12-year-old pow wow performer Florence Osawamick has been dancing since she could walk
Osawamick is carrying on the tradition of pow wow dance and it's bringing her — and us! — a ton of joy
Florence Osawamick is a 12-year-old pow wow dancer. Her spirit name is Two Rainbow Mist Woman. And she's been dancing since she could walk, starting out in the jingle dress tradition like her mom, who taught her the art.
There's so much more to pow wow dancing than the steps, as Osawamick will show you in this video. She explains why she's attracted to traditional rather than contemporary footwork, and she explains the significance of the individual elements of pow wow dancing, from the steps that represent the earth, to the fringes on her regalia that represent flowing water.
Watch the video:
Water holds particular power to Osawamick, who accompanies her mother on the Great Lakes Awareness Walks that aim to spread awareness about water pollution in the Kawartha Lakes and encourage communities to take care of the water that must be shared by everybody. So her footwork embodies this care — she says, "I feel like walking for water and dancing and all my work is all connected."
When I'm dancing, I'm dancing for the people who can't dance.- Florence Osawamick
Next, Osawamick wants to study hoop dancing like her brother Nimkii Osawamick (whose music is featured in this video, drumming with the group Charging Horse). We suspect she's going to make her mark on that artform, too.
Special thanks to the University of Toronto's Honouring Our Students Pow Wow and to the featured drummers at the event: Young Creek, Old Mush and Charging Horse.
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