Photo/Kalvin Valdillez
By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News
On a gorgeous July afternoon the Tulalip community welcomed several tribal canoes ashore and offered hospitality, food, and an evening filled with traditional song and dance. When your summer includes camping, salmon, and good people you know you’ve had a great vacation. Throw canoe pulling into the mix and you might be at the biggest Native American cultural gathering in the northwest, known as the Tribal Canoe Journeys.
As a member of both the Quinault and Ahousaht nations, I was fortunate to grow up in an environment where culture was strong and traditional songs and dances were practiced regularly. My parents met while working at Tillicum Village. My gram, Marjorie Valdillez, fought along side Joe DeLacruz in the sovereignty battle for the Quinault Indian Nation, and my late grandfather from Ahousaht, Edgar Charlie, was a well-respected and highly knowledgeable Chief. Although I performed on stage at Tillicum Village as a kid, was surrounded by culture my entire life and was related to so many influential Native people, Journeys still opened my eyes to an entirely new and thrilling world.
Journeys encompasses everything exciting about being a Native American in today’s society and is making a strong return to the Pacific Northwest after taking a hiatus in 2015. By practicing and participating in Canoe Journeys we honor our ancestors as well as keep the culture alive, and in-turn we pass our knowledge down to the next generations, preserving our traditions. And at a time when drugs is destroying America’s future, this clean and sober event offers strong and amazing alternatives for tribal youth.
Losing yourself in the culture is inevitable. Whether you are pulling for your tribe or traveling by car to each destination, you will become immersed in the songs during late night protocol. You will see familiar faces, and meet incredible new people during Journeys, and finding summer love is not uncommon during late July and early August when the event takes place.
Journeys does more than connect people from different tribes, it allows members from the same communities to create a stronger bond with each other. The majority of tribal members from any given reservation share exciting stories, and create a positive experience for the youth of Native America.
Many people from the millennial generation grew up with Journeys and participated every year since its revival in 1989. The event taught us to have respect for each other, we gained cultural perspective while on different reservations, and we learned many teachings from our elders along with important values such as selflessness and patience.
Each year a different tribe hosts Journeys on their reservation. Similar to a local rock band tour, Journeys has organized stops throughout the Northwest where each ‘band’ gets to showcase their performances. Each tribe participating in the event has a dedicated stop where canoes will land on their reservation to interact and perform with the community. This year the Nisqually Indian Tribe hosted Journeys. The final landing includes a week-long protocol celebration at Nisqually.
Although the July 24 visit to Tulalip was brief, it is incredible to see different tribes pulling together for the Canoe Journeys comeback we’ve all been waiting for. Witnessing the youth’s passion for their culture is inspiring, and watching them embrace their heritage while at the same time enjoying adolescence with their families and new friends is reason enough to ensure that Journeys continues long into the future. After last summer’s hiatus, seeing Coastal Natives navigating the open water in traditional canoes again is extraordinary. As we observed the canoes arriving in Tulalip Bay, the anticipation of protocol set in. With the promise of drums and the sun reflecting off of the bay, a quote from Smoke Signals was the only way to accurately express how I was feeling in that moment: “It’s a good day to be Indigenous!”
