Dave Sullivan & Derek Neary
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (Nov 12/01) - Life's hasn't been easy for Fort Simpson's Cazon family, but they're healing. They're also devoting a lot of time to teenagers, passing on lessons from two generations of mistakes and misfortune.

Mary Cazon has lived on the land most of her life. It's something she is helping young people come to appreciate.

Mary Cazon and husband, Gabriel, who passed away in February after 48 years of marriage, made a life-altering decision in the 1970s when they left their familiar surroundings in the bush. After decades of hunting and trapping, they relocated in Fort Simpson so their children could go to school.

"We were the last ones to move to town," Mary recalled. "But we were really lost."

The move was the start of a 20-year alcoholism spiral. She and her son, Mike, both hit bottom hard before turning things around.

When social workers took away the rest of her children, Mary knew she had to fight her addiction. She quit drinking a decade ago, but by then son Mike's life was already set up for a tragic fall. Seven years ago, his girlfriend and two children died in a house fire while he was drunk. He too almost lost his own life. He turned to his parents for support, and now he thanks them for their unconditional love.

"I know a lot of times they could have given up on me with all that drinking and things like that, but they never did. I guess they saw the good side of me, which I never saw," he said.

Traditional road to recovery

With his parent's guidance, he immersed himself in the Dene culture. Living on the land, hunting, trapping, fishing, practising sacred ceremonies and drumming. It aided his recovery.

"I think Tonya (his wife) might have had a lot to do with it too. She came out in the bush and started sharing some of my experiences -- sharing and not being ashamed about it. It's a pretty powerful way of learning, but just trusting another person, that's was the hardest thing."

Now helping children reconnect with Dene culture is also an important part of his journey, he said.

"That's one of the things they realize about being out on the land, they're always busy," he explained. "Looking at the positive side of them is one of the most powerful things we can do for our youth."