I HATE YOU RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL
I HATE YOU
YOU’RE A MONSTER
A HUGE HUNGRY MONSTER
BUILT WITH STEEL BONES 5
BUILT WITH CEMENT FLESH
YOU’RE A MONSTER
BUILT TO DEVOUR
INNOCENT NATIVE CHILDREN
YOU’RE A COLD-HEARTED MONSTER 10
COLD AS THE CEMENT FLOORS
YOU HAVE NO LOVE
NO GENTLE ATMOSPHERE
YOUR UGLY FACE GROOVED WITH RED BRICKS
YOUR MONSTER EYES GLARE 15
FROM GRIMY WINDOWS
MONSTER EYES SO EVIL
MONSTER EYES WATCHING
TERRIFIED CHILDREN
COWER WITH SHAME 20
I HATE YOU RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL I HATE YOU
YOU’RE A SLIMY MONSTER
OOZING IN THE SHADOWS OF MY PAST
GO AWAY LEAVE ME ALONE
YOU’RE FOLLOWING ME FOLLOWING ME WHEREVER I GO 25
YOU’RE IN MY DREAMS IN MY MEMORIES
GO AWAY MONSTER GO AWAY
I HATE YOU YOU’RE FOLLOWING ME
I HATE YOU RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL I HATE YOU
YOU’RE A MONSTER WITH HUGE WATERY MOUTH 30
MOUTH OF DOUBLE DOORS
YOUR WIDE MOUTH TOOK ME
YOUR YELLOW STAINED TEETH CHEWED
THE INDIAN OUT OF ME
YOUR TEETH CRUNCHED MY LANGUAGE 35
GRINDED MY RITUALS AND MY TRADITIONS
YOUR TASTE BUDS BECAME BITTER
WHEN YOU TASTED MY RED SKIN
YOU SWALLOWED ME WITH DISGUST
YOUR FACE WRINKLED WHEN YOU 40
TASTED MY STRONG PRIDE 2
I HATE YOU RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL I HATE YOU
YOU’RE A MONSTER
YOUR THROAT MUSCLES FORCED ME
DOWN TO YOUR STOMACH 45
YOUR THROAT MUSCLES SQUEEZED MY HAPPINESS
SQUEEZED MY DREAMS
SQUEEZED MY NATIVE VOICE
YOUR THROAT BECAME CLOGGED WITH MY SACRED SPIRIT
YOU COUGHED AND YOU CHOKED 50
FOR YOU CANNOT WITH STAND MY
SPIRITUAL SONGS AND DANCES
I HATE YOU RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL I HATE YOU
YOU’RE A MONSTER
YOUR STOMACH UPSET EVERY TIME I WET MY BED 55
YOUR STOMACH RUMBLED WITH ANGER
EVERY TIME I FELL ASLEEP IN CHURCH
Your stomach growled at me every time I broke the school rules
Your stomach was full You burped
You felt satisfied You rubbed your belly and you didn’t care 60
You didn’t care how you ate up my native Culture
You didn’t care if you were messy
if you were piggy
You didn’t care as long as you ate up my Indianness
I hate you Residential School I hate you 65
You’re a monster
Your veins clotted with cruelty and torture
Your blood poisoned with loneliness and despair
Your heart was cold it pumped fear into me
I hate you Residential School I hate you 70
You’re a monster
Your intestines turned me into foul entrails
Your anal squeezed me
squeezed my confidence
squeezed my self respect 75
Your anal squeezed
then you dumped me
Dumped me without parental skills
without life skills
Dumped me without any form of character 80
without individual talents
without a hope for success
I hate you Residential School I hate you 3
You’re a monster
You dumped me in the toilet then 85
You flushed out my good nature
my personalities
I hate you Residential School I hate you
You’re a monster………I hate hate hate you
Thirty three years later 90
I rode my chevy pony to Kamloops
From the highway I saw the monster
My Gawd! The monster is still alive
I hesitated I wanted to drive on
but something told me to stop 95
I parked in front of the Residential School
in front of the monster
The monster saw me and it stared at me
The monster saw me and I stared back
We both never said anything for a long time 100
Finally with a lump in my throat
I said, “Monster I forgive you.”
The monster broke into tears
The monster cried and cried
His huge shoulders shook 105
He motioned for me to come forward
He asked me to sit on his lappy stairs
The monster spoke
You know I didn’t like my Government Father
I didn’t like my Catholic Church Mother 110
I’m glad the Native People adopted me
They took me as one of their own
They fixed me up Repaired my mouth of double doors
Washed my window eyes with cedar and fir boughs
They cleansed me with sage and sweetgrass 115
Now my good spirit lives
The Native People let me stay on their land
They could of burnt me you know instead they let me live
so People can come here to school restore or learn about their culture
The monster said, “I’m glad the Native People gave me another chance 120
I’m glad Dennis you gave me another chance
The monster smiled
I stood up I told the monster I must go
Ahead of me is my life. My people are waiting for me 4
I was at the door of my chevy pony 125
The monster spoke, “Hey you forgot something
I turned around I saw a ghost child running down the cement steps
It ran towards me and it entered my body
I looked over to the monster I was surprised
I wasn’t looking at a monster anymore 130
I was looking at an old school In my heart I thought
This is where I earned my diploma of survival
I was looking at an old Residential School who
became my elder of my memories
I was looking at a tall building with four stories 135
stories of hope
stories of dreams
stories of renewal
and stories of tomorrow 139
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