August 11, 2025 • 35 mins
In this episode of Raven About Sitka, host Kathrynn interviews David Kanosh, a Tlingit storyteller, linguist, and culture bearer. David shares his journey growing up in Sitka, his passion for languages, and his experiences overcoming challenges like vision loss. He discusses the importance of storytelling in Tlingit culture, the role of the trickster Raven, and how he adapts traditional tales for modern audiences. David encourages embracing one’s uniqueness, fostering cultural understanding, and using stories to connect and heal the community. The episode highlights Sitka’s vibrant heritage and the enduring power of language and tradition.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:16):
Welcome back to Raven about Sitka,where we gather the stories,
history and heart of our uniqueAlaskan community.
One conversation at a time.I'm your host, Kathrynn.
And today we're pulling up achair for a truly special guest.
David Kanosh is more than just aname you hear around town.
He's a storyteller,a culture bearer, and one of those
(00:37):
rare people who manages to makeeveryone feel seen and valued.
David weaves together tradition,history, music,
and humor in ways that remind uswho we are and why Sitka matters.
In this episode,we'll talk about the moments and
experiences that shaped him,the stories he carries forward,
and how his work connects the past tothe present for future generations.
(01:02):
And because language is such akey part of storytelling.
I'll be asking David about his loveof linguistics, how words sounds and
the rhythm of language shape the waywe understand culture and each other.
So settle in, because when Davidtells a story, it's never just words.
It's an invitation. Welcome, David.I know you have a deep love for
(01:29):
linguistics.Where did that passion come from and
how did it develop over the years?Well,
I was in the school system here.I learned French, Spanish and
Japanese all in one school year.After I had finished up all of my
requirements by my junior year.And to give you a little preview,
um, I got punished for speakingTlingit in the school system,
(01:53):
and I realized what it was liketo be punished for it.
And I didn't want anybody newcoming to our shores to feel the
way I had been treated.And even now, it's like.
Like how do you say such and suchin your language? Like Salamat.
(02:15):
It's like salamat po. It's like.Thank you very much.
And you know, it's like I askhim because I want them to feel
like you know what they matter.But then on the other side of that,
I never wear shirts that sayNative Pride or, you know, like,
or indigenous pride, because racialpride is a really slippery slope.
(02:42):
And I'll go to a ceremony like maybeonce, you know, that talks about,
you know, the way we weretreated after that, it's like,
you know what? I'm letting it go.Not that it didn't matter.
It's that our ceremonies and ourrituals were meant to bring healing.
(03:03):
And not to perpetuate the angerand the hurt feelings. Because.
No, no healing comes from that.And I rarely talk about my own
history with, you know,prejudice or even when I was
beaten and left for dead.And the A N B Harbor bathroom.
(03:26):
You know, where the peoplecarved a swastika in my chest?
It's like I rarely talk about thatbecause I faced my shadows from,
like, Carl Jung's take on the shadow.I faced it and I grew from it.
And I was like, you know what?It doesn't hold a power over me
anymore.And healing is not going to come
(03:48):
by me talking about it constantly.And I was like, I'll bring it up if
it comes up in a topic, but I don'tmake it the focal point of my life.
And I hear so much anger and hatredwithin the decolonization movement.
And it's like, you know what?I get your anger,
(04:09):
but I'll tell you what,we need to face that shadow head on.
Because when you do that,that empathy that's in your heart
is going to come out and say,you know what I found healing.
Come on,let's walk on this healing together.
And but, you know,some people don't like that.
(04:30):
They think I'm trying to bury orbelittle, you know, the hatred
and the anger that we face.And it's like, no, I think it's
something that we can face and thenmove on. You're decreasing its power.
Yeah, yeah. Just a preview.That's great. What questions.
All right. Let's see here.Let's start where stories often
(04:52):
do at the beginning.Can you tell us a little bit about
your family and where you come from?Oh, not a small one at all.
My name is David Nash.My name is Eric,
which means he who controls the tide.I'm of the raven moiety.
Uh, the Dashi Tang clan,which means the village at the end
(05:14):
of the trail, uh, from Rangoon.And, uh,
the name of my clan house is hit orsteel house or house made of steel.
And I'm a child of the wonton,the wolf eagle moiety.
My father is William Nash,who is the speaker for Chuck who
(05:38):
hit the Eagle nest house.That house, you might see that's been
collapsing down on Catlin Street,you know, for some time,
and it's been condemned.That's a little bit of my own
history there. Do you have siblings?I have two brothers.
One has since passed on,and a brother, Delbert,
(06:01):
who works over at search alongwith his daughter, who also works
at search as a medical assistant.I tried my best to speak,
feeling it all the time with myentire family, and it's like I'm.
Like, say it in Tlingit.And they put up with me.
(06:23):
Okay, so I was told you speakmultiple languages,
so can you go through those?Well, well,
I was in the school system here.I had learned French,
Spanish and Japanese.I had finished up my requirements
early, as I'm more at home,and I have an affinity for
(06:45):
repetition and things going on,which is a little bit on the
spectrum. So when I took those.They said,
you're not going to do very well.But I was getting passing grades.
They were trying to ask like,how do you do it?
And like just memorize it.Beyond that, there was mnemonic
(07:05):
techniques I had used for,you know, learning languages.
Like if I found a pattern in there,say, like, you know,
the first five, you know,numbers in French, there are three
cats using a bathtub as a boat.One of them pulls the plug on
the cat sink. Oh my goodness.And the three cats sink.
(07:29):
My my exchange student from Pariswould be so proud. That's great.
That's a great tool.And so I once I had learned the
pronunciation rules and keptlistening to the cassettes.
I found that I could start repeatingeverything that I needed to.
I just thought everybody shoulddo this.
(07:51):
But to the teachers, in hindsight,I think they were trying to
figure out how I did it,and I just took it for granted
because I thought everybody knewabout mnemonic techniques for
learning anything and committingthings to memory, and they didn't.
Have you traveled much out of Alaska?I had I gone through Canada and on
(08:13):
through Europe and into Russia andJapan and China and all along the
way, picking up languages as I went.Before I would go, I would pick up a
phrasebook and start like, okay,let's see here. How do we say that?
