Which podcast or radio show did you listen to this past week?
If you’re like me, I finally cleared some time and listened to a podcast on Monday night…and discovered someone I worked with years ago has released an album! So exciting. Jeremy Dutcher is Wolastoq (an Indigenous nation in New Brunswick) and has blended Wolastoq songs found in the archives (many of which have not been heard for over 100 years) and his classical training. It’s a way of preserving a language that is dying – and reinvigorating a culture and community.
You can listen to Jeremy Dutcher’s interview with Roseanna Deerchild about his work and hear one of the songs from his album here.

Music notes arranged in a circle
Creatures of habit
I guess the point I’m trying to make is that we are creatures of habit.
Same radio station, same TV shows, same hang out spots, same people… you get the idea. All of which makes it difficult to get new perspectives or challenge our thinking.
When we are speaking about diversity and inclusion of any kind, we need to be open to the new, to the unexpected, to Unlearning some of the things we have been taught (both overtly and covertly) about each other.
Reconciliation is no different.
The beauty about it is that there is a report that gives us a window into realities that we may know little about. (Haven’t read it yet? You can access it here)
Many Truths…all true and real
The title bears taking some time to examine – Truth and Reconciliation. The truth part is critical. Often in this work I remind people that just because it’s not true for you, doesn’t mean it isn’t true for someone else. This could be at work, at school, at home, in a community or in this case, a country. Just because we don’t share an experience doesn’t mean we get to discount it. Just because it’s not true for us, doesn’t mean it’s not true for someone else. We don’t have to understand it, we have to listen, to be empathetic, to lean in, ask questions, build community and grow so that we can help to create positive changes.
Remember you can be in the same situation as someone having a completely different experience.
Stretch
So…
It’s time to stretch.
Time to step out of the comfort zone of what we know and see what else there is, find out what else is going on. Get to know someone who is not in our circle.
That’s how we build community.
That’s how we create change.
See more.
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