ABSTRACT
In the eulogies of deceased Teetl’it Gwich’in, young and old, life out on the land always reappears in the shape of fond memories and the experiences of being with knowledgeable elders. The text narrates the hunting trips, the visited camps, trapping, picking berries, the practice of learning. What it illustrates and stresses is the general notion of gwinzii kwundei: the good life of being on the land. This chapter examines the notions of gwinzii kwundei and the loss of elders. The traditional food one eats and shares, the use of wood for cooking and the stove, the fresh brush in the older cabins and in the tents, and the traditional medicine all encompass this ‘being alive well’ and are poetically expressed in statements like gwinzii kwundei. The Midway Lake Music Festival emphasises precisely these aspects of Gwich’in life as Teetl’it Gwich’in and others gather together on the land for a long weekend filled with music, dancing, visiting, and traditional foods.