It's like a McDonald's.I would like McDonald's or
(08:34):
something like that.And, you know, just keep going
and keep learning and applying.You know what?
You know, I get to come across. And.But I think learning languages
also gives you a new way to lookat the world around us.
I tell many people the word forthank you literally means not
(08:58):
possible without you,and it's the equivalent of thank you,
but your mind has to do sometricks to get to that concept.
You know,is thank you and its closest
associated words in another language.There's always some problem
solving going on in there.So like whether you want to say I
(09:18):
like it, me gusta or like I likeare or asking somebody, do you like
it like and maybe in Chinese likeJuan Bushi Juan like, not like.
And there's a duality there,you know, in Chinese,
(09:38):
which you're not finding in English.You know, if you tried to say,
do you like it literally in anotherlanguage, it might come across as
a little I don't know what you'retrying to say. It sounds weird.
I noticed with English we have.I use the example love like in
French.There is love for your dog and
love for your family, and love foryour spouse and love for a deity.
(10:00):
And you know, there's these allthese different kinds of love
where we only have one simpleword and it's difficult to get
that real meaning across. Yes.So we use all these other
flowery words to do it.But there are different ways to
express, like, I miss you in French,you know, like do monk, you're
missing from me a variety of waysof looking at the world around us.
(10:23):
So that causes your brain to gointo creative problem solving,
to get to that solution, to thatcommunicate an idea that you want,
which I didn't realize until alittle bit later that people started
talking, that learning a new languagecan actually help you stave off the
effects of Alzheimer's or dementia.And I already know quite a few people
(10:49):
that are like 60 plus that arealready showing symptoms of that.
And so when I'm going about my day,like when you ask me to like what
my name is like, my name is David.David. David said, David about David.
(11:09):
David, you got to ask.It's like I can go through those
languages and it's still tryingto get to that one point where
I'm identifying myself.So therefore it has to problem
solve and get all of them.So it's exercising different parts
of your brain to get to that.When you get somebody who gets
maybe an MRI, their brains lightup like a Doppler radar.
(11:31):
When you put different languages inthe headphones that they're listening
to while in that small eyes scan.So they're problem solving.
That's what I loved about theschool programs here in Sitka.
We didn't shirk away from tryingto keep languages within the
school and to hear Tlingit.Now, in places where I was punished
for it is something that is amazing.So once in a while, I get to go
(11:55):
in with the jaw, the violin classand hear these kids singing.
And even over at CootsElementary school, hearing kids
walking down the hall. Hardly.It's not that they're singing it.
They sing their knowledge there.It's going to be a part of them
(12:16):
forever. Yeah.As a child, I remember hearing the
song that was from my elementaryschool teacher, Mr. Gene buckles,
Memory Eternal. May he rest in peace.And we sang it,
but he never told us what it meant.But my curiosity was like, I got
to know. I got to know and like.So for years I was like. Oh, maybe.
(12:45):
No, maybe. Ding ding dong.Once I got into the middle school,
I heard that French was beingoffered. It's like I'm taking it.
I want to learn what this is. Yeah.And there's a lot of people out there
who may never know what it means.But that song stuck with them.
And even now,if you have a child or it's here,
(13:06):
there's going to be children.You hear a, b, c, d f g h I j k
l m n o p q r s t u v w x,y and z. Now I know my babies.
Next time won't you sing with me?I remember reading my elementary
(13:30):
school teacher.She has since passed on.
Her name was Mrs. Thrasher.I've never known her first name.
She started forgetting a lot ofthings around her.
But once I sat with her and startedsinging some of these songs that
I remembered her singing,she came back for a moment and
(13:52):
started singing along.Even though she was having a
struggle remembering her own family.And I sat there like, you're back
for a moment. Just one moment.That's one moment more than
we've had before.So what would you consider your
your native Maine language?It goes between Tlingit and English.
(14:12):
So if you read something that waskind of where my question was going,
if you read something Tiffin,our exchange student said she
would read something in English,translate it to French to be able in
when she was in Spanish class. Sorry.She'd read it in Spanish,
translate it to French into Englishto be able to regurgitate it.
(14:32):
So do you go through thatprocess or I do.
Actually, um, English will be themain one because it was the very
first language I was literate,and I had never learned or read in
Tlingit until relatively recently.I have to, you know,
then go like into French or inSpanish or in German.
(14:53):
I do have to look at somethingin that language and then bring
it back into English to go backinto French or Spanish.
And it's kind of an interestingprocess to think about.
I never thought about it untilshe mentioned it.
So yeah, it's really a good questionto ask, because you get to see
what's going on in the minds ofsome of the peoples that you know,
(15:14):
you're dealing with.You know, she's getting to
exercise her mind in a way that's,you know, absolutely phenomenal.
I went to the linguistics classover at UAS.
I still had vision then,and they put a book down in
front of me and they were tryingto read out loud from this book.
From the Darwin hours.The heart. Woo hoo! Yes!
(15:37):
We're healing our spirits.And they said, oh,
you speak Tlingit here.Can you read this out loud for us?
I don't, I, I don't know. 000.That's not biblical.
Prayer book. Hebrew. Okay.Um hmm. I can't read it.
It's like, how'd you learn it?It's like, just grew up with it.
(15:59):
You know, both my grandparentsnever knew they understood English,
but they never spoke it around me.And both my parents worked over
at the hospital,which is now called search.
And I spent every day after schooland entire summers with them.
So if I was going to get somethingdone, I had to ask and sling it or,
(16:25):
you know, just say something andsling it around them because they
would sit there and say, I can getin and say, okay, I will do that.
So they gave you an appreciationfor your culture? Yes.
And I'm eternally grateful forthat now, especially when we're
seeing the language starting tomake a comeback like never before.
(16:49):
I was sitting downtown and I was justsitting there thinking about actually
twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,and I just kind of cuddly it.
And all of a sudden there wasthis child, we know that song.
And he got his sister to, you know,and they stood by and they started
(17:13):
singing it aloud. In blanket.In Tlingit. Oh. That's amazing.
