Earth Day Vancouver

This was quite a large event to celebrate Earth Day. Although it was a bit odd. There was a First Nations component, which was separated from the rest of the event and felt like an entirely separate event. The rest of the event had a bunch of tents with vendors and information, as well as a tree planting exercise that apparently planted 4000 trees. I’m always a bit suspicious of these events when they have corporate sponsors like Starbucks «giving away» earth friendly things for a «donation.» Hm… Anyhoo…
The First Nations component was truly lovely. It started off with a drumming group while a Mukwa style teepee was constructed. I have never seen one being built, and it was rather fascinating to watch.
There was then a Musqueam elder that told stories from his grandparents’ generation about the Vancouver area. There were stories of salmon, tribal fights, colonialization, and even the experience when one of his elders first experienced a drive-​through at McDonald’s which highlighted aspects of the colonial aspects very effectively. He was a fascinating story teller and had everyone enthralled with his stories. An amazing experience to hear these things from him first hand. It is truly moving to see the connection to the land that in modern urban Vancouver we so quickly forget. He gave a sense of history to the area and connection to the land that we rarely see.
A beautiful day in so many ways (the sun just being a small part of it).