National Addictions Awareness Week 2018

Living in Victoria in the 90's and early 2000's there wasn't a whole lot to do. Sure I lived with my uncle but I was still technically "in care" so when he left I went back into foster care.

I was close to aging out of care but I had a couple years to go before I was an adult. I met up with the people who would forever change my life: my foster brothers. They led the charge into the drug world, and I followed.

It wasn't long for me to get into drugs, easy peezy lemon squeezy. Of course the "soft drugs" at first: weed, shrooms, acid, alcohol, and even some peyote sent me into the netherworld. We started dealing and dominated. We were on top of the drug world there. Chances were your dealer came to us to re-up.

But why? Why were these fiends so desperate to try MY shit I wondered. I was carrying crack at the time so that's what I tried first. It took me on a whirlwind through the days, next thing I knew it was 3 days later and I had nothing left. We didn't have to worry about fentanyl or anything back then.

Crack was my queen until I aged out of care and moved into this apartment up on Spring Street, my roommate disappeared for nearly a week. When he returned he said nothing and went straight into his room. I could hear the hiss of a torch...on and off/on and off/ on and off so I called his name and asked him what he was doing. I told me to come to his room so I did.

"Take this" he said as he handed me a light bulb and metal straw. He turned on his torch and showed me how to use this set up. He scooped out something from a little baggy, put it in the light bulb and told me to inhale the vapours. I did. Those vapours spun wildly in the bulb and down into my lungs. Those vapours spun my life out of control, those vapours spun my world up and down and side to side. In short, meth had me handcuffed.

For two years it was my whole world until I moved to Edmonton in an attempt to run away from King Meth.

I was in Edmonton for 9 months before He caught up to me and didn't let go for another 3 years.

I've been in recovery from Meth now for over 13 years as of 4 August 2018. It always remains an option for me but I live a life now that I don't want to run away from.

It isn't my daughter or my sister or my friends and family keeping me away from it. Only Creator has that power. I need it, and He or She or They give it to me.

Playa del Carmen

*First Draft*

Damian Abrahams

Dr. Mark Morris

Writing 310

5 February 2013

Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen is a little town on the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula. Growing up I always looked at the peninsula and wondered what it would be like. Learning about the Mayan and Aztec people sparked even more curiosity through high school. I felt a magnet was drawing me there. So when the opportunity to actually go there with six other people came up I was all over it. I sacrificed some of my student loan, arranged to have my exams deferred to before or after my trip, and bought my plane ticket to the Yucatan Peninsula. The trip was paid in full about four months ahead of time and the travel day couldn’t come any sooner. At risk of adding to my lack of patience, I downloaded the Vacay app from the Play Store to have a constant reminder of how many days left until my flight.

7…6…5…4…3…2…1

The week leading up to the most exciting trip of my life was so slow. All I thought about was what it looks like there; I would be on YouTube almost every hour looking up videos on Playa del Carmen. I was on the website of the resort we were staying at least once a day.

The night before our flight I was scrambling around getting my suitcase ready. It was still quite cold in Edmonton but the coldest Cancun got was 25°C. Nikki, Joe, Andrew, Rosanna, Camille, Kathy-Jo and I arrived at the airport and we all took turns taking pictures with each other at the Cancun flight gate. I was so excited but it was still a bit unreal, I’ve been to the airport many times before so it felt like any other trip. It really sunk in when on the plane the pilot came over the intercom telling us about how long the flight will be, the temperature in Cancun, and what movies were showing for entertainment. It felt like electricity in my veins! I was finally heading to the Yucatan! I get to see everything I learned about!

The six-hour flight was anything but boring. Every so often the pilot would come on telling us what was happening on the ground. Flying over Las Vegas we were told we were the angels over Sin City. When he said “say hello to New Orleans everybody, we’re now heading over the Gulf of Mexico!” My excitement caused me to cheer and clap, apparently everyone was excited because everyone else cheered too. We were on the homestretch, it was night and all the oil rigs looked like stars in an inverse universe. We all cheered again as soon as our plane touched down and we all continued as we taxied to the airport.

Our first shock came in the airport: guards were carrying different types of firearms. One had an automatic rifle with a really long clip poking out the bottom, another had a long barreled shotgun, some carried AK-47s, while others had smaller semi-automatics. As we checked through customs we had to push a button that lit either a red light or a green light. If you got a red light you had to stop while a guard searched your luggage with scrutinizing eyes and his hand on his automatic rifle.

