I don't recall seeing books when I was a little boy. But the old people, they grew up listening to stories. And so, every night, when the old people were done their evening prayers, they would sit and they would tell us stories too. At the time of the spring thaw, the Rocky Cree fill their canoes with furs, eager to trade with the new visitors in mistiwasahak (Hudson Bay). But not all of the new visitors are welcome. When the canoes return home to the shores of the misinipi river, the Rocky Cree begin to collapse one by one, drenched in sweat and slowly slipping into delirium. Kakakiw struggles to help the sick as more and more people pass into the spirit world. Exhausted physically, emotionally, and spiritually, he seeks guidance through prayer. Hope finally comes with a visitor in the night: one of the Little People, small beings who are just like us. If Kakakiw can journey to their home, he will be given the medicine his people need. All he has to do is paddle through a cliff of solid bedrock to get there. To save his people from certain death, Kakakiw must overcome doubt to follow the traditional teachings of the Asiniskaw Ithiniwak and trust in the gift of the Little People. In this illustrated short story for all ages, celebrated Rocky Cree storyteller William Dumas shares a teaching about hope in the face of adversity. This book is a companion story to The Six Seasons of the Asiniskaw Ithiniwak series.

Rocky Cree people understand that all children are born with four gifts or talents. When a child is old enough, they decide which gift, or mithikowisiwin, they will seek to master. With her sapotawan ceremony fast approaching, Amo must choose her mithikowisiwin. Her sister, Pisim, became a midwife; others gather medicines or harvest fish. But none of those feel quite right. Amo has always loved making things. Her uncle can show her how to make nipisiwata, willow baskets. Her grandmother can teach her how to make kwakwaywata, birchbark containers and plates. Her auntie has offered to begin Amo's apprenticeship in making askihkwak, pottery. What will Amo's mithikowisiwin be? Which skill should she choose? And how will she know what is right for her?