Making Our Firepit

Out here, nothing begins all at once.

It starts with a small decision. A clearing. A circle. A fire.

As part of our Qweqwetsin Family and Healing Lodge stewardship work, we’ve begun shaping spaces on the land that bring people back into relationship. This firepit is the first of many.

We gathered river rock from Setetkwe, along the North Thompson River. Each stone carried back by hand. Others were found across the property, waiting to be brought into circle. Nothing wasted. Nothing forced.

We chose the place carefully, then dug into the earth, preparing the ground. You can feel when a space is ready. It opens.

My daughter worked alongside me the whole time. Hands in the dirt. Lifting, placing, learning through doing. This is how knowledge moves. Quietly. Through presence. Through relationship.

Stone by stone, we built the circle. Filling the gaps. Making it strong. Not perfect. Not meant to be.

Fire is sacred.

It is a place of prayer. Of teaching. Of story. Of remembering. It gathers people. It holds them.

We added a simple grill so we can make tea and cook food over the fire, grounding our gatherings in something practical and shared.

When we lit it, the space came alive.

Now this fire will hold families, conversations, ceremony, and quiet moments. It will grow with us.

This is stewardship. This is how we begin.

This post marks the start of something larger. We will be sharing the evolution of this work as it unfolds on the land. From the first stones placed, to the spaces that will hold community, language, healing, and connection.

Qweqwetsin. To pray together.

🔥🪶