Yeah. It's like, who are you?And so because I didn't know them.
And, you know, their parents arelike, they're singing and he
understands like this is wonderful.But they would also recognize the
(17:33):
tune and be able to, you know,even if they didn't know how to sing
it and clink it, that's kind of aback to your first thing. Yeah.
It's a recognition piece thatthey still could communicate with
you in that even though theycouldn't really. That's amazing.
And in the Blatchley Middle School,there are kids that are in the
(17:55):
Robby Littlefield class whomI've not heard talk in English.
I look at that and it's like,that is a success.
No disrespect to the second nativeeducation program, but the vocabulary
and the usage time is limited.But I understand they're trying
(18:15):
to change that around now,with some new people coming on
board with better understanding ofhow to teach a language Bridge,
and that's great. Quincy. Wonderful.You said you you hadn't lost
your sight yet.When did you lose your sight?
I was diagnosed with somethingcalled retinitis pigmentosa when
(18:37):
I was 18 years old,which is the deterioration of the
retinal rods in the back of the eyes.And it's. It was a gradual process.
I knew by the time I was 14 thatsomething was changing.
Peripheral vision was starting to go.And things that look maybe light
(18:57):
to you were starting to appeardarker to me.
And through the years,it just kept progressing and
progressing until now.I need to use a cane and I learned to
read Braille to continue functioning.That's another language.
Yes, absolutely. And so.But the brain doesn't have a use
(19:18):
by date.You know,
we're able to continue growing.So now that's what I love about it.
You've worked with youth foryears now in schools,
camps and community events.What drew you to that kind of work?
I was invited, I, I didn't haveany inclination of doing it.
But Tammy Young,sick of Tribes of Alaska,
(19:40):
is like, oh, you're crystal cake.You got to come and talk about
the Tlingit potato. Why?I wasn't sure what she was
wanting me to do.And so I went with her and some
others out to the Forest Servicebuilding that's out by Sandy beach,
and they wanted to hear about thehistory of the Tlingit potato.
(20:01):
Where did it come from?Like, what's the history?
It's like they were part of ourmigration stories. Okay, okay.
Now I know what you want me to talkabout. Okay, okay. We can do that.
So that got me into the my foot,into the door, so to speak.
And before I knew it, I startedgetting invites to go to different
projects in some of the schools,you know, to talk about some things,
(20:25):
whether they be Ravens stories,which are absolutely fun and over the
top, and creative impossibilitiesthat just you don't forget them.
We don't remember boring things.So Raven is something that
sticks with them.And I like to throw in,
like for the kids.I'll throw in like maybe some
(20:45):
things that, you know,they can like, relate to.
Like, say,when Ravens uncle throws a star at
him and it misses Raven and it fliesover the ice field and explodes.
And Raven is like in the story andgoes on like a lengthy monologue
talking about what happened.But for the kids,
(21:05):
I'll sit there and say, miss me,miss me now you got to kiss me.
It's like,you know something they know,
right? And it's like. I know that.So they get to relate to it. So yeah.
Throwing a little bit ofslapstick in like,
Raven goes walking down lifts ofwater like a blanket or a sheet and
(21:26):
starts walking down under the water.And I get up, I stand up and I start
walking, but I start squattingwith each step that makes me
look lower and lower and lower.And I gets a laugh from the kids and
a laugh from the adults as well.So it's making the stories memorable.
So to the point where even atthe age of potato planting,
(21:49):
that happens over at coots and, uh,Andrea and she's a wonderful teacher
over there that helps with that.And she says, you have a way of
connecting with kids.And it's like some of our own
teachers could learn to do that.And so it's practice, you know,
you gotta just, you know,not just expect to be up there.
(22:13):
I am a Tlingit.This is a our Tlingit potato.
We're going to go plant potatoes.Like.
You know you got to jump in there.It's like,
are you ready to plant the potatoes?Are you ready to plant the guns?
And they're like yeah.Are you really, really ready? Yeah.
Are you really, really, really ready?Yeah. And they just get into it.
(22:37):
And it's like, now they're all readyto go play in the dirt. Right. Right.
Whereas before it's like, I don'twant to play in the dirt. I get it.
Like, I didn't want you untilsomebody roughed me up.
And once I got revved up,it's like my parents would ask,
how did you get so dirty?I was playing in the dirt. Fun.
I was learning, mom. Yeah.So I hope that answers the question.
(23:00):
Somebody said,your storytelling, your story.
Sorry, I gotta repeat myself.Your storytelling is legendary
around here.I remember hearing you once at
Totem Park during a foggy evening,and it felt like the forest was
leaning into.Listen, can you share what
storytelling means to you?I'm trying to remember. That.
(23:21):
I've been down there so many times,but I love that storytelling.
To me,it's bringing these things to life.
When I tell a story,I'm not just telling it.
I am acting out every part.It's like I'm raven changing into
a pine needle to the chief'sdaughter who's drinking, drinking
(23:42):
water to get in there and be born.I'm the daughter that's going down
to the spring to get that water.I'm the chief, the daughter's
father that is in therejudgmental about what's going on.
It's like I'm Raven that's born andwanting. To bark that daylight.
Give me that boy. I want that boy.It's bringing all of it to life.
(24:08):
And now just being able to embodyit and maybe get a perspective
of what all these characters inthese stories are doing.
It's almost like a selfanalytical process,
because I'm starting to analyze like,what part of me is relating to that?
It's like, why am I being stingy likethat uncle or that chief who wants to
(24:32):
keep the box of daylight for himself?And what's his motivation?
Like, what's the motivation ofthe daughter you have with that?
And what's Raven's motivation?What would it be like to see your
child, your grandchild, you know,throwing a temper tantrum and wanting
that box that's up on the shelf?What monologue is going on on the
(24:52):
head? Or like, is it even a song?You know, it's like sometimes I'll
just throw like a song in there,you know, like, or make something up.
You know, just so that it kindof comes alive a little bit.
I mean, it's like you couldalmost imagine, you know,
that chief looking at his grandson,throwing a tantrum and and kind of
like coming out like David Bowie.Yeah. Singing is like I.
