 So we're headed to Jesse's parents house in a place called Caliou. I believe it's where a bunch of Métis people have settled. Hey Jesse, good to see you. Should we go in? Yeah. We're going to have two kinds of eggs, two other poach, and then just eat the over. Let's pray. What is it to be Métis? That's a really hard question I think. For anybody who's Métis to answer. Because for each person I think it's different. Depending on your historical background and your genealogy and where you raised across Canada. Because every part of Canada has different history in terms of the Métis. For people who are Métis, who self-identify as Métis, I think that you know who you are because of who your people are. Your family is something that you do, food that you eat, all of those kind of things. So one of the things about being Métis too though, even though we had a foot in both worlds, we were never white enough for the European people and dark enough for the First Nations people. And that's what I think drew the Métis people together as a people. What? I don't want to do one of these. It's very cool. You need to do it. Can you? How did you make that? No, no, it's a program put on predigree. Like, there's Jesse. There's her in birthdays. One, no? There it is. And there's Selena and I. And then we're going back on my mom's line. So Henry Lawyer and Clara Mary Louise Cunningham. I've been doing this probably now for... See, my grandmother was still alive when I was doing genealogy. She died in 1980. So lots of it was just oral history. Who's who? It's in your head. And then it gets too complicated because there's too many people. So, Soto, Cree, Iroquois, Sarsi, Irish, French. Pretty much it. Lots of Métis. So James, this guy with the long beard, if we go back and do it onto the tree. They call themselves Otapem Suik. It means their own boss. Oh, okay. So they don't have an Indian agent. Lots of times it was poverty. They lived in road allowances, because in between were the two no man's land, no road allowances. But they were their own boss. And that's why some of them didn't take treaty. And were you guys allowed to carry money too? Oh, yeah. They were like, well, if you had money. Yeah, if you had money. I know a lot of First Nations weren't allowed to carry money at all. No, they could carry money. They could vote. They could drink in the bar. Really? Oh, yeah. They were like regular Joe citizens. Métis. That's sad. Socially no. Socially no. But for some reason I was under the impression like most Métis were from French people from all over France and then pretty much one tribe and to see this like changes my viewpoint. Yeah, because there's also ones coming from like Scotland and Ireland for trade. Yeah. Also then with depending on where they were traveling here. Historically the Métis were the ones that actually helped to open up Canada to European settlement because they had a foot in both worlds. When they were headed out somewhere, they'd be like, hey, not a problem. We can go stay over here. I know some people over here. And I know some people who know some people. I remember what these leaves look like. Oh yeah? Like the shape of them? Yeah. It's such a distinct like shape and the shape of the berries too, hey? Mm-hmm. I just brush my teeth so I'm not going to eat it. You're like, mm, pass. Yeah. A little bit. You've got a lot of greenery. Crazy. And apparently you can eat these squash plushies. Yeah. No, the carrots are doing really good this year. So let's go. Made. Yeah. It wasn't like until about five years ago that I realized that flowers turned into fruit. While we're like turning into food. Yes, it wasn't paying attention bio, right? I never had a garden, right? No, but it's true. And I think that's a thing for lots of urban kids, right? They don't have a garden or, you know, somebody in their family doesn't know how to like take care of a garden. I pray, I pray, and I ask the creator, I don't ask. I thank the creator for the plant that he's given us here and for giving up its life to us, its essence to us so that we can use it for medicine, or this case for medicine. When I was a kid growing up, I knew I was Aboriginal, but I didn't really know what that was. And same with most of my friends. I remember having a conversation with my friend Mike and being like, we're Indians, but like, what is an Indian? We're like, I don't know, beads and feathers. Well, I guess the difference too with the Métis is like, they aren't white and they aren't First Nations, but they know exactly who they are, right? Like there's like that super strong cultural connection in the language. All those identity issues come from the Indian Act, come from assimilation policies, and it comes from somebody else telling you who you are. Yeah, it's all external, right? Somebody defining what that identity is for you, or telling you right before you even know yourself. It's the Red River Jig. It's like the best known tune for Métis people. It's like the soul of a Métis person is the Red River Jig, and everybody knows it, who is truly Métis. It's true. What is the future of the Métis? I think that because we have always been an adaptable people, we will adapt. Like we already are adapting. Like we have young kids that are learning to play the fiddle, and they learn the traditional tunes, but they also learn other tunes. And we, you know, are even the style of our dance, the traditional dances, has changed over time. So all of those things have changed over time, and we change over time. And being adaptable is one of the reasons why we're still here. And I don't see any reason why we wouldn't continue here.