Water is important to me because it has the power to give life and take it away. Without water we could not live. The water nourishes our bodies and cleanses our souls. As an indigenous woman, my elders told me that it is my job to protect the water. Growing up, I was always a water baby. I find peace by the water. A lot of times when I am down and out or just need some time to process and heal I’ll go sit by the water. This photo is of me after a personal ceremony I did to ask for protection and guidance from my ancestors at Cameron river just outside Yellowknife before leaving for an internship in Colombia, South America. I smudged myself and the 7 directions of life north, east, south, west, up, down and where I stand. My name is Thunder Beaver Woman. My two main protectors are the beaver and the snake which are both water animals. It is the first rain fall and thunderstorm of the year in which I gather my medicine (rainwater) to cleanse throughout the year. Water is healing. Mahsi Cho. - Jaylene Delorme, Hay River