One Bead at a Time

One Bead at a Timeis the oral memoir of Beverly Little Thunder, a two-spirit Lakota Elder from Standing Rock, who has lived most of her life in service to Indigenous and non-Indigenous women in vast areas of both the United States and Canada. Transcribed and edited by two-spirit Métis writer Sharron Proulx-Turner, Little Thunder's narrative is told verbatim, her melodious voice and keen sense of humour almost audible overtop of the text on the page. Early in her story, Little Thunder recounts a dream from her early adulthood, "I stared at these lily pads for the longest time and I decided that there was one part of the pond that had lots of lily pads and no frogs. I said, 'I want to go there because there's lots of lily pads but no frogs and I like creating community.'" And create community she does. Little Thunder established the first and today, the only all-women's Sundance in the world, securing a land base in the Green Mountains of Vermont for future generations of Indigenous women's ceremony. She was active in the A.I.M. movement and she continues to practice and promote political and spiritual awareness for Indigenous women around the world. A truly remarkable visionary.

Beverly Little Thunder, Lakota Elder and women's activist, is a member of the Standing Rock Lakota Band from North Dakota. When she was forced to leave her Spiritual community because she was a lesbian, Beverly founded the Women's Sundance over 20 years ago to continue teaching the traditions and ceremonies of her heritage. She currently works with women and children from her Vermont home by teaching leadership skills through the Lakota Sundance ceremony, the sweat lodge ceremony, awareness of and respect for the animal and natural worlds, community talking circles, communication workshops, personal retreats, vision quests and spiritual counselling.

Though from the Ottawa river valley, Sharron Proulx-Turner lives in Calgary and is a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta. She's a two-spirit nokomis, mom, writer and community worker. Her previously published memoir, Where the Rivers Join: A Personal Account of Healing from Ritual Abuse (1995), written under the pseudonym Beckylane, was a finalist for the Edna Staebler award, and her second book, what the auntys say (2002), was a finalist for the League of Canadian Poets' Gerald Lampert Prize. Her 2008 poetry book, she is reading her blanket with her hands (2008), was shortlisted for the Governor General Award.