The wildfires of Alberta seemed far removed from my life. In mid-May, I learned that they affect everyone in Alberta, especially students.

As an author, I sometimes visit schools to talk about creating great books and the books I wrote with Cree author Larry Loyie (now passed away).

During our talks, the students learn about Indigenous traditions, wild animals, and courage in the face of change. Loyie’s books bring out questions and discussion. The students know what a mosoom is (a grandfather). They know kokom (grandmother). These relations are important in their lives. 

The students teach me a lot. On my recent week-long tour to schools in the Lac La Biche area, they shared their fears of fire. I learned that Albertans are a tough lot, even when the worst has happened.  

The Great Fire of 1919 wiped out the budding town of Lac La Biche. This year, by mid-May, 116 wildfires flared and burned in the area. Because of the possibility of fire, the Young Alberta Book Society said I could postpone my school visits, which were sponsored by Cenovus Energy. I chose to head north. Learning about the students, their lives, their accomplishments, and their challenges made me grateful that I went there after all. 

I met Shylit, a Grade 10 student, proud of winning a contest to create an anti-bullying poster at Light of Christ School. I also met Aaron, who’s in the same grade. What he said shocked me to the core. He told the class that his grandparents’ house on Fox Lake First Nation had just burned to the ground.

For Aaron, the fire left a huge hole in his life. His summers are usually spent with his grandparents. “I guess I won’t be going there this year,” he said. He believes they’ll build a new house.

I told the class that I wanted to write about the fires and the courage of Albertans. Aaron’s classroom buddy, Noah, offered a title for my article. “Call it, ‘We’re unstoppable!'” he said.

Alberta is a beautiful province. In spring, the forests are bright green. The skies were clear and the birds were singing as I drove to Beaver Lake Cree Nation. The nation’s Amisk Community School has 110 students in a community of some 1,200 members. 

After my talk with the Grade 5-6 class, one student stayed behind. Quietly, Annie told me that her grandparents’ house, where she’d lived, had burned down. “I thought that I would live in that house my whole life,” she said. Although it had happened several years ago, the pain was still strong. Fire scared her and made her cry. I said that she’d have her own house one day. I sincerely hope so.

Spending time with students in five schools, both in town and in tiny hamlets like Caslan, sharing their stories—of fires they survived, of wild animals they saw, of sports they liked, of dreams they had of the future—was a challenge and a gift. 

I hope that I encouraged them to stay in school, and to make their dreams come true. I know they encouraged me, and opened my eyes to their reality. Fire can destroy, but—like Noah said—the students are unstoppable.

Constance’s writing and editing career spans more than 40 years. She lives in Parkdale-Cromdale.