co-exist,” she said. “How do we reconcile those stories? That’s where storytelling can play a role.”

Often times in society, Lafleur said people can be masked with a certain sense of arrogance because they get caught up in their own belief systems and personal world. She noted it’s important to acknowledge other ways of life exist, adding there are both Indigenous and settler worlds in Canada. Lafleur believes telling stories to each other will help bring those two worlds closer together.

“We become almost like islands and, when our islands clash, we know what the results are from that,” she said.

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Lafleur also spoke about her book Finding Lost, which was released in November 2017. Written in two parts, she said the first section is a story of five women who are living Lafleur’s experiences through their own eyes, while the second is an account of the healing she went through to deal with the trauma she experienced. When she was writing the book, Lafleur said the storytelling process helped her through those memories.

As a member of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, returning to traditional healing and spiritual practices also helped Lafleur on her healing path. She said sharing stories about her trauma isn’t easy, but is something she feels is important to do.

“One day I realized there’s all these silver linings in my life,” she said. “I’ve changed it and I re-layered my story.”

derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno