Before beginning any significant story, Snuneymuxw sulsalewh (Elders) said, “Listen to what you are about to hear,” or after speaking, “Did you hear what I said?” Our grand-father Adam Jimmy said to our mom as a child, “Tell me what I just said!”
Ni uchxwiyunem
These photographs are important, as is the term ni uchxwiyunem. They capture images and teachings I gained during work with traditional sulsalewh dating back to the 1970s. From them I began to learn that the Coast Salish world was complex, and that sulsalewh applied a very old value system called snuw’uy’ulth to assist with maintaining balance. It was applied with each generation to protect and to surround children. sulsalewh expected us to know about the complex nature of our relationships with each other and with…
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British Columbia History (Digital) - 1 Issue, 58.1 Spring 2025