 Okay, I worked with the Tribal Linguists for the WIND out of Oklahoma. It's kind of at a distance because I live up in southern Ontario and the people are down in Oklahoma. So what the program involves being down there twice a year wants to teach the kids and wants to teach the adults, the kids are the really exciting part for me. I mean I like teaching the adults too, but the kids are really cool and they pick up stuff really fast sometimes it's brilliant, it's brilliant. So I send out words, every month I send out a certain list of words, I do an mp3 recording and then I send it down to my contact person in the cultural committee. I respond to when anybody in the community wants words for something. Part of its names, names are very important, traditionally names were clan, but sometimes people they want, they want a name in the language because it brings about a kind of connection, a kind of identity to have a real name, so sometimes people ask me I want a name for my son or my grandfather and I say okay tell me what he or she is like and they'll describe the person and I say okay I'll come back to you with a name. The name is given in a sacred ceremony very much like the traditional ceremonies on the day when the Pawawa was in September, the green corn, and it's a magic ceremony, it's magic because the people you know the chief begins with a prayer and gives the person the name and you can just see it, look in their faces, it just just feels so tremendous for all concern and that's becoming more and more a bigger part of the language program is just they've got this word and they know this word that's that's important the names are important because they had their names taken away from them right that's one of the things that was stolen from them so it's a give it's a small level giving back. I'm also working on a text that the language hasn't had speakers well it's hard to say when but let's say for about a hundred years the language was recorded 40 stories were recorded by Marianne Sparbow in 1911 1912 most of the stories came from Katherine Johnson who was a dear Klan member and a lot of the interpretation of what she said came from her son Alan. Now it was recorded but the work was never finished yes it was published in 1960 by the Museum but it was a mess that's probably the best word I could say it was a mess and it couldn't be used to teach people because there were too many mistakes too little analysis so my big part right now is providing that text I mean right now that interpretation of the text is up to 535 pages typewritten so hopefully it'll be a little smaller as a book but they need that basic source you know that this is this is our language here right and this is where much of the knowledge comes from so that's a big part of what I'm doing there are tribal they have a tribal court this is not unusual in the states and particularly not unusual in Oklahoma there are 38 different nations there and many of whom have tribal courts so they I've started to be involved in names for things you know defendant prosecutor judge even court itself is you know how you develop that you know that kind of thing and as I say and people ask me questions I get you know because I'm a distance away yeah that I'll get an email I want to know what you know how you would say this so and I'm trying to when I'm down there I I put on things that like a vat of coffee right so they didn't have a word for coffee so I used the strategy that related languages dead and made up one and every time I see a thing with coffee and I put the name on it or put it on it so they get same thing for sweet tea because they're Southerners so sweet tea is very important but just little things like that kids when I'm down there kids will ask for questions about what's a word for this what would be a word for this and some of it you know to me it's important that they own words of the language the more words a person has in the language the more they connect with their past with the ancestors the elders even if like one kid once asked me what would be a word for dinosaur because you know how kids love dinosaurs so I made up a form we gave to us okay and here's what it means and here's I know because he could then play with the language he could see how how the language builds words because it's very different from English and Spanish so that's that that's part of it you know so it's it's I say it's growing I've only been working for three years I've had people prior to me working on it my long-term idea is to get a couple of the younger people and for them to be like they've never had a tribe they've had tribal linguists they've had two before me but they've never had a tribal linguist that belongs to the tribe I believe that should happen and I want to train a couple of young people so that's that's their life right that's the most important thing for them and the last time the kids are down there was this one kid he had a gift with language and I wanted you know like he would anticipate the next thing I was going to teach and I love this okay and then I pointed him what do you think you know so I want you know there'd be a couple of kids that would become fluent in the language I want everyone trying to have some of the language you know I mean beyond you know Quay which is so low which it shares with other languages and it's jotsie which is I'm called for my name because I wouldn't reduce myself as John is jotsie you know John I am called more than a few things thank thank you which is Tja man yeah one of the problems I have is Wendat has a lot of nasal vowels which is easy for me to say because I've been exposed to French all my life in the South in Oklahoma there is no French so one of the hardest things for the people is to be able to say nasal vowels that's a real challenge and I just keep writing ideas okay now grab your nose and say oh but it's it's a challenge like every every language teaching situation has its own challenges one is just pure pronunciation there's no like this has to be perfect trans you know pronunciation has to be like this but I keep leaning into that like in Tja man when they say Tja may I say Tja man and there are enough English words I'm discovering that use the French nasal vowel so I give them you know like the home isn't I can honk you know we kind of you know we have but it's you have to look at like each form of language teaching each situation is unique you can't come in without okay this is what we're gonna do without listening to the people finding out what they want there's a couple people I work on stuff I send it to them and I say how how can this be improved and one of them said you're gonna dumb this down so and so I instead of just like I write using the phonetic the usual phonetic writing that was confusing for a lot of people so I approximated it in English and I started doing that with everything and you learn I mean I wouldn't have known that it's the feedback that's important and I want to broaden my network of feedback you know get to people and say they're really quick to do that when I ask questions what do you want to learn about that or what do you need what do you like about this what you don't like about this and they'll come if you talk you know and sometimes it's just I'm sitting around where the the gathering is and people will come up to me individually and say I want to know this and just being there it's not the directed learning you know the big school model but it's important because people feel comfortable enough with me to say John I want I want to learn this I want to know this how would you say this and you know even even saying small things like okay you can say thank you Tijeme but there's no word for your welcome that's it you know that's it that's a European thing they have to thank you to death right same thing with please there's no word that means please because if you say the way I put it this way if you ask respectfully please is a sign of respect but so is asking respectively in your tone and your manner you don't need it it's unnecessary and part of what I teach is this is these are things the language doesn't these are things the language doesn't do because people didn't feel it was necessary like one of my patent ones this is no word for best because that's a European cultural thing I don't