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Standing Bear Network Stories that help us remember how to be human.

Indigenous-led storytelling, spoken-word reflections, and cultural remembrance.
📷 Ceremony through the camera
🔥 Daily reflections

10/17/2026

🔥 THE EIGHTH FIRE — PART 117
When the Fire Burns Low

There are times when the fire within us does not burn as brightly as it once did.

We grow weary. We carry responsibilities, memories, and sorrows that others may never see.

But a fire does not have to roar to remain alive.

Sometimes, beneath the ashes, the smallest embers still hold enough warmth to begin again.

In this reflection, I share some thoughts about the quiet strength of continuing, the wisdom of our ancestors, and the importance of tending the fire within ourselves and one another.

We live in a world that often measures our worth by what we accomplish. Yet some of the most meaningful things we do happen quietly.

A kind word.
A shared meal.
A story passed between generations.
Someone choosing to sit beside another who is struggling.

These are the things that keep humanity warm.

Our worth is not measured by how brightly we burn, but by the warmth we continue to share.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin — the good life.

May we remember that rest is not the end of our journey. Sometimes it is how we gather the strength to continue.

And may we always make room beside our fire for someone who needs its warmth.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

Ekosi.

🔥 Standing Bear Network
John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Taìno-nêhiyaw, Pimicikamak storyteller

10/14/2026

🔥 THE EIGHTH FIRE — PART 116
The Fire We Leave Behind

Nearly ten years have passed since I sat beside the Sacred Fire at Standing Rock.

I remember the faces, the voices, the laughter, and the people who welcomed me into their lives.

Some have since journeyed into the Spirit World. Yet their kindness, their teachings, and the warmth of their presence remain.

And I have come to understand something.

A fire does not have to remain visible for its warmth to continue.

Perhaps the same is true of us.

We may never know how far a simple act of kindness will travel. A gentle word. A hand extended. A story shared with a child who will one day become a grandparent.

In our Cree ways, we speak of wahkohtowin — the relationships and responsibilities that connect us.

What we carry was entrusted to us by others. What we offer today may find its way into generations we will never meet.

The Eighth Fire is not about one person carrying the flame.

It is about remembering that each of us has something to offer.

May we leave behind a little more compassion, a little more understanding, and a little more courage to love one another.

When our footsteps have faded, may our kindness continue walking in the lives of others.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin — the good life.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

— John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Standing Bear Network

The Journey Continues — Ten Years After Standing RockColville territory, Washington State — 2018.Looking back at this ph...
10/13/2026

The Journey Continues — Ten Years After Standing Rock

Colville territory, Washington State — 2018.

Looking back at this photograph, I remember a time when I was still finding my way through the experiences that had forever changed my life at Standing Rock in 2016.

Now, nearly ten years later, I find myself reflecting not so much on the distance I have traveled, but on the people, places, and lessons that have shaped the journey.

Some friendships have endured. Others have become memories. Some roads brought understanding, while others taught me humility.

And through it all, I have come to appreciate something simple.

We are never finished becoming who we are.

Tonight, my prayer is one of gratitude.

Creator, thank you for the footsteps that brought us here, for the hands that welcomed us, and for the hearts that helped us find our way.

May we honor those who walked beside us, forgive what needs forgiving, and carry forward the kindness we have received.

May we never become so certain of what we know that we forget the beauty of listening.

And may we remember that every sunrise offers another opportunity to walk in a good way.

Nearly ten years since Standing Rock.

Eight years since this photograph.

Still learning. Still listening. Still walking.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin.

Mîkwêc, Creator, for the journey.

Êkwa. Walk gently, nitôtimuk.

— John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Standing Bear Network

10/12/2026

WE ARE STILL HERE.

Today, October 12, some observe Columbus Day. Others recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

Long before European ships crossed the ocean, Indigenous nations were already living, loving, raising families, speaking their languages, and caring for the lands and waters of this continent.

We were never waiting to be discovered.

We already knew who we were.

In The Eighth Fire, Part 115, I reflect on the importance of remembering the histories that were overlooked, honoring the peoples who are still here, and recognizing that Indigenous cultures are not relics of the past.

Our languages are still being spoken. Our ceremonies are still being carried. Our children are still learning the stories of their ancestors.

From my home community of Pimicikamak to the Narragansett territory where I stand today, these relationships and responsibilities continue.

Indigenous Peoples’ Day is more than a change of name on a calendar. It is an invitation to listen, to remember, and to recognize the living nations beneath the history we have been taught.

We were always here. And we are still here.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

Ekosi.

John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Standing Bear Network

10/09/2026

The Eighth Fire — Part 114
The Courage to Begin Again

Tânsi, nitôtimuk. My relatives.

There comes a time in every life when we find ourselves beginning again.