(25:13):
Saw my grandson crying.Not his babies could cry.
What could I do?You know, I'm not good as him,
but you know. Yeah. That's right.But you can kind of like, see,
like just incorporate somethingthat makes it relevant,
you know, to the present day,something that people can relate to.
(25:34):
It's like I no longer versionsof that story.
And depending on my audience,like if I have a very clingy,
dominant audience, I'm almost goingto be very much at that point,
like from time immemorial,because they know the stories.
I'm not giving them anythingthey haven't already seen to an
audience like I had at theUnitarian Church here recently.
(25:57):
I threw in everything left and right.Yeah, that made it relevant to them.
Like ravens going door to door,trying to find the people who
had his nose.And he's going door to door and
knocking.Kind of like maybe one of those
door to door missionaries go inthere at an inopportune time.
Interrupting your daily routineand you chase him away.
(26:20):
It's like making it relevant to them.Like, you know, they know what
it's like to be interrupted. Yeah.And it's like. And they loved it.
And it's like relating a tricksterto, like, maybe nowadays.
What are their motivations?Or is there something in media,
you know,that we can relate Raven to? Yeah.
Raven is a symbol of a trickster.He has lots of great intentions,
(26:43):
but hardly anything goes the wayhe wants it to.
And if mankind benefits fromsomething he's done.
Kind of an accident.That's good. To. Know.
And it's like, ah, dang it,that got away. All right. Oh, well.
They're always trying to stop himfrom doing what he's wanting to do.
So it's like,is there a trickster in modern media
(27:06):
or something in modern storytelling.Oh,
there's always something relevant,like Elphaba from the movie wicked.
Nothing she does goes right forher at the beginning.
She starts learning aboutherself as she's going along,
and everybody makes all theseassumptions about her,
(27:28):
and she has to finally decide whoshe is and what she's going to do
with her life. And she does so.And who becomes the good witch?
And she becomes such a good witch.A complex witch, right? Yeah.
Not just. Ah. Yeah.And you can see how the campiness at
the end, like in The Wizard of Oz,like I'm melting, I'm melting.
(27:51):
You're destroying my beautifulwickedness.
She was putting on a show, stagingher own death. So, like, very raven.
Like. Like. Oh, yeah.So, you know,
tricksters are relevant today.Like they pop up in our culture.
Superman like you look at it.He's Clark Kent, and most people
don't know it that he's Superman.He kind of hunches his shoulders,
(28:15):
like, puts on those glasses and, uh.Gee, Lois, uh,
do you really want to do that?And, like, he's socially awkward,
but, you know, when he has tojump in to go out to the rescue,
he's Superman. He's, like, confident.He's standing tall.
He's not shrugging his shouldersand hunching down.
And he's taking away power fromLex Luthor.
(28:37):
And it goes back to the people,a very trickster move.
So tricksters are all around us.You just need to learn to look
for them.But like I said, Elphaba has been
like my most recent favorite one.You can picture Raven just like
leaping it into the sky.If you care to find me,
look to the Alaskan sky.As someone told me lately.
(29:02):
You get the idea.If you could talk to your younger
self, or maybe a young native childlistening to this right now, what's
something you'd want them to know?I would love to talk to that
traumatized, younger version of meand tell them that it's going to be
okay to tell him there's going tocome a time when you're understanding
why you don't relate to the worldaround you. Maybe it's a spectrum.
(29:26):
For me, it is a spectrum.An autistic spectrum, low,
but still there.It's okay that you do feel different
and that your difference is a gift.The reason why your grandparents
chose you to memorize those storiesis because of your affinity.
You love the patterns.You love the repetition.
(29:51):
You love the minute details.You're you.
And they chose you because they knewyou would hold on to those stories
Without deviating from the details.And that the community really
respect you someday because.Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.
And it's. Like.I never pictured a day where I'd
(30:12):
be called in front of so manypeople to tell these stories.
But I am called to tell thesestories now, in an age where
people are starting to ask,what is it? Let me tell you.
Have a seat. Have a cup of coffee.Let's see where this all comes from.
To those that are in my Tlingitcommunity, they're going to hear
(30:32):
all about our history.To those that are outside of our
community.They're going to hear something
maybe they didn't know before.I like looking at the works of
William Shakespeare, the epic sagasand Adas of the Scandinavian nations,
Greek and Roman mythologies,the Epic of Gilgamesh.
And there are some of myfavorite stories,
(30:53):
because it helps me understand aculture that's not my own.
They contributed and enriched mylife.
And don't lose out what enrichesyour life?
And so I tell others thosethings enriched my life and I
would never eliminate them.Now maybe sit and listen to some
stories that maybe your life will beenriched, just as mine has been.
And those are the stories thatcontinue to share.
(31:16):
And I certainly don't want peopleto call themselves colonizers.
Seems to be a popular term nowadays,but it's a term that's not used with
love. It's a very weird labeling.I heard this from school board
member Bill. Verdict.Bill, I know you and I pointed
to each school member.At least I was picturing myself
(31:38):
pointing to them like, I know you.I know this thing at names you
have been given.You walk among the people.
Colonizers is not a term of love.I've seen what happens when we label
people differently from ourselves.They start marching them off to the
showers. The showers with no water.I don't ever want to hear you
(32:01):
say that.You are a human being that
happens to be on land.That ancestrally is where the Tlingit
have lived since time immemorial.We're going to work together,
and it's going to be okay.I don't want you to feel like you're
any less because you're not thinking.Like, would you want me to feel
(32:22):
any less because I'm not Jewish?It's like. I don't think so.
We have something in common.We're human.
So I never go into, like, the massadoptions that I see nowadays.
It's like saying they're not enough.It's like, you know what?
You are enough.You're more than enough.
Sit down and share with methings that you know about your
(32:43):
culture or what you don't knowabout your culture.
Let's talk about that because Ilove that.
What's your favorite season in Sitkaand why? My favorite season in Sitka.
That has to be spring.Things are starting to pop up.
