Hi gáyáqḷanugva tx̌as Yáláƛi I come from Goose Island

Goose Island is where my ancestors were placed down at the time of creation. This is my dads traditional territory where his hereditary chieftainship originates from and is upheld as an immense place of power and beauty for our nation. It is the most special place I know of for me and for my family. It’s here where I would spend my most memorable summers at camp growing up. It holds significant childhood experiences with my peers and elders and was a source of my coming into age.   My memories are vividly woven into facing my fears of camping on my own during my solo and learning about our ways and foods from now passed on dear late evelyn. It was where I was most connected to land and sea. My most treasured times. It was here where my best friend Julie’s beloved boat sank while he took us on the long journey to spend the night together.  It’s burned into my memory of how I woke up to see it submerged. It then sat washed for years before being reduced to a washed away spot that once held the same space as a whale that washed up and critters were housed.   The most powerful space for me, where I would listen to the waves, where I would wake so early in peace.   Where my papa Omo has a bighouse dedicated to him.  In this space we all slept like it was a bighouse in the old days, we had bunks aligning the walls and the fire in the center would crackle all night long for us.  Sitting upon a platform around the fire we stayed up and giggled as our childhoods were slowly closing.  We still have our names written on the walls. The trail to west beach was a journey to another paradise that was rocky and where I washed to. In my vision of this show, I am slammed into the rocks by the bigger surf here, I take the trail towards the bighouse in my memory where food and warmth and laughter and chatter fill the air.  The storm of fear and grief are replaced by this space of familiar elders and friends that blessed my childhood.  

(There is also a link to Justy and killerwhales here for me that I will go further into, they guide me from drowning into this beach)

Moon Notes:  This is where my gran lives now, she peers upon me from a bright place of beauty and peace. 

When she passed away, Parker and I came home to the brightest moon shining right into our room, his little voice at his young age echos for me, he pointed to it and said there is great gran, she lives there.  The moon fills me with awe, it shines upon me when I feel lonely, it glows beams of strength and beauty from Gran, as she was both of these.   I have dreams where I’m back at home with her and sometimes they can fill me with confusion, but most times they vividly remind me of her and special times I treasure together.   Safety of the moon, a beacon of powerful light that shines brightest when it’s the darkest.   Pulling at the tides and a sharp winter glow on the coldest nights.  Or charging living beings of the ocean as the waves crash.   I paint a moon and eagle to honor gran, she is a strong connection that I look to in the sky for times I need to speak with her or feel her presence. Winter moon Clam digging on dark winter nights in moonlight As we dug clams as kids on a cold winter night, once I accidentally called back to an owl here, my dad taught me to never again, or risk to face these dark seas of death. These are teachings I always carry, my gran was always instilling them and forming space for taboos she upheld to me to respect and honor.

I’ve been taught that in Heiltsuk custom, Killer whales are like reincarnations of our passed on ancestors. For me to see them signifies a connection from a visiting family member, they are powerful and mighty.   When I see them I instantly feel gratitude and appreciation for being able to see such beings.  They connect to a rare glimpse of our ancestors in the afterlife, a blessing to behold in it’s complex and close net social structures of their pods.  This links to Justys daughter Cori Emma, grans aspa/namesake, she is like one of the calves we’ve seen when I prayed for Justy to grace us with sightings of Killer whale to so me hes here with us.  We then saw these calves being taught to hunt.  For me this was the clearest sign from him of his love for his children and how he watches over them, and us still.   The old male teaching the two calves was also smacking his tail on the water at us as if to reaffirm this as Justy’s nature in this visit.

Family

Gathered together at Goose under an endless summer where nights are so long and food and laughter fill the air. Notes about Gran: Closing the curtain  Honoring dark exists ‘Rich Indians’ Just us eating all of our foods The kids Her and clea from birth Aunty Cecila Knowledge transfer Doing her dishes  Losing papa Safety of family True ‘holding space’ Presence Storms  Christmas Power outage Thunder and lighting Friendship Auntie Phyllis  protectors True love Papa (hummingbirds,.....

Notes to honor Uncle Glen Yew wood Backdrop painting Eagles feasting Teacher Marv SOK Family weddings Thoughts:  Use audio of his passing as background for sounds of healing portion to be linked with eagle background of family, can overlay with fire noises for representation of fam healing.   When Uncle Glen passed on, this eagle perched directly at his kitchen window and proceeded to feast with us.  It was beyond powerful, it was our final meal with him before he flew off to the heavens and I can’t describe the moment of connection to his sendoff.   He even directly ate with us, it eased our pain and showed us he was in a truly powerful form.  He is a foundational teacher of art for me, it is a full circle moment to depict him in my work.