Senator Murray Sinclair at a retirement residence in Winnipeg on April 30.Shannon VanRaes /The Globe and Mail
Mazina Giizhik-iban, Murray Sinclair, was an inspiration to many people across this land. To me, he was a mentor, an adviser and a dear friend. I am grateful for the time we shared and the privilege to have learned from his powerful teachings and lessons.
I have so many fond memories of Murray, but one of my favourites is from many years ago when I joined him and his beloved wife, Katherine, and their family during the Lake Winnipeg Water Walk. Katherine and others led this journey to raise awareness about the health of Lake Winnipeg and the need to protect the water as a sacred, living being.
The Water Walk began in Norway House and ended in Manigotagan, Man. Along the way, Katherine and the others would end each day by placing a collection of five grandfather rocks on the path to signal where they would pick up the next morning. They laid the rocks in the formation of a turtle, a symbol of our connection to the land.
As the walk neared completion, Murray decided that it would be fitting to have an actual turtle present to mark the end of the journey. He mentioned this to his long-time friend and helper, Laver Simard. Laver then spoke to his brothers, Charles and Reg, and asked them to help him find a turtle for Murray. The brothers had no idea how or where to find a live turtle, but they didn’t want to disappoint their friend, “Justice Sinclair.”
Later that day, Laver’s brother Charles was driving down the road and lo and behold what did he see walking up to the road from the creek? A huge snapping turtle. He called Laver and told him to come and meet him, and the two brothers gently lifted the animal into the back of the truck and brought it home where it was kept in a bathtub until it was time to take it to Murray. And so, it was. When Murray asked, the Creator provided the man who did so much for so many with a mikinak (turtle).
As I stood on the shore during the ceremony to honour the end of the Water Walk, I wasn’t aware that any of this had occurred. I had tears in my eyes – surrounded by community members, water walkers and family – as Murray raised the turtle, a symbol of truth. I was in awe and moved that Murray, so grand and spiritually connected to the land, was able to call on the animals to join him in power. After all, he had summoned that big turtle directly from the cool waters of the lake.
It wasn’t long after that I learned the truth about how the turtle came to be part of the ceremony. Murray and I were talking about the experience and I said, “Wow! I couldn’t believe the turtle swam to you at the end of the walk.” He looked at me puzzled, not realizing I didn’t know the turtle was plucked from the road by Laver and Charles. Bemused and with a little smile, he said, “I’m pretty good most days, Steph, but not that good,” and we laughed hard.
Stephanie Scott, executive director, National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
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