I get to smell all the newthings when I'm walking along,
and I get to walk by some of myfavorite rock walls, and I get to
(33:06):
touch those rock walls that havebeen there since I was a child.
I get to remember all the stories ofour lives growing up here in Sitka.
If Raven showed up at your doortoday, what do you think he'd say?
What would Raven say if he showed upto my door today? Let's fly together.
I think about that because,as I've said earlier,
(33:29):
like when I tell a story,I become every character in the
story, including Raven.And I really love Raven.
He's over the top.He's ridiculous. He's crazy.
And I like that he tries torearrange the world and be himself.
He doesn't care that he's fittinginto all the norms Yeah. Of life.
(33:53):
He's being himself again.That kind of reminds me of
Elphaba from wicked.It just seems like it would be
resonant until.Like when I tell those stories
of Raven. Who am I?I'm Raven, fighting his uncle.
I'm Raven's uncle fighting him.I'm the Tlingit running up the
mountains. To. Escape the flood.Like I'm the animals that are
(34:13):
shapeshifting.To adjust to this new world where the
flood is happening. So who am I?I am Raven, flying up to the sky.
I am every storyteller who hasever lived.
I get to call the end back tothe beginning.
I get to be that crazy,silly Raven and he would invite
(34:34):
me to go along with the ride.I feel so blessed that I,
I don't know the stumbled acrossthis raven about Sitka opportunity.
Like I could have picked anything,but you know, I just wanted to do
something about Sitka and in myresearch. Raven is so prominent.
And everything, every episode, everybit of research, every interview
(34:58):
I do is so related to Raven.I just feel like I just fell
into this thing and it's great.So thank you so much for your
time today. Thank you.Anything else you want to say to
the listeners?Quite often we say thank you,
but literally it means notpossible without you.
And no person is an island.Even my autistic spectrum life.
(35:22):
I may walk alone, but I'm not alone.I have a lot of people around me
throughout every step of my life,and you too,
likewise have people all around you.Sometimes it may feel awkward
and alone, but you're not alone.We're here together.
Which in a city we're livingtogether.
Welcome back to Raven about Sitka,where we gather the stories,
history and heart of our uniqueAlaskan community.
One conversation at a time.I'm your host, Kathrynn.
And today we're pulling up achair for a truly special guest.
David Kanosh is more than just aname you hear around town.
He's a storyteller,a culture bearer, and one of those
(00:37):
rare people who manages to makeeveryone feel seen and valued.
David weaves together tradition,history, music,
and humor in ways that remind uswho we are and why Sitka matters.
In this episode,we'll talk about the moments and
experiences that shaped him,the stories he carries forward,
and how his work connects the past tothe present for future generations.
(01:02):
And because language is such akey part of storytelling.
I'll be asking David about his loveof linguistics, how words sounds and
the rhythm of language shape the waywe understand culture and each other.
So settle in, because when Davidtells a story, it's never just words.
It's an invitation. Welcome, David.I know you have a deep love for
(01:29):
linguistics.Where did that passion come from and
how did it develop over the years?Well,
I was in the school system here.I learned French, Spanish and
Japanese all in one school year.After I had finished up all of my
requirements by my junior year.And to give you a little preview,
um, I got punished for speakingTlingit in the school system,
(01:53):
and I realized what it was liketo be punished for it.
And I didn't want anybody newcoming to our shores to feel the
way I had been treated.And even now, it's like.
Like how do you say such and suchin your language? Like Salamat.
(02:15):
It's like salamat po. It's like.Thank you very much.
And you know, it's like I askhim because I want them to feel
like you know what they matter.But then on the other side of that,
I never wear shirts that sayNative Pride or, you know, like,
or indigenous pride, because racialpride is a really slippery slope.
(02:42):
And I'll go to a ceremony like maybeonce, you know, that talks about,
you know, the way we weretreated after that, it's like,
you know what? I'm letting it go.Not that it didn't matter.
It's that our ceremonies and ourrituals were meant to bring healing.
(03:03):
And not to perpetuate the angerand the hurt feelings. Because.
No, no healing comes from that.And I rarely talk about my own
history with, you know,prejudice or even when I was
beaten and left for dead.And the A N B Harbor bathroom.
(03:26):
You know, where the peoplecarved a swastika in my chest?
It's like I rarely talk about thatbecause I faced my shadows from,
like, Carl Jung's take on the shadow.I faced it and I grew from it.
And I was like, you know what?It doesn't hold a power over me
anymore.And healing is not going to come
(03:48):
by me talking about it constantly.And I was like, I'll bring it up if
it comes up in a topic, but I don'tmake it the focal point of my life.
And I hear so much anger and hatredwithin the decolonization movement.
And it's like, you know what?I get your anger,
(04:09):
but I'll tell you what,we need to face that shadow head on.
Because when you do that,that empathy that's in your heart
is going to come out and say,you know what I found healing.
Come on,let's walk on this healing together.
And but, you know,some people don't like that.
(04:30):
They think I'm trying to bury orbelittle, you know, the hatred
and the anger that we face.And it's like, no, I think it's
something that we can face and thenmove on. You're decreasing its power.
Yeah, yeah. Just a preview.That's great. What questions.
All right. Let's see here.Let's start where stories often
(04:52):
do at the beginning.Can you tell us a little bit about
your family and where you come from?Oh, not a small one at all.
My name is David Nash.My name is Eric,
which means he who controls the tide.I'm of the raven moiety.
Uh, the Dashi Tang clan,which means the village at the end
(05:14):
of the trail, uh, from Rangoon.And, uh,
the name of my clan house is hit orsteel house or house made of steel.
And I'm a child of the wonton,the wolf eagle moiety.
My father is William Nash,who is the speaker for Chuck who
(05:38):
hit the Eagle nest house.That house, you might see that's been
collapsing down on Catlin Street,you know, for some time,
and it's been condemned.That's a little bit of my own
history there. Do you have siblings?I have two brothers.
One has since passed on,and a brother, Delbert,
(06:01):
who works over at search alongwith his daughter, who also works
at search as a medical assistant.I tried my best to speak,
feeling it all the time with myentire family, and it's like I'm.
