WOIPERES: When the Path Clears
WOIPERES did not begin as a project.
It began as a prayer.
Leaving my former job was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It was my dream job. I loved cultural preservation. I loved the museum. I loved the work itself. It felt like home. But the environment had become so toxic, and staying meant abandoning myself. No amount of passion can survive in a space where you are slowly being worn down.
A week before I resigned, I went to the river.
I placed tobacco at the base of an old tree and prayed. I wanted to be intentional, so I took a full day to sit with what I was asking for. I even wrote it down, because I didn’t want to forget or rush my words:
“Creator, spirits, ancestors. I come before you with gratitude. I love the work I do, for it feels like home. It is my heart’s wish to serve my people with respect, care, and truth. Please clear the path before me, and make the way for me to continue this work. Protect me from harm, guide my steps with wisdom, and strengthen me in times of challenge. Help me remain grounded in who I am, and remind me always that I walk this path not alone, but with you at my side, and with my people in my heart.”
Not long after, with no plan and no safety net, I quit.
I was heartbroken, but I also felt free. Powerful. I knew I was leaving not out of anger, but out of self-love and self-respect.
Sunshine and I had already been talking about eventually starting our own organization months prior. Shortly before I left, we applied for a scholarship to attend the Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit. We were both accepted. I booked our rooms at Ho-Chunk Gaming in the Dells, and just like that, we were headed up to our traditional territory in Wisconsin.
That trip changed something in me.
We learned to weave Ho-Chunk baskets, made cornhusk dolls, and spent time learning about traditional Indigenous agricultural practices. I’m not much of a dancer, but I decided to face my fears and danced the Green Corn Dance. I had so much fun. Something inside of me healed. My mind felt clear. My heart felt lighter. The entire trip, Sunshine and I brainstormed ideas for Hisgexjį Horak: what it could be, what it should be, what our people needed.
Then we headed back to Nebraska.
As we approached the Iowa state line, the anxiety hit. I didn’t have a job. I didn’t have a plan. For the next two weeks, I stayed close to home: crafting, sewing, visiting museums, sitting by the river with my coffee, trying to quiet my thoughts and listen. I applied for a few jobs and didn’t hear anything back.
And then an opportunity came.
I was offered a new position. Within a month or so of starting, my supervisor approached me with an idea:
A Ho-Chunk history series.
Twelve seasons in honor of the twelve clans.
Twelve episodes per season.
He asked me to draft a proposal with my ideas. I chose the name WOIPERES, which translates to memory or knowledge in Ho-Chunk. It seemed fitting! I started researching, writing scripts, gathering stock footage and b-roll, recording voiceovers. When I finished the very first episode,“The Creation Story”, I cried. Not because it was sad, but because I was proud. Truly proud. I couldn’t believe how good it turned out.
More than anything, I felt grateful.
I had prayed to continue doing this work and Creator and the spirits answered. Just not in the way I expected.
Today, I posted the sixth episode of WOIPERES, and I’m wrapping up scripts for the first season. The videos are released every Wednesday and Friday, and soon, the audio will begin airing on KWTN – The Big Voice 100.9 FM.
People come up to me in community and praise me for the episodes I’ve released so far. It’s a good feeling, but I don’t do this for recognition. Recognition has always made me uncomfortable. I do this because I want my people to heal and learn. I want them to feel curious and empowered.
I’m excited for the future.
Please subscribe to The Big Voice on Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. Like and share the videos if they resonate with you. I am doing my best to bring our relatives thoughtful, honest, high-quality content, and I will continue doing that work through Hisgexjį Horak as well. We have a lot planned for 2026, so stay tuned!
And remember this: At times, the answers to our prayers may not come in the form we expect. Often, when we feel like we are losing something, it’s actually a sign that we are being guided towards something greater.
I am reminded of this quote:
“Be thankful for all that did not work out in your life. When you felt like you missed an opportunity, a pathway, a finish line on your journey — clarity bloomed within you, and you learned how to give yourself permission to change, you learned how to give yourself permission to make mistakes and overcome them, permission to take a different path, to dream a different dream. See, at the end of the day, all that you have lost, is all that you have gained. The Universe does not leave you empty, it always balances the scales within you. For all that it takes, it gives. For all that it destroys, it creates. Reassess all that you think is damaged, and defeated within you. Every breakdown was just a step forward into your becoming.”
Until next time, relatives!
-Gayla Whitewater
Hisgexjį Horak
