Medicine Picking

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Staff and students from Kelvin High School, along with members of their families, had the opportunity to go medicine picking on September 15.  The sage that was picked will be used in the daily smudge. 

Smudging gives Indigenous and non-Indigenous students and staff the opportunity to learn about different cultures and share their teachings with one another. Smudging is a common cultural practice to many Indigenous people across Turtle Island. Smudging is done by burning sacred medicines (sage, cedar, sweet grass, tobacco) to create a smoke to help cleanse ourselves and the environment around us of negative energies so we can walk in a good way. 

The following teaching is shared with all participants:

"We smudge to clear the air around us. We smudge to clean our minds so that we'll only have good thoughts of others. We smudge our eyes so that we'll only see good things in others. We smudge our ears so that we'll only listen to good things about others. We smudge our mouths so that we'll only speak of good things about others. We smudge our whole being so that we may portray only the good part of our self through our actions.

This is voluntary and will be held outside of the school daily at 8:40 a.m. and occasionally could be held inside during extreme weather conditions.  If you have any questions, would like to participate, or would like to share your teachings with staff and students, please contact the school.