Like, say it in Tlingit.And they put up with me.
(06:23):
Okay, so I was told you speakmultiple languages,
so can you go through those?Well, well,
I was in the school system here.I had learned French,
Spanish and Japanese.I had finished up my requirements
early, as I'm more at home,and I have an affinity for
(06:45):
repetition and things going on,which is a little bit on the
spectrum. So when I took those.They said,
you're not going to do very well.But I was getting passing grades.
They were trying to ask like,how do you do it?
And like just memorize it.Beyond that, there was mnemonic
(07:05):
techniques I had used for,you know, learning languages.
Like if I found a pattern in there,say, like, you know,
the first five, you know,numbers in French, there are three
cats using a bathtub as a boat.One of them pulls the plug on
the cat sink. Oh my goodness.And the three cats sink.
(07:29):
My my exchange student from Pariswould be so proud. That's great.
That's a great tool.And so I once I had learned the
pronunciation rules and keptlistening to the cassettes.
I found that I could start repeatingeverything that I needed to.
I just thought everybody shoulddo this.
(07:51):
But to the teachers, in hindsight,I think they were trying to
figure out how I did it,and I just took it for granted
because I thought everybody knewabout mnemonic techniques for
learning anything and committingthings to memory, and they didn't.
Have you traveled much out of Alaska?I had I gone through Canada and on
(08:13):
through Europe and into Russia andJapan and China and all along the
way, picking up languages as I went.Before I would go, I would pick up a
phrasebook and start like, okay,let's see here. How do we say that?
It's like a McDonald's.I would like McDonald's or
(08:34):
something like that.And, you know, just keep going
and keep learning and applying.You know what?
You know, I get to come across. And.But I think learning languages
also gives you a new way to lookat the world around us.
I tell many people the word forthank you literally means not
(08:58):
possible without you,and it's the equivalent of thank you,
but your mind has to do sometricks to get to that concept.
You know,is thank you and its closest
associated words in another language.There's always some problem
solving going on in there.So like whether you want to say I
(09:18):
like it, me gusta or like I likeare or asking somebody, do you like
it like and maybe in Chinese likeJuan Bushi Juan like, not like.
And there's a duality there,you know, in Chinese,
(09:38):
which you're not finding in English.You know, if you tried to say,
do you like it literally in anotherlanguage, it might come across as
a little I don't know what you'retrying to say. It sounds weird.
I noticed with English we have.I use the example love like in
French.There is love for your dog and
love for your family, and love foryour spouse and love for a deity.
(10:00):
And you know, there's these allthese different kinds of love
where we only have one simpleword and it's difficult to get
that real meaning across. Yes.So we use all these other
flowery words to do it.But there are different ways to
express, like, I miss you in French,you know, like do monk, you're
missing from me a variety of waysof looking at the world around us.
(10:23):
So that causes your brain to gointo creative problem solving,
to get to that solution, to thatcommunicate an idea that you want,
which I didn't realize until alittle bit later that people started
talking, that learning a new languagecan actually help you stave off the
effects of Alzheimer's or dementia.And I already know quite a few people
(10:49):
that are like 60 plus that arealready showing symptoms of that.
And so when I'm going about my day,like when you ask me to like what
my name is like, my name is David.David. David said, David about David.
(11:09):
David, you got to ask.It's like I can go through those
languages and it's still tryingto get to that one point where
I'm identifying myself.So therefore it has to problem
solve and get all of them.So it's exercising different parts
of your brain to get to that.When you get somebody who gets
maybe an MRI, their brains lightup like a Doppler radar.
(11:31):
When you put different languages inthe headphones that they're listening
to while in that small eyes scan.So they're problem solving.
That's what I loved about theschool programs here in Sitka.
We didn't shirk away from tryingto keep languages within the
school and to hear Tlingit.Now, in places where I was punished
for it is something that is amazing.So once in a while, I get to go
(11:55):
in with the jaw, the violin classand hear these kids singing.
And even over at CootsElementary school, hearing kids
walking down the hall. Hardly.It's not that they're singing it.
They sing their knowledge there.It's going to be a part of them
(12:16):
forever. Yeah.As a child, I remember hearing the
song that was from my elementaryschool teacher, Mr. Gene buckles,
Memory Eternal. May he rest in peace.And we sang it,
but he never told us what it meant.But my curiosity was like, I got
to know. I got to know and like.So for years I was like. Oh, maybe.
(12:45):
No, maybe. Ding ding dong.Once I got into the middle school,
I heard that French was beingoffered. It's like I'm taking it.
I want to learn what this is. Yeah.And there's a lot of people out there
who may never know what it means.But that song stuck with them.
And even now,if you have a child or it's here,
(13:06):
there's going to be children.You hear a, b, c, d f g h I j k
l m n o p q r s t u v w x,y and z. Now I know my babies.
Next time won't you sing with me?I remember reading my elementary
(13:30):
school teacher.She has since passed on.
Her name was Mrs. Thrasher.I've never known her first name.
She started forgetting a lot ofthings around her.
But once I sat with her and startedsinging some of these songs that
I remembered her singing,she came back for a moment and
(13:52):
started singing along.Even though she was having a
struggle remembering her own family.And I sat there like, you're back
for a moment. Just one moment.That's one moment more than
we've had before.So what would you consider your
your native Maine language?It goes between Tlingit and English.
(14:12):
So if you read something that waskind of where my question was going,
if you read something Tiffin,our exchange student said she
would read something in English,translate it to French to be able in
when she was in Spanish class. Sorry.She'd read it in Spanish,
translate it to French into Englishto be able to regurgitate it.
(14:32):
So do you go through thatprocess or I do.
Actually, um, English will be themain one because it was the very
first language I was literate,and I had never learned or read in
Tlingit until relatively recently.I have to, you know,
then go like into French or inSpanish or in German.
(14:53):
I do have to look at somethingin that language and then bring
it back into English to go backinto French or Spanish.
And it's kind of an interestingprocess to think about.
I never thought about it untilshe mentioned it.
