Wayne Benojee Character Analysis

“Virgil, I loved my mother more than anybody else could possibly know. But she died. She had to die. We all do. And while it is sad that I will never see her again, I know that she was contributing to what we call the circle of life. She passed on so that somewhere out there, a baby could be born in her place. You know how much she loved her grandkids, all kids. This was not a great sacrifice for her.”

“Some people think everything we are is rooted in the past. It is, partially. But like evolution tells us, if things don't develop, change, evolve, adapt, they die. I believe that. So I and what I do are part of that evolution. My heart and spirit are with our grandfathers and grandmothers, but my hands and feet are in the now. I do what I do to honour our ancestors, knowing that if they lived today they would probably be doing the same thing I am. I may never use what I've developed, but it’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.”

“You’d fight him? Nanabush…if it is Nanabush?”

“As you said, this is about your mother, my sister. Most people think Nanabush is a lovable goof, a children’s character. But he is more human than most humans, he has all their nobility, and all their faults––magnified. He’s a wild card, Virgil. I am going to have to be as wild as him.”

Virgil remembered Dakota’s parents had strongly embraced the Canadian lifestyle. They probably hadn’t seen fit to fill her head with stories of Anishnawbe history or culture. Their daughter should have her feet firmly planted in the here and now, they thought. […] Dakota knew more French than Anishnawbe, and more English history than Anishnawbe history. Her only connection to the past had been Lillian. But now wasn't exactly the time to fill her in on the details. It would have to wait.

“You remember those stories about the trickster, the ones that Grandma told us? Him,” Virgil said.

“Who is Nanabush, to you? You tell me.”

Virgil mentally went through all the stories his grandmother had told him over the years, and also through what he’d read recently. “He’s a hero, a fool, a teacher, someone silly, someone clever––my grandmother would say he’s us.”

“Virgil, I loved my mother more than anybody else could possibly know. But she died. She had to die. We all do. And while it is sad that I will never see her again, I know that she was contributing to what we call the circle of life. She passed on so that somewhere out there, a baby could be born in her place. You know how much she loved her grandkids, all kids. This was not a great sacrifice for her.”

“Some people think everything we are is rooted in the past. It is, partially. But like evolution tells us, if things don't develop, change, evolve, adapt, they die. I believe that. So I and what I do are part of that evolution. My heart and spirit are with our grandfathers and grandmothers, but my hands and feet are in the now. I do what I do to honour our ancestors, knowing that if they lived today they would probably be doing the same thing I am. I may never use what I've developed, but it’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.”

“You’d fight him? Nanabush…if it is Nanabush?”

“As you said, this is about your mother, my sister. Most people think Nanabush is a lovable goof, a children’s character. But he is more human than most humans, he has all their nobility, and all their faults––magnified. He’s a wild card, Virgil. I am going to have to be as wild as him.”

Virgil remembered Dakota’s parents had strongly embraced the Canadian lifestyle. They probably hadn’t seen fit to fill her head with stories of Anishnawbe history or culture. Their daughter should have her feet firmly planted in the here and now, they thought. […] Dakota knew more French than Anishnawbe, and more English history than Anishnawbe history. Her only connection to the past had been Lillian. But now wasn't exactly the time to fill her in on the details. It would have to wait.

“You remember those stories about the trickster, the ones that Grandma told us? Him,” Virgil said.

“Who is Nanabush, to you? You tell me.”

Virgil mentally went through all the stories his grandmother had told him over the years, and also through what he’d read recently. “He’s a hero, a fool, a teacher, someone silly, someone clever––my grandmother would say he’s us.”