Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Every year, I find myself thinking about how easy it is to acknowledge this day without really sitting with what it means. We put on orange, share a post, attend an event and say that residential schools were wrong. All of that matters, but none of it is particularly difficult.

The difficult part is thinking about what actually happened. Indigenous children were taken from their families, separated from their parents and siblings, forbidden from speaking their own languages and practicing their cultures, and subjected to physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Many were neglected and many died. And for those who survived, the impact didn't simply disappear when the schools closed. The harm has been carried through families and communities for generations.

I think that's why the word “truth” matters. Before we can talk about reconciliation, we have to be willing to face the truth of what was done to Indigenous children and communities, even when it is uncomfortable. For me, today is about remembering the children who never came home, thinking about the Survivors and their families, and recognizing that this is not something we should acknowledge today and then put away until next September.

There is still a lot I don't know, and I think that's okay. What matters is being willing to keep learning, keep listening and not look away.