So yeah, it's really a good questionto ask, because you get to see
what's going on in the minds ofsome of the peoples that you know,
(15:14):
you're dealing with.You know, she's getting to
exercise her mind in a way that's,you know, absolutely phenomenal.
I went to the linguistics classover at UAS.
I still had vision then,and they put a book down in
front of me and they were tryingto read out loud from this book.
From the Darwin hours.The heart. Woo hoo! Yes!
(15:37):
We're healing our spirits.And they said, oh,
you speak Tlingit here.Can you read this out loud for us?
I don't, I, I don't know. 000.That's not biblical.
Prayer book. Hebrew. Okay.Um hmm. I can't read it.
It's like, how'd you learn it?It's like, just grew up with it.
(15:59):
You know, both my grandparentsnever knew they understood English,
but they never spoke it around me.And both my parents worked over
at the hospital,which is now called search.
And I spent every day after schooland entire summers with them.
So if I was going to get somethingdone, I had to ask and sling it or,
(16:25):
you know, just say something andsling it around them because they
would sit there and say, I can getin and say, okay, I will do that.
So they gave you an appreciationfor your culture? Yes.
And I'm eternally grateful forthat now, especially when we're
seeing the language starting tomake a comeback like never before.
(16:49):
I was sitting downtown and I was justsitting there thinking about actually
twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,and I just kind of cuddly it.
And all of a sudden there wasthis child, we know that song.
And he got his sister to, you know,and they stood by and they started
(17:13):
singing it aloud. In blanket.In Tlingit. Oh. That's amazing.
Yeah. It's like, who are you?And so because I didn't know them.
And, you know, their parents arelike, they're singing and he
understands like this is wonderful.But they would also recognize the
(17:33):
tune and be able to, you know,even if they didn't know how to sing
it and clink it, that's kind of aback to your first thing. Yeah.
It's a recognition piece thatthey still could communicate with
you in that even though theycouldn't really. That's amazing.
And in the Blatchley Middle School,there are kids that are in the
(17:55):
Robby Littlefield class whomI've not heard talk in English.
I look at that and it's like,that is a success.
No disrespect to the second nativeeducation program, but the vocabulary
and the usage time is limited.But I understand they're trying
(18:15):
to change that around now,with some new people coming on
board with better understanding ofhow to teach a language Bridge,
and that's great. Quincy. Wonderful.You said you you hadn't lost
your sight yet.When did you lose your sight?
I was diagnosed with somethingcalled retinitis pigmentosa when
(18:37):
I was 18 years old,which is the deterioration of the
retinal rods in the back of the eyes.And it's. It was a gradual process.
I knew by the time I was 14 thatsomething was changing.
Peripheral vision was starting to go.And things that look maybe light
(18:57):
to you were starting to appeardarker to me.
And through the years,it just kept progressing and
progressing until now.I need to use a cane and I learned to
read Braille to continue functioning.That's another language.
Yes, absolutely. And so.But the brain doesn't have a use
(19:18):
by date.You know,
we're able to continue growing.So now that's what I love about it.
You've worked with youth foryears now in schools,
camps and community events.What drew you to that kind of work?
I was invited, I, I didn't haveany inclination of doing it.
But Tammy Young,sick of Tribes of Alaska,
(19:40):
is like, oh, you're crystal cake.You got to come and talk about
the Tlingit potato. Why?I wasn't sure what she was
wanting me to do.And so I went with her and some
others out to the Forest Servicebuilding that's out by Sandy beach,
and they wanted to hear about thehistory of the Tlingit potato.
(20:01):
Where did it come from?Like, what's the history?
It's like they were part of ourmigration stories. Okay, okay.
Now I know what you want me to talkabout. Okay, okay. We can do that.
So that got me into the my foot,into the door, so to speak.
And before I knew it, I startedgetting invites to go to different
projects in some of the schools,you know, to talk about some things,
(20:25):
whether they be Ravens stories,which are absolutely fun and over the
top, and creative impossibilitiesthat just you don't forget them.
We don't remember boring things.So Raven is something that
sticks with them.And I like to throw in,
like for the kids.I'll throw in like maybe some
(20:45):
things that, you know,they can like, relate to.
Like, say,when Ravens uncle throws a star at
him and it misses Raven and it fliesover the ice field and explodes.
And Raven is like in the story andgoes on like a lengthy monologue
talking about what happened.But for the kids,
(21:05):
I'll sit there and say, miss me,miss me now you got to kiss me.
It's like,you know something they know,
right? And it's like. I know that.So they get to relate to it. So yeah.
Throwing a little bit ofslapstick in like,
Raven goes walking down lifts ofwater like a blanket or a sheet and
(21:26):
starts walking down under the water.And I get up, I stand up and I start
walking, but I start squattingwith each step that makes me
look lower and lower and lower.And I gets a laugh from the kids and
a laugh from the adults as well.So it's making the stories memorable.
So to the point where even atthe age of potato planting,
(21:49):
that happens over at coots and, uh,Andrea and she's a wonderful teacher
over there that helps with that.And she says, you have a way of
connecting with kids.And it's like some of our own
teachers could learn to do that.And so it's practice, you know,
you gotta just, you know,not just expect to be up there.
(22:13):
I am a Tlingit.This is a our Tlingit potato.
We're going to go plant potatoes.Like.
You know you got to jump in there.It's like,
are you ready to plant the potatoes?Are you ready to plant the guns?
And they're like yeah.Are you really, really ready? Yeah.
Are you really, really, really ready?Yeah. And they just get into it.
(22:37):
And it's like, now they're all readyto go play in the dirt. Right. Right.
Whereas before it's like, I don'twant to play in the dirt. I get it.
Like, I didn't want you untilsomebody roughed me up.
And once I got revved up,it's like my parents would ask,
how did you get so dirty?I was playing in the dirt. Fun.
I was learning, mom. Yeah.So I hope that answers the question.
(23:00):
Somebody said,your storytelling, your story.
Sorry, I gotta repeat myself.Your storytelling is legendary
around here.I remember hearing you once at
Totem Park during a foggy evening,and it felt like the forest was
leaning into.Listen, can you share what
storytelling means to you?I'm trying to remember. That.
