Place Name Changes

I also have a tradition in my country and respect it as I do that of others who have been here much longer. All I know are the place names my pioneer grandparents knew as well as those of my parents. I remember those names more than I remember most of the places, and I want them to stay the same. But, I wholly recognise that there are aborigines who desire to keep their names of places also. I hope that we can respect each other in these matters. What I am looking forward to, is that we can both keep the names that are precious to us. I fully support the placing of additional names to places so that we can maintain the histories of what we both remember and our children will be able to, also. I look at the photographs in old albums that have names written under them, names that were written by my people who will one day, be my ancestors. When they arrived one hundred years ago, they came to Canada and tilled the soil to make it their new country. They were not bad people who did bad things, but just people who should be recognised and respected as much as anyone who lived or lives here in this country no matter how long ago. Lands don't belong to people, they are there for human use and pleasure. What we name land, doesn't really matter. It is personal, not political. I would not recognise strange names to places that I love if they were changed, and I hope that the wishes of both old and newer comers, will be satisfied. The natives and the new natives of Canada should be able to cooperate to show that we can work together and appreciate our histories that are not separate, but ones that grew from each other. I want to know the original names and what they stood for, good and bad. It's part of what we are. We want to remember the bad times, too,  so that we can understand them, and not repeat them. I call the mountains I see in Vancouver, BC, The Sisters but some call them The Lions. What does it matter? Both names are deserving of placement. The legends should live and I would like to see everywhere, the aboriginal names placed with the newer ones, because they make me want to hear the stories from which they originated. I also want to see in the dual names, how we have grown together by having both on the signs and carved memorials and tributes. It shows how we worked and work together to make Canada a unique place where all who live here, belong.