All of us except one got a green light. The search took half an hour and our friend walked away sweating the only bullets we saw the whole trip. We left the airport to head to Playa del Carmen, about 45 minutes out of Cancun, when we got our second shock of the trip. We headed down a ramp towards our shuttle and suddenly all these people in yellow shirts came and took the luggage out of our hands without a word and walked away! We thought we were being robbed! It turns out they were the people from the shuttle company doing their job.

We pulled up to The Reef Playacar in the middle of the night, tired and wanting sleep. I used all my excitement on the trip. We sent our Spanish speaking friend to the front desk to check us all in. Whatever they talked about, I was glad: We were upgraded to a suite in the bungalow right beside the pool and a few steps away from the ocean. Kathy-Jo and I got a king-sized bed and the safe was included! We went to the ocean and stood looking out at the darkness. Kathy-Jo cried because was her first time seeing or feeling the ocean. We flopped into bed until morning.

The parrots woke us up bright and early, Kathy-Jo and I looked at each other like we were three year olds at Christmas. We jumped out of bed, pounded on the other’s doors, and scurried to the ocean. Turquoise blue water surrounded us and white clouds of sand shot up from the bottom with each step. The drone of plane towing a Coco Bongo club banner and the murmur of other vacationers filled our ears. The scent of salt water filled our nostrils, and the warm tropical ocean hugged us—a welcome contrast to the iciness of Canada’s winter.

We went to the all-you-can-eat lunch to get ready for our next trip: 5^th avenue. Kathy and I met up with the others on the beach. Someone had the bright idea of walking to 5^th Ave along the beach. Let me tell you, going from the generally cloudy, cold weather in Edmonton, to a bright, humid walk along a white sand beach is not the best idea.

5^th Ave is filled so many exciting sights and sounds. We made our way to  

Parque Fundadores (Founder’s Park) where men were on a pole wrapping their tether line around the top. It looked like a nest of rope. The whole time they were doing this, a man was balanced on the very top of the pole playing a flute-like instrument and playing a small hand drum. When they reached the end of their tether, they all hooked their leg in the support beams, hung upside down, and let go. They all swung around the pole upside down until they reached the ground.

Our next wave of excitement came when we planned a trip to Tulum and Chichen Itza, the two Mayan ruins closest to Playa del Carmen. To do this excursion, however, was a long process that took up half our day. We received a call in our room from the front desk telling us of our opportunity to receive a free 24-hour car rental. What better way to get to the ruins? It turns out our sacrifice was sitting through a time-share presentation by very gregarious and weasly salemen who just wanted our money. In the end we stood strong and they gave us the vehicle and we were off to Tulum!

Kathy-Jo, at that time, recently got her license but was trained on an automatic. The car rental company gave a standard. Kathy-Jo got the car started and mastered that, but the rest is another story. We would sputter forward until she got in second gear. IF she could stay in second, then we would have been okay. But like any country there were stop signs, red lights and these dips in the road that slows traffic down. Those dips were her enemy. They were in every block, and she stalled in just about every one of them! Once we got to the highway, we were free and clear to keep moving.

Standing right in the middle of Tulum, marked by a simple stone, my imagination ran wild. I looked at all the ruins and I went back to the time of the Maya. My mind made up their language, I could smell their food cooking, I could see them walking up the steep staircase of the main temple. I could hear the children laughing and the chanting of their faithful. I walked with an ancient civilization and will never forget it.

Our next excursion was a trip to Cancun to meet our friend Pedro. Pedro owns a deep sea fishing company called Shut Up and Fish! Pedro brings turistas out in the Carribean Sea to fish for Barracuda and snorkeling.  Because Pedro was our friend he added a day trip to Isla Mujeres where we had a true Mexican feast, checked out some sea turtles, and had breakfast at a small restaurant that served amazingly fresh fruit.

On our way to the turtle farm, we were stopped by this lady who was selling conch shells right at the water’s edge. We all checked out her shells, I bought one that she painted a palm tree on. As I put the shell in my backpack I stopped and thought: “She sells sea shells by the sea shore!”

