When I heard from Bioneers about a new children's book about the story of Thanksgiving, written by Native authors, complete with curricula for elementary school students – I signed up for their presentation right away. Last week, I had the opportunity to speak with two of the authors, Alexis Bunten and Anthony Perry.

If you too have wanted to share a more accurate, more complete story of Thanksgiving with children - appropriate for their ages - you're going to love Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story. It's co-written by three Native authors, including Danielle Greendeer, Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Citizen, Hawk Clan.

The story is told from the perspective of Corn (Weeâchumun), and emphasizes human relationship with the plants and animals who feed us, and the generosity and care we can show by feeding each other.

(And, my dreamers and dreamworkers will love this: Weeâchumun sends dreams to the First Peoples, urging them to help the hungry newcomers.)

To me, the Great Turning toward a life sustaining society requires us to take a deep look at our history. Especially for those of us without direct access to the wisdom of our indigenous ancestors, it requires learning from more life-sustaining societies, past and present. As a mother of elementary school aged children, I relate to the authors' perspective that the stories we tell young children shape their views of themselves and the world around them.

This means we can participate in the "shift in consciousness" dimension of the Great Turning by sharing books like Keepunumuk with our kids.

Click Play now to hear me, Alexis, and Tony explore:

how the mainstream Thanksgiving story landed with Tony and Alexis when they were children
ways we can decolonize and indigenize our own Thanksgiving celebrations
the cultural shift toward recognizing and respecting the Indigenous peoples of North America
the authors' choices about gently mentioning the history of colonization, pandemic and genocide among Native American people, before and after the first Thanksgiving
contemporary food issues, including the challenges and the possibilities around reconnecting with what we eat
and curriculum resources for children in elementary through high school

I loved hearing the care that both Alexis and Tony have for children and families of all backgrounds, as together we face the challenges of these times. I'm grateful they've written this book, and hopeful it will nurture a deeper understanding of our history, and our interconnection with the life that feeds us, and with one another.

Show notes with links to more resources, and to connect with Alexis and Tony: turningseason.com/episode23

Healing Season: leilaninavar.com/healingseason

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Turning Season Podcast brings you regular doses of Active Hope in The Great Turning, our adventure toward a life-honoring, life-sustaining way of being human on Earth. Every Full Moon, we share a deep conversation with people playing their own unique part in this shift. On the New Moons, we share brief, heartening news stories. This show is for every one of you who's awake to our multiple crises, feels your love for life on Earth, and chooses to participate in cultivating ways of life we can believe in, making a life-honoring present even in the face of an uncertain future.

Turning Season is hosted by Leilani Navar, a facilitator of the Work that Reconnects, an acupuncturist and dreamworker, and a believer in the power of conversation.

Music by East Forest.

turningseason.com

Keepunumuk: How To Indigenize Thanksgiving through Story and Food (with Alexis Bunten and Anthony Perry) 01:02:04 Share

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Keepunumuk: How To Indigenize Thanksgiving through Story and Food (with Alexis Bunten and Anthony Perry)