Book Report: Our Voice of Fire by Brandi Morin
“Kohkum’s ancestral blessing has been guiding my feet since the moment it roared into the world calling us to wake from our slumber and remember who we are.”
Brandi Morin
Brandi Morin’s memoir opens as she is helping with an interview for the New York Times, and the honest, warm tone of the book is established. In chapter one we witness the passing of an adult Brandi’s grandmother. The story moves from the safety Kohkum created for Brandi as a child to a retelling of her tumultuous childhood. This relationship is further complicated as we begin to see the echoes of her mother’s upbringing in Brandi’s own. As the cycles of behavior repeat themselves Brandi examines this intergenerational trauma through a lens of forgiveness and healing.
“Here I was, all this time, looking at the macro view and calling the world’s attention to the devastation of inherited trauma on Indigenous Peoples, but had failed to see the micro view of all the ways it played out in my own life.”
As Brandi heals she blossoms as a mother, a community member, and a writer. While she talks about her intergenerational trauma, the intergenerational strength shines through. Brandi comes from women who have not had easy lives, something many Indigenous people can relate to. Her family bears the legacy of boarding schools and the addiction, abuse, and trauma that this legacy brings.
Throughout the memoir we see Brandi in many roles, but I think what stuck out most to me was her role of mother. Her first pregnancies were not planned or under ideal circumstances, yet she is committed to healing so she can provide her children with something beyond what she had. There are times she stumbles and struggles. She describes in detail her mental health issues, struggles with drugs and alcohol, and toxic relationships with her childrens’ fathers. She is admitted to the psych ward on several occasions and has her children removed from her home to live with relatives. Yet she perseveres to provide her children with a stable, strong, and supportive home. Eventually she does achieve this. While she makes it clear that healing is a journey that never ends, Brandi is able to face fears, come to terms with her trauma, and access consistent mental healthcare.
A much more healed Brandi is able to look back on the events of her life and find the cycles her family has been perpetuating. This new Brandi is breaking those cycles with grace and forgiveness for the family that came before her. This story is timely and important as Indigenous people all over the Turtle Island are taking steps to break similar cycles in their own families. To those cycle breakers this book sends the message that you are not alone and that this can be done.
To purchase a copy of Brandi’s book pick it up at Strong Nations.
To listen to Brandi’s story, check out our interview with her on podcast, Not Invisible: Native Peoples on the Frontlines.
