Guest post from the Education and Programming Team at the Centre: Kim Lawson, Jess Boon and Shannon Robinson

Today, we raise our hands to residential school Survivors, everyone who loves them, and everyone who is participating in Orange Shirt Day. 

This year in particular, when so many are distanced from their families, it is more important than ever to honour experiences and celebrate resilience in communities. Please bring compassion and self-compassion into your activities and reflections today.   

Residential school students and their families were taught that they were not allowed to have self-compassion. That what they felt, what they wanted, who they loved and the ones who loved them, were unimportant. 

As Survivor Phyllis Webstad explains, children were taught that their feelings did not matter. In our reflections on Orange Shirt Day today, focus on disrupting this horrible lesson.  Practice self-compassion – pass on the honour and remember the experiences, instead of repeating trauma and anguish. Bring love, honour and resilience to future generations instead of trauma. 

Today everyone should take a moment to hear, and really listen, to the experiences of residential school students. Reflect on what it means to honour those experiences and the dignity of residential school Survivors and those who did not survive. Reflect on self-care and self-kindness.  

In this year, where the social and physical distances between family, friends and all of us are challenged in new ways, our feelings today matter. For those who grieve and hurt for the losses within our families, honouring the experiences of residential school Survivors doesn’t diminish any of our losses and fears of today. For students facing different disruptions and isolation this year, your feelings matter. For everyone working to support, guide and care for students through the new challenges, your feelings matter. 

For those who knew little or nothing of residential schools before today, the trauma of these experiences may be more intense with a sense that the world has lost some stability this year. Perhaps we all face new anxieties this year about personal safety, the safety of the children and Elders in our lives, about our ability to provide for our families and communities.   

Self-care is only one aspect of resilience, but an important part of the day.

Honouring experiences today will bring many difficult moments and emotions to people. The many unpleasant feelings that can be expected — such as discomfort, sadness, grief, anger, disconnection, fear, mistrust, self-doubt — are not things we usually seek out as educational experiences. This discomfort is normal, and a place to begin a dialogue.  Explore our health and wellness resources for more information.

Please seek ways to build your own resilience, with compassion for others, so your celebration of the resilience of residential school Survivors can be a gift to the students of today, and to everyone who loves them.  

Orange Shirt Day: Honour experiences.  Celebrate resilience