find the best oh what's the best or favorite you know what's your favorite subject or what's your favorite dessert one that's free you know but you know it's saying it doesn't have this there's no real word for command either or obey which tells you you know just saying that doesn't give you words in the language but it gives you the sort of way of speaking and the language situations that would be natural for the for the people in the culture so you do that you know you can't teach language without including culture I don't think it's possible you can't sell it set it up as some kind of separate entity because it isn't it's the two are interwoven so closely you know you can't teach language without people learning about the culture as well and that's good because then they they come to understand you see people nodding you say okay I understand this now wasn't what I expected because they come with expectations of language because you know they because they know English some of them know Spanish and they have expectations based on that and when the wind up doesn't meet those expectations it has other expectations things that you have to think about what I'd like to add to this and there's be a new person soon that I'll be working with is more electronic means more digital means to to do things so I can produce digital lessons and people you know get more of a back-and-forth because I mean I have developed lessons but those are ones that I use them with the people and and I think because it you know it's primary tradition and spoken then there should be spoken lessons sent back and forth and there's lots of good means you know like I say I've recorded lots and lots of words on my MP3 player right that's really good but I think you know if we can if I could put together stuff and have it spoken and then written for those who who want stuff written to that if you use the to you can't just use the written that shouldn't be done it should have so they get the flow of the language and this you know the stresses and get used to saying things get used to saying big words that's one of the challenges of course pretty much with any indigenous language is the words are bigger there are fewer words in a sentence one word can be a sentence so you know that that's part of the set of expectations once they get used to it once they get over the word is so big I'm scared and I've heard that so often the word is so big I'm scared if you know you you make it so okay here's the flow just let it flow like this listen to it over and over again and you'll get the flow and then I think it's scarier when you see a long word than if someone speaks it slowly I think and someone speaks it slowly and you feel the rhythm like a sentence that that word can be and people will connect because I know there's that that intimidation I see it and I hear it I look at people's faces because I watch people when I teach you know I was a college teacher for 30 years I've learned to watch people when you teach to see where they are to see where they're confused so I pick okay I gotta do something about that I did that you know you have to say okay you have to self-correct you have to say okay this is this this is problematic for these people one one gotta do something different you know something that no their comfort with the language is a priority I gradually I've only been at this for three years gradually you know and you hear some of the words being used I love that even it's just like the greeting the names and a few other things I've also one of the most magical things that I've ever done was an elder had a short time to live and he wanted to hear the Lord's Prayer and wine done so I had translated it before so I spoke it and and sent it to him and before he died he heard the Lord's Prayer in his language I was one of those times you know magic just magic but when they get more you it's just part of that you know it's it's a I think we're both experimenting the people are I am it's gonna take a while it's not something that you can just say okay we get to hear we get to hear like like a grade system and I find that each year what I'm doing is more effective and that I can't believe I thought that it's neat you know I mean and I think when you'll see when I'm working with a new person I'm hoping that's a young person who's really good with technology because I'm not so we can you know I can't speak into a microphone though and and just so people regularly get access to hearing the language hearing the language hearing the language playing it over and over again saying it that kind of thing I think because it's it's just and the people see the tribe is in the in the reservation there are a couple hundred people but as citizens of the tribe there's six thousand so they're all over the US and they come to the times I go down are the times they come down right so we're talking about a tribe tribal entity that's all over the US it's like people from California Oregon Alabama you know all over so obviously electronic means have to be used more I mean other than just my speaking those words and sending them out I gotta develop a concrete program that works that way and you know I'll learn and they'll they'll teach me and we'll get well I'll find out what works because I'm looking for what works and you know as I say it doesn't when I first go when I retired as a teacher and then it's a joint you want to be the the tribal language I mean one of my eyes went really big but I thought okay I gotta do a lot of different thinking and I've got to not follow a trip you know I've taken classes in French and Spanish and Latin it's gotta be really different from doing that you know so and it is and I feel it's becoming when you people say what's one word that would describe what's happening I would say becoming it's not there yet it's becoming and that to me is good okay what is indigenous education I would call it gaining access to the ways of the people getting access to the traditions to how the ancestors were the ancestors knowledge the ancestors ways connecting with those things so that you feel your identity and how you live it's different from say learning something and getting marks you know it's not that it's it's all about connection it's all about connection again it's that single-word thing connection when you have something beautiful and it's stolen from you and you know how it was stolen if you know the history having it brought back to you is a way of kind of greeting the ancestors it's a way of of taking back what's been stolen and things are very precious once they've been stolen and they come back to you I just it is just it does so much and it's hard I'm acting my mind is picturing examples of people and you know like I said before when people get their names right and then they have a name that belongs to them and belongs to their people and links them to the people like that it's a small thing it looks like a small thing but it's not all you have to do is see what's on people's faces to know what's not small for the language program the why and I I hope ten years from now there's a group of young people who have been learning for years and who will take it up who will you know who will be the ones to follow when when you know I'm too old to teach or what I think you know it's time for you guys to take over because it has to be it has to be from the people themselves right so part one of that is young people with the language people who will teach it and then another part is everybody having some vocabulary it would be unrealistic to say everybody's gonna be fluent that that's beating your head against a wall but that everybody has a good collection of words and that those words connect them with the language but also that they help them understand stand the culture everybody's gotta have a pack of words right but we're gonna have young people who at some point in their lives are going to be language elders that is why the first part of my vision is is that I spoke those words when the Royal Commission was happening in the 1990s I said for these people this is this is this is necessary right you know that kind of thing that you you work with the young people get the young people to to to become the future to become the elders of the future the new elders and that will be magic