A Modern Canoe Journey Invoking Ancient Principles The modern
Canoe Journey was started to revive the culture. For months, the
Canoe Journey is a cultural immersion experience, with children
participating in canoe practices, dance practices, language
classes, gift creation and regalia making. Its success was
apparent July 31, as 80 Swinomish children – their faces filled
with unabated joy – rushed to the floor to dance as the football
field-size protocol tent erupted in drumming and song. “I love
the Canoe Journey because it gives our people an opportunity to
be proud of who we are,” said Aurelia Washington, coordinator of
the 2011 Paddle to Swinomish. The moment – indeed, the entire
Canoe Journey – was also symbolic of the ancestors’
determination to keep cultures and traditions alive for the
generations to come. “There was a time when the government tried
to take this away from us,” Tulalip’s Ray Fryberg said. “The
government thought this was all bad, but it was spiritual to us.
It’s spiritual because we pu