For thousands of years, I have been connected to Kutah (the ocean). Obviously, I have not been alive for thousands of years, however the blood, the DNA, the matter that makes up my body, the specks of stardust that make up my being are what connects me to all of my ancestors in this place. Our first home is in water–the gestational fluid that surrounds us. This sacred fluid is one of the seven varieties of water on this Earth.
The ocean water
The river, stream and lake water
The water that falls from the sky as rain, ice and snow
The water locked within the ice
The water in the ground and rocks
The sacred water carried by women
The sacred water within our own bodies
In my society, as a woman, it is my job to care for the water, thank the water, and pray for the water as my own biology is ruled by water. I am 1/3 water. N8kômuhs, My Grandmother, the Moon holds the tides, and goes through a 28 day phase is akin to my own body’s calendar of retaining and receding water and my monthly ceremony and connection to the Spirit World and the Creator is at its strongest. I am looked after by Squant, the Spirit who guides children and women and make offerings in gratitude for the teachings that she provided my ancestors thousands of years ago that have been passed down to me during Coming of Age and through Birth Ceremony. Water is so sacred and connected to us as women that we have songs for it–we have songs sung when our Water breaks in birth. Just as Nutukeem–the land that I am inextricably connected from, Nutupee–I cannot separate myself from the water.
We have traveled Kutah for thousands of years. Ancient stories of great mish8nash–vessels traveling up and down the coast to visit our relatives and trade have finally been “proved” by archaeology to have happened. I didn’t need archaeology to prove that to me. Large vessels traveled the Atlantic seaboard delivering large chunks of stone from the Labrador Peninsula as raw material 5000 years ago–prior to the construction of the Egyptian pyramids.
As coastal Indigenous populations, we have maintained our boat building practices. 5000 years of practice didn’t stop with 400 years of colonization. Traditional ocean-going mish8nash were over 60 feet long with 40 man crews, seated two wide with sails and supplies traveled the Atlantic seaboard. Smaller, 9-10 foot vessels were used for smaller water ways.
I had the opportunity to work on Nookuhmuhs “Our Grandmother,” the 36′ long vessel currently housed in the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center. It is currently the largest dugout canoe made in the past 200 years in North America. My husband, Jonathan Perry was the master boat maker, and assembled a crew of Indigenous people from New England and New York who come from traditional Indigenous Atlantic societies to burn, scrape and finish the vessel. It was launched in August 2015 in the Mystic River, paddled by 13 Native people representing different Atlantic seaboard nations with two tribal nation leaders on board. This really was a community effort and a demonstration of traditional Algonkian diplomacy.
More on Mission Mishoon and other Mishoon projects: https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/kissing-water-launching-nookomuhs
https://www.theday.com/video/20150811/new-england-tribal-members-paddle-on-mishoons-maiden-voyage/1
http://www.pequotmuseum.org/nookumuhs/
Other mish8nash projects in New England:
The Hōkūlea comes to Noepe (Martha’s Vineyard) https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/east-meets-west-hokulea-sails-east-coast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtYEqHNmuXI&t=249s
Photographs from Mission Mishoon included
