Living Our Language_ Ojibwe Tales & Oral Histories - Anton Treuer [6]
The editing process is quite long and technical, and I have elected not to include editorial or textual notes in this book. Such editorial apparatus takes up a good deal of space and is not consulted frequently. However, all handwritten transcription notes, editorial notes, drafts, and original Ojibwe recordings have been archived at the Minnesota Historical Society. They are available for public use by those interested in the transcription and editorial process and by those interested in listening to and using the cassette tapes. Many of the recordings have been published through the Oshkaabewis Native Journal and are still in print.16
Acknowledgments
This work and the process of creating it were fundamentally shaped by many people. This book was created by and is owned by the speakers who tell its stories. I am personally indebted to each one of them for their generosity and kindness in opening up to me and allowing their stories to be recorded. Miigwech Archie Mosay, Jim Clark, Melvin Eagle, Joe Auginaush, Collins Oakgrove, Emma Fisher, Scott Headbird, Susan Jackson, Hartley White, and Porky White.
Many people assisted with my transcription and editing work. Several stories were proofread by Earl Otchingwanigan and John Nichols. Miigwech for your assistance and invaluable contributions. Thanks to Dick Barber, Connie Rivard, Betsy Schultz, and Dora Ammann for help in glossing certain words and place names. Miigwech also to Louise Erdrich, who recorded many of Jim Clark’s stories, and to Paul DeMain, who recorded one of Archie Mosay’s stories. Your efforts and concern for the Ojibwe language have done much to bring this work to fruition. Many thanks to Shannon Pennefeather, Greg Britton, Ann Regan, and the editorial staff at MHS for your faith in and attention to this work. At times the laughter of many people can be heard on the tapes. I hope these written transcriptions can do the tellings justice. Thanks to Susie Headbird, Dora Ammann, Brooke Ammann, Veronica Hvezda, Henry Flocken, David Treuer, Madeline Treuer, Sean Fahrlander, Keller Paap, and Sheila LaFriniere for sharing in the fun.
I received three grants to buy recording equipment and to travel to record the stories in this book. Miigwech to the Leech Lake Reservation Tribal Council, the Committee on Institutional Cooperation, and the Minnesota Historical Society for their support of this endeavor.
The process of recording, transcribing, and translating these stories has been paralleled by a personal spiritual journey for me. I was profoundly moved, motivated, and guided by many people. I especially want to thank Archie Mosay, Tom Stillday, and Earl Otchingwanigan, who devoted so much of their precious time and boundless wisdom to my endeavors. Miigwech for your patience, wisdom, and support. Thanks also to my parents Robert Treuer and Margaret Treuer, my siblings Megan, Micah, and David, my daughter Madeline, my ex-wife Sheila LaFriniere, and my dear friends James Hardy, Adrian Liberty, Henry Flocken, Sean Fahrlander, Mike Montano, Jay Saros, Dan and Dennis Jones, Isadore Toulouse, Keller Paap, Lisa LaRange, and Shannon White for supporting me and my endeavors without question. Without their guidance and faith, this project and my personal journey would not have come nearly so far.
Notes
1. As cited in census data taken from http://www.dickshovel.com and John