Over the past four years, Alexandra staff and students have been learning about how one follows “a good path” in life. In Ojibwe, the words to describe this are Mino Bimaadizwin. We have learned that staying on this path does not happen by accident. Rather, it requires guidance from our elders, experience, making mistakes and learning from them. To help us in our journey, we have been learning about the Seven Grandfather Teachings and working hard to put these actions into action in our lives.The discovery of the remains of 215 children on the grounds of the former residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia and other similar discoveries since then have had a significant impact on our school community. In addition to feeling profound sadness at the loss suffered, we have been reminded of how trauma and mistakes in our lives can so easily push us or lead us off the Good Path in life. It has also taught us that if these traumas and mistakes are not dealt with or corrected, they can have a disastrous effect.

The creation of our Thoughtful Space is intended to help us “remember the past and build for the future together.” We believe that the residential school chapter of our shared history must not be forgotten and that we must learn from these and other mistakes from our past. However, we also believe that sharing our learning journey along the Good Path in life will help our school and our community to work together to build a better future.

Our thoughtful space will be used for rest, remembrance, and reflection. The seven trees planted in this area represent each of the Grandfather Teachings. The colourful hands of our students painted on the tarmac remind us that authentic reconciliation and healing take time and depend on our children learning to make the 'right' decisions in life. The pathway painted on the sidewalk represents our shared journey on the Good Path in life.

On National Indigenous Day (June 21) at 9:30 a.m. we are inviting our community to show support for our shared journey on the Good Path in life.

Let us remember the past, respect the present, and build the future....together.

Please join our Alexandra School community and any and all friends from Grey and Bruce Counties on our 7th Avenue boulevard on Tuesday, June 21, 2022 from 9:30 to 10:30 to introduce our Thoughtful Space, and to celebrate our journey along the Good Path in life, together as one family.
If possible, please wear your orange shirts.