Something I’ve come to learn through my journey of reconnecting, decolonizing, and reIndigenizing is that relationships are everything. As I navigate this path, I’m realizing more and more how crucial it is to nurture relationships—with the land and with my body; with others and with myself.
“Nothing can be known or even exist unless it is in relation to other things,” as Tyson Yunkaporta writes in Sand Talk. This means that if we are to move towards a reIndigenized world, relationships will and must be our foundation. Indigenous thought teaches us that knowledge transmission is inherently relational. Our understanding of the world, our stories, and our wisdom are carried in the web of connections we weave with everything around us.
But in today’s world, I often ask myself: What does that look like? How do we embody kinship-mind in a reality where relationships often unfold in digital spaces—through likes, comments, and reposts? In this post-COVID world, where many of us live and work in isolation, what does it mean to foster true community? How do we build kinship when we don’t even know our neighbors?
The Pull Towards Kinship-Mind
At times, I feel isolated. My family is geographically spread out. My tribal community exists in a digital sphere, and my connections with them are often virtual. I live in a city where I’m still building relationships, and my work is solitary. It’s easy to feel like my world is shrinking, but I believe that kinship-mind offers a way to expand my sense of connection, even in these circumstances.
Inspired by Tyson Yunkaporta’s teachings on kinship-mind, I’ve decided to embark on a practice of engaging deeply with the land, my body, and the relationships that surround me. Kinship-mind, as I understand it, is about going beyond surface-level interactions. It’s about recognizing and nurturing the intricate web of relationships that sustain life. Yunkaporta likens kinship-mind to a cloud of interconnected data—knowledge stored in relationships, shared through generations, and grounded in oral traditions.
In this practice, I see an opportunity for something much deeper than simply existing alongside others. Kinship-mind calls us to become custodians of knowledge and connection—to preserve memory and wisdom through relationships, both with people and with the sentient landscape around us.
Daily Kinship-Mind Practice: My Intentions
I’m committing to a daily practice of kinship-mind, beginning with my immediate surroundings. Each morning, I’ll step outside and acknowledge the land I stand on. I’ll get to know the trees and plants in my neighborhood, the creatures that live nearby, and the rhythms of the natural world around me. I want to build an intimate understanding of this place, just as I seek to know my own body—how it moves, how it feels in relation to this land, and how it holds memories and stories of its own.
In addition to this personal practice, I’m also rethinking my approach to social media, particularly on platforms like Threads. In a space where relationships are often reduced to fleeting interactions, I want to approach content creation with an emphasis on connection. I want to build actual relationships, not just followers. I want to create a space where we can share stories, reflect on our own practices of kinship-mind, and learn from each other’s experiences.
How Can We Develop Collective Kinship-Mind?
This practice isn’t just about my own experience. It’s about exploring how relationships—whether between people, places, or other beings—can serve as containers for knowledge. How do we, as a collective, practice kinship-mind? How do we store and share the wisdom we gain through our relationships with the land, our bodies, and our communities? I believe that through these connections, we can co-create new traditions of storytelling and knowledge transmission that honor both our ancestors and the land itself.
An Invitation to You
I’m excited to share this journey with you and to learn how you’re practicing kinship-mind in your own life. Whether it’s through your relationship with the land, with others, or with yourself, I want to hear your stories. I want to know how you’re connecting to the places and people around you and how these relationships are shaping your understanding of the world.
This isn’t about content for content’s sake. It’s about building genuine relationships and learning from each other. I truly believe that it’s in these relationships where new knowledge emerges—knowledge that has the potential to change the world.
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