Hazel's Journey in Healing

Abstract

My discussion of Karen McBride’s Crow Winter will focus on how reconnecting with tradition and ceremony heals Hazel Ellis and helps her to come to terms with the recent loss of her father. Specifically, she heals through participating in a sweat lodge ceremony, her interactions with Nanabush and in learning about the Seven Grandfather Teachings. Her participation in the sweat lodge ceremony connects her with her spirituality. Through her interactions with traditional medicines such as tobacco and cedar, Hazel learns to open up, helping her understand that she needs to confront her feelings of grief. Through her connection with Nanabush she becomes comfortable in navigating the Spirit World. By learning about the Seven Grandfather Teachings with a focus on bravery, she is able to make a life-changing decision to protect the sacredness of the land. The novel teaches settler audiences and readers to understand the importance of land to Indigenous Peoples. Rather than look at it as property or something to be exploited, one needs to enter into a relationship with the land. Hazel makes evident that not only does land inform ways of knowing and being for Indigenous Peoples, but also that it guides people such as herself in healing journeys.