Sometimes by choice. Sometimes because life has taken us somewhere we never expected to go.

As autumn settles upon the land, the trees remind us of something beautiful. They release their leaves, not because their lives are ending, but because another season is beginning.

We have our seasons, too.

Seasons of growth, love, loss, healing, and renewal.

And through them all, we carry the wisdom of everything we’ve experienced.

Beginning again doesn’t mean that everything which came before was a mistake.

It means recognizing that our story is still being written.

In this reflection, I share some thoughts about miyo-pimâtisiwin — living a good life — and the quiet courage it sometimes takes simply to welcome another day.

Wherever you are in your journey, may you remember that tomorrow still holds possibilities.

You are allowed to begin again.

Ekosi.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Standing Bear Network

10/08/2026

WHAT THE WATER REMEMBERS
A Reflection from The Eighth Fire

Tânsi, Nitôtimuk. My relatives.

Sometimes the most important teachings arrive without words.

I spent a little time watching sunlight dance upon the water as it moved gently across the stones.

And I was reminded that water does not need to force its way through the world.

It moves with patience, finding its path, touching everything along the way.

Even the hardest stone is changed by its passing.

Perhaps we are not so different.

We do not always need to raise our voices to make a difference.

Sometimes gentleness, patience, and the quiet persistence of love accomplish what force never could.

May we remember that even the smallest acts of kindness can create ripples far beyond what we can see.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin. A good life.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

— John Kanipawit Maskwa (Standing Bear)
Standing Bear Network

10/05/2026

The Eighth Fire — Part 113
What We Carry Forward

There is a difference between holding on and carrying forward.

Holding on says, I cannot let this change.

Carrying forward says, This has become part of me, and I will walk with what it taught me.

As the leaves begin to fall, the trees remind us that releasing something does not mean it meant nothing.

We can remember the people who have gone ahead without refusing to move forward.

We can remember what we have survived without carrying every piece of the pain.

We can carry the wisdom.
We can carry the love.
We can carry the compassion.

And some things, we can gently return to the Earth.

Another season is coming.

Kitwam.

Again.

Another beginning. Another opportunity to live a little more gently than we did yesterday.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin.

A good life.

Êkwa.

Walk gently.

— John Kanipawit Maskwa
Standing Bear Network

10/03/2026

🔥 The Eighth Fire — Part 112
What We Leave Behind

What will people carry away from their time with us?

Maybe a life is not measured only by what we accomplish, what we own, or how many people know our name.

Maybe it is also measured in the things that continue moving through other people.

A kindness.
A conversation.
A cup of tea.
A moment of listening.
The feeling of being welcomed.
The knowledge that, for a little while, someone truly saw you.

Sometimes we never know which small moment another person will carry for years.

In Part 112 of The Eighth Fire, I reflect on miyo-pimâtisiwin — living a good life — and the things we leave behind in one another.

Not perfection.

Relationship.

Learning. Repairing. Forgiving. Returning.

Kitwam.

Again.

We return again.

Perhaps one of the most important questions we can carry today is:

What am I leaving behind in the people I meet?

May we live well.

May we walk gently.

And may those who cross our path carry something good from having known us.

Êkwa.

Walk gently.

—John Kanipawit Maskwa

I’m sitting at the hospital with my wife, Debbie.She fell while in Newport and hurt herself. She has bruising on her fac...
10/02/2026

I’m sitting at the hospital with my wife, Debbie.

She fell while in Newport and hurt herself. She has bruising on her face, and her leg and shoulders are hurting, so we came in to have her checked and make sure she is all right.

And, as life sometimes arranges things, I’m also being seen today. My index finger developed an infection that needs attention.

So here we are — husband and wife, taking care of one another while other people take care of us.

There are moments when everything else becomes very small. The work can wait. The messages can wait. The things we thought we needed to accomplish today can wait.

Right now, what matters is that Debbie is beside me, that we are together, and that we are getting the care we need.

We would appreciate your good thoughts and prayers while we wait to learn more.

Miyo-pimâtisiwin.

May we walk gently with one another, especially on the days when the road becomes difficult.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

10/02/2026

The Eighth Fire — Part 111
Leave Room to Listen

Do I want to be right, or do I want to understand?

Those are not always the same thing.

Some of the most important things I have learned came when I stopped talking long enough to listen — beside a fire, traveling with an Elder, hearing someone speak their language, or simply paying attention to the land.

When someone trusts us enough to share their story, we have been given something.

Treat it gently.

Perhaps the Eighth Fire will not be kindled by those who speak the loudest.

Perhaps it will be tended by those who still know how to listen.

Kitwam. We return again.

To relationship.
To humility.
To one another.

And perhaps, little by little, to miyo-pimâtisiwin — the good life.

Êkwa. Walk gently.

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