I would like to dedicate this knowledge to my grandson. When I was a little girl my grandmother told us bedtime stories. The stories were about bears, eagles, ravens and about the deer. They were all about being or not being boastful or angry. My grandmother said, “The raven wanted a potlatch and he boasted to everyone that he had the abilities of the great eagle to see a great distance as well as the speed and abilities of the great eagle to catch a lot of fish for his gathering.” In the end he becomes the laughing stock of his community because he tried and tried to soar like an eagle, to see the fish from a great distance like the eagle. But he did not catch much fish; he did not get enough for his gathering or potlatch.
It was not until many years later that I got the message as it is not the cuu-us way to be prideful. Furthermore, it was my grandmother’s gentle approach in the teachings that still impacts me today. I want to offer love and a gentle reminder of what was passed on to me by my ancestors.