On another trip down 5^th Ave, Kathy-Jo and I stopped at a Starbucks. It was so cool inside we sat and looked at all the people. I caught a glimpse of the word “Diablo” and craned my neck to see what it was. “Diablo Tattoo” appeared and the idea to be spontaneous popped into my head. I asked Kathy-Jo if she wanted to randomly get a tattoo to mark our time in Playa del Carmen. Her not wanting to didn’t stop me from wanting to get one. I ended up getting a simplified Mayan Guardian on my right forearm.

Our trip to Maya Riviera was drawing to a close, as I walked down the path to our shuttle to the airport I knew then what the tourists were feeling as they rolled their luggage to the lobby as we rolled ours to our room. I didn’t want it to end. The warm, white sand felt good as I walked the beach one last time, the Carribean Sea was glistening, and the breeze was gentle as I looked out to the waves and said “Hasta next year”

Dear Mr. Harper

Mr. Harper,

As a Canadian, one who you represent, I urge you to meet with Chief Theresa Spence and bring the Governor General with you.

You must go to her in person. When you arrive on Victoria Island, be sure to request permission to enter the tipi she is currently residing in. Once inside, allow her to eat the meal you've brought to her before you start your conversation.

Allow Mrs. Spence to talk first and until she is done, do not interrupt. When it is your turn to speak, give her another opportunity to speak by asking "Is there anything else you'd like to add?" and if she says no, reply to her. Don't make excuses, or bring up anything that might have been lingering the last two weeks, that is not what the meeting is about. Let her know that you are behind her, as the rest of Canada is, that you will try with every piece of power you have as the Prime Minister of Canada, to meet her requests.

When you are done, allow the Governor General to speak on behalf of Her Majesty, and if he still refuses to speak, remind him that our treaties were signed between the First Nations people of Canada and the one he is representing. Let me also point out, that by simply ignoring this matter, you are essentially saying no to millions upon millions of votes in the next federal election. Your time is limited.

This is how you must go about the meeting. Not because she is a better leader than you are, but because up to this point you have tarnished your name, Canada's name, and you've managed to do so to the rest of the world. Support for the Idle No More movement, in case you haven't noticed, is coming from Germany, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the U.S, Columbia, Mexico, India, Palestine, Israel, basically people from all four directions of the planet are watching you and hoping that you meet with Chief Spence and the First Nations leaders. All of these people are from different countries that Canada has positive relations with via NAFTA and by not acting I predict that these countries will not be so cooperative.

In addition to this, the world is hoping you repeal Bill C-45. As am I. So please, do what is right.

Sincerely,

Damian Abrahams.

Dear Canada

The grassroots Idle No More movement is in opposition of Omnibus Bill C-45 and other Bills recently passed by the Conservative government. Bill C-45 delists MILLIONS of lakes and rivers from federal protection. Waters consumed by Canadians of all demographics. It also makes changes to the Indian Act, a piece of legislation that gives legal boundaries in which First Nations can operate. These changes threaten the treaties signed over the last 200 years between the Crown and First Nations leaders. These treaties gave authority to the Crown to make decisions regarding the land in exchange for: the reserves, access to medicines, education, tax exemption ON RESERVE, and $5/year for many band members.

It was agreed upon that these treaties are in effect "as long as the sun shines, the rivers flow, and the grass grows" and any changes to them must be approved by First Nations leaders and the Crown. Bill C-45 makes these changes WITHOUT CONSULTATION OF FIRST NATIONS LEADERS.

Though these changes are minor, releasing bands from needing a certain quota of band members to decide to surrender reserve lands, and making it easier for the Minister to call for such a meeting, that is not the point. Whether you steal a dollar or steal a million dollars, you're still stealing. Changes to the Indian Act are coming without consultation.

This is not the only issue. Reserves across Canada are suffering with substandard living conditions such as dishevelled housing, boil water alerts, poor education and learning conditions, and sedentary life styles. These factors make this battle multifaceted.

The government's response to the third world living conditions has been minimal. Their efforts play on our emotions by apologizing for past hurts. At the time of the apology survivors of Residential schools needed it.

Housing crises in many Aboriginal communities have led Chief of Attawapiskat First Nation Theresa Spence to take on a hunger strike on 11 December 2012 requesting a meeting with Harper and the representative of the Crown to discuss the conditions of her community and standards across Canada. Theresa Spence has stated that she is willing to die for her people. Harper and Johnston have remained silent over the matter. Aboriginal Affairs minister John Duncan has offered to meet with Spence but he is not included in the request.

