Just think, nowadays you simply go to the grocery store and buy your food. You can buy just about anything you can think of. Getting food is simply a matter of exchanging money for anything you want to eat. Using money to get food separates us from the food in a way. It takes away a personal involvement in actually getting the food. When we use money to get food, we do not have to kill animals to get meat. And we do not have the joys and frustration of gathering our own vegetables when we buy them.

This was not always the way for our people. Before the non-natives came to our country, we had a close relationship with our food. We had to find, hunt, and gather food for ourselves. Our land, our country, was our supermarket. We observed where different animals lived and what they ate. We saw how they moved from place to place in our country to get their food. We learned much to be able to find and kill them. We formed a bond with the animals that we hunted. It was easy to show respect when the animal gave its life to us. It was easy to say thank you.

And, our people also believed that we had a relationship with the animals and plants that provided us with food and medicine. This relationship was based on a belief that everything was "alive". Life was precious and must be respected. Therefore, everything in our world was treated with respect. The way our people hunted, gathered, and prepared food was important. It was as important as the food itself.

Although our people worked hard to become skillful in hunting, they believed that animals can choose not be killed. Our behaviour had an affect on animal behaviour. Bragging about being a good hunter may upset the animals and they will choose not to come to you.

Our legend says that if we do not treat animals with respect, Atentma, the animal mother, would hide them from us. This may seem like a superstition, an illogical belief. But perhaps our ancestors had a clear understanding of the fact that our actions have an effect on others in our world.

So, when we kill an animal, we show respect. We say thank you to the animal for allowing us to kill it. We show respect by using all of the animal that we could. Animals used for food also provide other resources. For example, a porcupine gives meat for food, but its quills are used to decorate clothing and other articles.

Some animals were like walking stores. Example: a caribou provided meat (including internal organs), hide for clothing and bedding, sinew for sewing, bones for making tools. We gave thanks for these gifts.

Getting food was a year-round job that never ended. Our ancestors had to be sure that they had enough food to eat now. They also had to make certain that they had enough preserved for when weather conditions prevented them from hunting. Or, when animals were scarce and not to be found. It was a reality that sometimes the animals were "hiding", not found for one reason or another.

So, each season of the year, our Families moved to where the plants or berries were ready, or the animals were in a suitable area for hunting. Each day our ancestors had to find food for a daily food supply as well as "put up" food for later. Their survival depended on their knowledge of animals and plants as well as on their hunting skills.

Men and women played different roles in providing and preserving food. Generally speaking, the men used to hunt, dress, and skin large animals. They brought the meat and hides back to their camp. Women then preserved the meat, usually by drying it. The women also took care of the hides. They fleshed the hide and scraped off the hair. They then tanned the hide and used the hide for sewing clothing, etc.

Children participated by helping wherever they could. In this way, they learned the skills through observing and by partial participation (doing what they were able to at their age and skill level). Children and women usually hunted grouse and small game, such as rabbits and gophers.

We did not the meat of animals which ate only meat. These include dogs, wolves, fishers, weasels, and animals like them. Also, mice, rats, and animals of this type were not considered to be good food. These animals were dirty. The animals named were eaten only in case of starvation.