The Seven Grandfathers Walk Again

By O'Jiibwaay Grand Council Member Ogimaakwe Nibwâskââ Ogichidââ, Wâbĕnō´ of the O'Jiibwaay

In the beginning, the world was not broken, but it was forgetting.

The rivers still moved, the forests still breathed, and the people still spoke the old words but their meaning had grown thin. The children listened, yet did not hear. The elders spoke, yet felt the weight of being misunderstood. And so the Creator called the Seven Grandfathers to walk again among the people not as spirits only, but as memory made flesh.

They did not arrive together.

They never do.

Wisdom – Nbwaakaawin

The first came quietly, like fog lifting from water at dawn.

Wisdom did not speak at first. She watched.

She watched the people argue while standing on land older than their arguments. She watched them take without asking, speak without listening, and rush without knowing where they were going.

When she finally spoke, her voice was soft and steady:

“To know is not the same as to understand.”

She showed a child how the roots of the cedar grip the earth beneath the storm, how the turtle carries its home wherever it goes, how the stars do not hurry yet never arrive late. Wisdom reminded the people that knowledge without care becomes sharp, and sharp things can wound.

Those who listened felt their pace slow. Their eyes softened. Their choices became lighter.

Love – Zaagi’idiwin

Love arrived next, not as romance, but as responsibility.

He carried a small fire not one that burns, but one that warms. Wherever he walked, people remembered who raised them, who fed them when they were small, who stood beside them when they were afraid.

Love spoke plainly:

“You cannot love what you refuse to protect.”

He asked the people to love not only their families, but the waters, the unborn, the elders, and even those who had lost their way. Some turned from him, because love demands work. But others followed, and where they went, communities began to heal.

Respect – Manaaji’idiwin

Respect came like a tall pine straight-backed and unbending.

She taught the people how to stand before one another. How to listen without interrupting. How to speak without humiliation. How to enter a place without assuming ownership.

Respect said:

“Every being carries a spirit. Act accordingly.”

She reminded hunters to thank the deer, leaders to kneel before the people, and speakers to weigh their words before releasing them. Under her watch, voices lowered, hands unclenched, and dignity returned.

Bravery – Aakode’ewin

Bravery did not shout.

He arrived wounded.

Scars crossed his chest and arms, not from battle alone, but from standing alone. He taught the people that courage is not the absence of fear, but the choice to act while carrying it.

Bravery said:

“Truth is often lonely before it is accepted.”

He walked with those who spoke when it cost them comfort, who protected others at personal loss, who stood firm when lies were easier. From him, the people learned that silence can be violence and that integrity has a price worth paying.

Honesty – Gwayakwaadiziwin

Honesty came with clear eyes and no adornment.

She carried no stories except what was true. No titles except what was earned. No promises except those she intended to keep.

Honesty said:

“You cannot walk two paths without tearing yourself.”

She asked the people to speak plainly, to admit wrongs, to correct mistakes without excuse. Some resisted her, for honesty removes masks. But where she stayed, trust grew, and where trust grew, strength followed.

Humility – Dabaadendiziwin

Humility arrived last among the people, though she is never last in importance.

She carried a bowl and nothing else.

Humility reminded leaders that they serve, not rule. She reminded teachers that learning never ends. She reminded the strong that they, too, will one day need help.

She said:

“You are not greater than the circle you stand within.”

Those who accepted her learned to bow without shame and rise without arrogance. They learned that the smallest voice may carry the greatest truth.

Truth – Debwewin

When all six had walked, Truth finally appeared.

Truth is not gentle, but she is fair.

She gathered the people and said:

“These teachings are not ideas. They are obligations.”

She showed them what happens when wisdom is ignored, when love is conditional, when respect is abandoned, when bravery is mocked, when honesty is traded, and when humility is forgotten.

Truth did not punish.

She revealed.

And in that revealing, the people saw themselves clearly for the first time in a long while.

The Teaching That Remains

When the Seven Grandfathers finished walking, they did not leave.

They entered the people.

They became choices made in quiet moments.

They became decisions taken when no one was watching.

They became the way a leader speaks, the way a child listens, the way a community survives.

And it is still said that when the world begins to forget again, the Seven will walk once more.

Not to save the people.

But to remind them who they already are.

You are loved.

You carry memory.

And the teachings walk with you.

Always remember, YOU are O'JIIBWAAY, which means "The Prophecy", the Prophecy, is YOU!