Our stand has been in rallies that have numbered in the thousands in almost every major city in Canada (you may have read about them in the paper), and in many smaller towns and villages. We've also put up road blocks on highways and railroads to get our message out. We've also coordinated flash mob round dances in malls across Canada. All of these rallies, roadblocks, and round dances have been done peacefully and with the consent and support of the police and mall securities. In many cases, each event is preceded by ceremony to ensure they remain peaceful.

Idle No More's statement to the Harper government is "we will not allow these changes to be made" and many bands across Canada have issued statements saying they will not recognize the Bill. The movement has sparked worldwide support, people in the U.S, Mexico, New Zealand, Hawai'i, United Kingdom, Sweden, India, Australia and the United Nations of Aboriginal Australians, Palestine, Israel, Russia, Ukraine, and Egypt have joined us in support of our movement.

The Aboriginal people of Canada have supported the country many times in the past. During the War of 1812, First Nations warriors sided with either the French or the British and it was the valour, knowledge of the land, the sheer numbers of First Nations warriors, and the leadership of Tecumseh that helped the British win the war.

Large contingents of First Nations soldiers fought for Canada and British forces in the South African War.

Over 4000 First Nations soldiers, including one of my family members, fought in World War One, over 50 of them received medals for their valour. What's more, First Nations people were not included in the requirement of enlisting in war. They went willingly.

Again exempt from compulsory service in battle, First Nations soldiers numbered 3000+ including 72 female First Nations  soldiers and two of my family members, fought in World War Two in every major theatre with 17 medals awarded for their valour.

In both WWI and WWII First Nations bands donated monies to the Red Cross and the Canadian Military when they didn't have to.

An unknown number of voluntary soldiers enlisted to fight along side Canadian soldiers in Korea, but we have a good idea of how many enlisted by the 500+ First Nations soldiers who gave their life in battle.

Aboriginal soldiers have also fought in wars since: Persian Gulf, Desert Storm, Iraq, and Afghanistan. All voluntarily.

You see, up to now our people have stood side by side with the rest of Canada in almost every major theatre of war since Canada was established. Voluntarily. So please, join us in peace as we have joined you in war. Join us in solidarity against Bill C-45 as it impacts your health as it does ours.

Please see www.idlenomore.ca for more information on how you can join us in our stand against Harper.

Letter to world leaders...

So far I've sent this letter to President Barack Obama, President Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico, Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia, and Nelson Mandela...

Dear Prime Minister Gillard,

I am writing to you with utmost respect for you and your beautiful country.

Our political leader, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, is not doing my people very much good. Mr. Harper is not upholding the laws set down in working with us, and is undoing the treaties signed between my people and the crown.

As a result, the First Nations people of Canada have risen up against him on a grassroots level. The movement is called Idle No More, we have been rallying, putting up road blocks, and having peaceful demonstrations in opposition of his harmful legislations he is putting through our parliament.

One of our First Nations leaders is now on a hunger strike, going on day nine, demanding that she meet with him to discuss the state of her community and all her people across Canada.

I am writing you to request you kindly ask Prime Minister Harper to take our movement seriously, and to meet with Chief Theresa Spence (who is making her last stand mere steps from Parliament)

Thank you for your cooperation,

Sincerely,

Damian Abrahams.

Mi casa, su casa. Kind of.

Imagine if you will, you living in the home your great-grandparents built. One day your neighbor from across the street shows up at your door unannounced and hides in one of the corners of your home. They didn’t even knock. One day, you address the elephant in the room and you approach them, offering them food as they’ve been there for quite sometime and they haven’t eaten. They are grateful for the offering and tell you their story. As it turns out, their mom sent them out on a quest to find out what was actually across the street. “Mom is hard of seeing” they say. Things between you and your new housemate are going good until one day, while having some friends over, you discover they’ve started building an addition to your house. “We want to have our own space” they say.

That’s fine. But one day, you notice they have their family come stay with them too. You go investigate and you find they have friends and even strangers living in your house. You begin to wonder if they are planning to leave at all. They keep building and keep inviting friends and strangers to live in the areas they’ve built. But by this time your own children and families have grown old, some have died, other’s have moved away. On your death bed you tell your grandchildren to cooperate with your neighbors and guests. And they do, your grandchildren are now in charge of caring for your home and keeping your neighbor’s grandchildren from harm. For the most part everyone gets along.

