HAT's 13 W̱SÁNEĆ ȽḴÁLJ

HAT’s 13 W̱SÁNEĆ Moons - A Sharing Blog Series

Introduction written by Dominique James, HAT W̱SÁNEĆ Steward and SENĆOŦEN Language Specialist.

ÍY SȻÁĆEL HÁLE

NIȽ TIÁ NE SĆÁ ȻENTOL NE SĆÁLEĆE I W̱UĆIST I XEĆT TŦE ÍY SHIWEḰ ŚX̱ENÁNS E TIÁ W̱SÁNEĆ XAXE TEṈEW̱. NIȽ SU I TOTELṈEW̱ ȽTE TŦE ÍY ŚX̱ENÁNS I SNÁs EṮ TŦE SJESEṈENEȻ ȻS I EṈOTES TŦE W̱ELW̱ENITEM ȻS I QENETES TŦE ȽḴÁLJ I TŦE SȻÁĆEL SU TOLṈEW̱ ȽTE ȻE NIȽS U ȻȽ HIŦ XEĆTIS TŦE WILṈEW̱ TŦE ÁȽE EN SYEŦOŦEN E TŦE W̱ENITEM. NIȽ SE ȻEĆÁ TIÁ SĆÁ HUĆIST TŦEN ṈENṈENE E TŦE ĆELÁṈEN ȽTE. ENÁN U JIJEȽ SEN ET NEȻILIYE ENÁ SE ȻS TÁĆELS E TIÁ ÁNEȻ TŦE ÍY LELÁṈEN I ÍY SNEPENEḰS E TIÁ ĆÁĆI ŚX̱ENÁNS.

Good Day Everyone

This blog series is the work we are putting together to share with others teachings from this sacred W̱SÁNEĆ land. Together, we will be learning and sharing the good ways of connecting to the land through these teachings. This series looks at the W̱SÁNEĆ 13 Moons cycle - we will learn together what our good friends and relatives have shared with us.

This is what I will be teaching my children and our birthrights together in the years to come. I am really grateful to everyone who has openly listened and learning about these important teachings and done this work in a good way.

- Dominique

Trigons art by Sarah Jim. shared with permission

NEW MOON: PEXSISEṈ - Blossoming Out Moon

March 29, 2025

By Dominique James and Paige Erickson-McGee

It is the time where you will start to see that it is a sign of spring—the little sprouts are now flowering, covering the landscape with the most beautiful wildflowers, shrubs, and trees. The wind is coming from the STIWET (Northwest) are PEPEW̱ÁLS lightly blowing winds and there are some W̱SÁNEĆ SDILEMs (songs) that speak to this happening, explaining with the good weather coming, flowers are waking up, the earth is waking up with all new blossoming. The plants open their leaves and the blossoms open.

There is more sun, which is good to XÁĆEṈ (dry) the food being harvested.

People hunted and preserved the XEL¸XELJ (Brant goose) using floating nets in their feeding grounds. W̱SÁNEĆ also harvested clams, oysters and mussels at this time. Cedar trees were ĆAKET (felled) for canoes, paddle making and the SȽENȽÁNI (women) started to OLEXET (strip) the SȽEUI (bark) from XPȺ (cedar) trees for weaving mats and clothing.

Long ago, when people kept PKEL¸ḴEN (small woolly dogs), this was the time of year when the dogs’ wool started to shed, and it was collected and spun for blankets.

W̱IW̱Q¸IȽĆ Red-flowering Currant branches, leaves, flowers, and fruit by WSIKEM artist Sarah Jim — W̱IW̱Q¸IȽĆ - Red-flowering Currant

Watch this video by PEPÁḴEṈ HÁUTW̱ Foundation staff to learn the pronunciation. This piece was shared with permission by **Sarah Jim**. Sarah is a visual artist from the small village of W̱SÍ¸ḴEM (Tseycum) in W̱SÁNEĆ, along with Mexican, Russian-Jewish, and English ancestry. Sarah is currently enrolled in W̱SÁNEĆ College in the full-time Indigenous Language Revitalization Program: W̱¸SENĆOŦENIST.

Early spring blooms of W̱IW̱Q¸IȽĆ (red-flowering currant) provide a much-needed nectar source for hummingbirds, especially for the migratory rufous hummingbird, who travels over 6000 kilometres back home after spending the winter in Central America.

Often this time of year, people feel the shared buzz of excitement at the first signs of spring—flowers open up, birds are singing, and gardeners are keen to begin spring cleaning in the garden. However, removing fallen leaves and standing stalks from last year can be harmful to many of our pollinators - overwintering butterflies and bumblebees who hibernate in the leaves, or many types of pollinators who lay their eggs in hollow stems of raspberry canes, are still alive in there, waiting for the temperatures to rise before they emerge. Leaving those hollow stems, leaves, and a few branches creates nurseries for young pollinators to emerge. They also provide habitat for beetles and other insects, an important protein source for the songbirds building nests and feeding their young. Did you know our local hummingbird chicks need a high-protein diet from insects to develop strong bones and their characteristic long beak?

Making peace with the “messy” look is key to supporting wildlife.

XPȺ - Cedar branch and cones by WSIKEM Artist Sarah Jim — XPȺ - Cedar

Cedar trees were ĆAKET (felled) for canoes and paddle-making, and the SȽENȽÁNI (women) started to OLEXET (strip) the SȽEWI (bark) from XPȺ (cedar) trees for weaving mats and clothing.
Watch this video about harvesting XPȺ (cedar) to learn how to pronounce the word from SENĆOŦEN Videos.
*This piece was shared with permission by Sarah Jim.*

Three stewardship actions you can take inspired by PEXSISEṈ:

Leave the leaves, stems, and logs on the land to be nurseries for emerging pollinators.
Practice the Art of Phenology by observing the changes that spring brings. Practice observing seasonal changes on the land (even in your yard or a nearby forest). Take note of the first date you see:
- Return of the migratory rufous SX̱EDJELI (hummingbird)
- First flowers opening on the W̱IW̱Q¸IȽĆ (red-flowering currant)
- XPȺ (cedar) trees begin to release pollen
  Was it earlier or later than last year? Reflect on why you think that might be, compare observations with friends or family.
Celebrate spring with reciprocity. Connect with the land by removing some invasive plants in your neighbourhood, or connect with community by joining a restoration event.