I am of Scottish/Irish background and I have been influenced greatly from those cultures such as the traditions my family follows or some of the foods we eat. But, because I am a Canadian I have the privilege to be exposed to a diverse amount of cultural influences when it comes to food, fashion, architecture, leisure activities, and even entertainment. I live on Manitoulin Island and there are many Indigenous communities located here. I feel like Indigenous culture has been the biggest influence for me apart from my own heritage.
Before I started taking online courses I attended a regular high school called Manitoulin Secondary School. Manitoulin Secondary School (MSS) is located in M’chigeeng First Nation. This school was very involved in educating us (the students) on Indigenous culture and traditions. There was an annual pow-wow day, a day off school to go explore the Indigenous fall festival that was full of drum circles, beading workshops, and even moose stew! In the warmer months, there would be a Tipi outside the school where we occasionally listened to stories, I learned just how important stories are to Indigenous culture as it includes a lot of oral traditions. These stories about creation have influenced my own creative writing and the way I view the world. I love to hear and read other cultures creation stories because of these experiences, I watch videos on YouTube sometimes in my free-time for entertainment. Some mornings in my high school there was even a smudging ceremony in the Indigenous center called “Three Fires”.
Although being at Manitoulin Secondary School did expose me to many Indigenous traditions, Indigenous culture has always been a main cultural influence in my life. I have memories of cooking Bannock- a traditional over indigenous flatbread, over a campfire at summer-camp and I remember going to my local art gallery pretty frequently when I was younger and always admiring these large colourful paintings. As I grew up I learned that these were by the artist Daphne Odjig and that she was a Canadian First Nations artist of Odawa-Potawatomi-English heritage, from Manitoulin Island. Her painting style is usually referred to as “Woodland” style. This style of art has definitely influenced my own art as well as my personal fashion sense- I love to wear bright, bold, funky patterns and jewelry.
Annie The Sociologist 