 Generations go by and now your great-great-grandchildren are caretakers of your house. And your neighbor’s great-great-grandchildren have approached them, telling them they want to take over the whole house so they can build as they see fit. Seeing the value of the house that’s gone back 7 generations, they enter into negotiations with each other over who controls the house. They find they’ve entered into negotiations under the guidance of their mom across the street, so it’s really her they’re negotiating with. She wants full control of the house, but she is willing to compensate them fairly.

The mother proposes they give up the house and she will take care of them and all the generations that will come after them, for as long as the rivers flow. Your great-great-grandchildren are smart, they negotiate from the mom, medicine, a yearly allowance, they want their children to get an education. In exchange, they get their own room in the house while the mom across the street is free to build as many additions and invite as many people over as she wants. Your people find this to be fair compensation for conceding care over the house. To make things official, the mom across the street wants to make this a contract, and you all sign it.

By now, many more generations have passed, and the rooms your people were promised got smaller and smaller, and have never been repaired, some don’t even have running water, and those that do, the water is terrible. Your people can’t even drink it. But the house gets bigger and bigger. The mom across the street and all her people have now started posting rules around the house, and have even made it illegal for her people to enter your people’s rooms. The mom has even made it against the rules for you to watch TV, go shopping, to speak to one another in the language of your choosing, or to even build your own additions to the house.

The mom across the street figures it’s best if your people’s children go to school, a school she chooses. She hires the police to come take your children to bring them to a school several neighborhoods away. Some of the children will never come home. Then, when you thought the mom couldn’t do any worse, she tells the police that you are unfit and they come and take the children away and put them in other neighbor’s houses. Now all the children are gone.

But in addition to being smart, your people are strong. They find new ways to speak their language, they find new ways to bring their children home, and new ways to celebrate who they are. You see your people making a come back, they start making a stand against the mom across the street. She sees this and begins to rethink her strategy. She allows your people to start weighing in on the rule making, even lets them make their own rules, in their own rooms. She promises to never make changes to contract without your permission. But the mom across the street has given power to other people, people living within the house that once belonged to you.

Another couple generations go by, and your people find that the mom and her people haven’t been exactly been honoring their end of the bargain. Yet they continue to build additions, other houses even. They build walkways and whole new neighborhoods.

You begin to see that the rule makers absolutely want your people out of the house for good, but try to hide that fact by apologizing for taking your children away, making them selves look good, no one would suspect a thing. Then, behind closed doors, they decide they are going to make changes to the contract. All they’ve done was slide a little note under the doors of your people and go right ahead and make those changes. Those changes to the contract make it easier for your people to concede their rooms, and easy for their people to call a meeting to ask them to concede their rooms. And they’ve made those changes despite the disapproval of your people, other people in their part of the house, and other people from other neighborhoods, even people from across the street.

What would you do?

#idlenomore

To Your Majesty...

Below is a letter I am writing to the Queen:

Your Majesty,

I am writing you about my political leader, the Right Honorable Stephen Harper. As a First Nations man, I feel that Prime Minister Harper does not have my people’s best interests in mind. His actions of late indicate that he does not have the rest of Canadian’s best interests in mind either.

Having cleared foreign ownership of our natural resources, released his government from having to protect millions of lakes and rivers, and not attending to extreme housing crises in some of our reserves, my Prime Minister is not doing is job in representing all Canadians.

Our image to the rest of the world has been tarnished since Mr. Harper became Prime Minister, as indicated by the lack of applause in a United Nations meeting for our Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird. Not one representative afforded Mr. Baird applause.

Your Majesty, I fear Prime Minister Harper is set to dismantle the treaties that ancestors of both sides signed to ensure a thriving country and the Indigenous people were fairly compensated.

As your humble subject, and a citizen of Canada, I am requesting you relieve Mr. Harper of his position as Prime Minister of Canada and allow us to choose his replacement. I wish Your Majesty many years of health and happiness.

I have the honor to be your humble subject,

Sincerely,

Damian Abrahams.

You can also write a letter to her at: 

Her Majesty The Queen

Buckingham Palace


London SW1A 1AA