(23:21):
I've been down there so many times,but I love that storytelling.
To me,it's bringing these things to life.
When I tell a story,I'm not just telling it.
I am acting out every part.It's like I'm raven changing into
a pine needle to the chief'sdaughter who's drinking, drinking
(23:42):
water to get in there and be born.I'm the daughter that's going down
to the spring to get that water.I'm the chief, the daughter's
father that is in therejudgmental about what's going on.
It's like I'm Raven that's born andwanting. To bark that daylight.
Give me that boy. I want that boy.It's bringing all of it to life.
(24:08):
And now just being able to embodyit and maybe get a perspective
of what all these characters inthese stories are doing.
It's almost like a selfanalytical process,
because I'm starting to analyze like,what part of me is relating to that?
It's like, why am I being stingy likethat uncle or that chief who wants to
(24:32):
keep the box of daylight for himself?And what's his motivation?
Like, what's the motivation ofthe daughter you have with that?
And what's Raven's motivation?What would it be like to see your
child, your grandchild, you know,throwing a temper tantrum and wanting
that box that's up on the shelf?What monologue is going on on the
(24:52):
head? Or like, is it even a song?You know, it's like sometimes I'll
just throw like a song in there,you know, like, or make something up.
You know, just so that it kindof comes alive a little bit.
I mean, it's like you couldalmost imagine, you know,
that chief looking at his grandson,throwing a tantrum and and kind of
like coming out like David Bowie.Yeah. Singing is like I.
(25:13):
Saw my grandson crying.Not his babies could cry.
What could I do?You know, I'm not good as him,
but you know. Yeah. That's right.But you can kind of like, see,
like just incorporate somethingthat makes it relevant,
you know, to the present day,something that people can relate to.
(25:34):
It's like I no longer versionsof that story.
And depending on my audience,like if I have a very clingy,
dominant audience, I'm almost goingto be very much at that point,
like from time immemorial,because they know the stories.
I'm not giving them anythingthey haven't already seen to an
audience like I had at theUnitarian Church here recently.
(25:57):
I threw in everything left and right.Yeah, that made it relevant to them.
Like ravens going door to door,trying to find the people who
had his nose.And he's going door to door and
knocking.Kind of like maybe one of those
door to door missionaries go inthere at an inopportune time.
Interrupting your daily routineand you chase him away.
(26:20):
It's like making it relevant to them.Like, you know, they know what
it's like to be interrupted. Yeah.And it's like. And they loved it.
And it's like relating a tricksterto, like, maybe nowadays.
What are their motivations?Or is there something in media,
you know,that we can relate Raven to? Yeah.
Raven is a symbol of a trickster.He has lots of great intentions,
(26:43):
but hardly anything goes the wayhe wants it to.
And if mankind benefits fromsomething he's done.
Kind of an accident.That's good. To. Know.
And it's like, ah, dang it,that got away. All right. Oh, well.
They're always trying to stop himfrom doing what he's wanting to do.
So it's like,is there a trickster in modern media
(27:06):
or something in modern storytelling.Oh,
there's always something relevant,like Elphaba from the movie wicked.
Nothing she does goes right forher at the beginning.
She starts learning aboutherself as she's going along,
and everybody makes all theseassumptions about her,
(27:28):
and she has to finally decide whoshe is and what she's going to do
with her life. And she does so.And who becomes the good witch?
And she becomes such a good witch.A complex witch, right? Yeah.
Not just. Ah. Yeah.And you can see how the campiness at
the end, like in The Wizard of Oz,like I'm melting, I'm melting.
(27:51):
You're destroying my beautifulwickedness.
She was putting on a show, stagingher own death. So, like, very raven.
Like. Like. Oh, yeah.So, you know,
tricksters are relevant today.Like they pop up in our culture.
Superman like you look at it.He's Clark Kent, and most people
don't know it that he's Superman.He kind of hunches his shoulders,
(28:15):
like, puts on those glasses and, uh.Gee, Lois, uh,
do you really want to do that?And, like, he's socially awkward,
but, you know, when he has tojump in to go out to the rescue,
he's Superman. He's, like, confident.He's standing tall.
He's not shrugging his shouldersand hunching down.
And he's taking away power fromLex Luthor.
(28:37):
And it goes back to the people,a very trickster move.
So tricksters are all around us.You just need to learn to look
for them.But like I said, Elphaba has been
like my most recent favorite one.You can picture Raven just like
leaping it into the sky.If you care to find me,
look to the Alaskan sky.As someone told me lately.
(29:02):
You get the idea.If you could talk to your younger
self, or maybe a young native childlistening to this right now, what's
something you'd want them to know?I would love to talk to that
traumatized, younger version of meand tell them that it's going to be
okay to tell him there's going tocome a time when you're understanding
why you don't relate to the worldaround you. Maybe it's a spectrum.
(29:26):
For me, it is a spectrum.An autistic spectrum, low,
but still there.It's okay that you do feel different
and that your difference is a gift.The reason why your grandparents
chose you to memorize those storiesis because of your affinity.
You love the patterns.You love the repetition.
(29:51):
You love the minute details.You're you.
And they chose you because they knewyou would hold on to those stories
Without deviating from the details.And that the community really
respect you someday because.Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.
And it's. Like.I never pictured a day where I'd
(30:12):
be called in front of so manypeople to tell these stories.
But I am called to tell thesestories now, in an age where
people are starting to ask,what is it? Let me tell you.
Have a seat. Have a cup of coffee.Let's see where this all comes from.
To those that are in my Tlingitcommunity, they're going to hear
(30:32):
all about our history.To those that are outside of our
community.They're going to hear something
maybe they didn't know before.I like looking at the works of
William Shakespeare, the epic sagasand Adas of the Scandinavian nations,
Greek and Roman mythologies,the Epic of Gilgamesh.
And there are some of myfavorite stories,
(30:53):
because it helps me understand aculture that's not my own.
They contributed and enriched mylife.
And don't lose out what enrichesyour life?
And so I tell others thosethings enriched my life and I
would never eliminate them.Now maybe sit and listen to some
stories that maybe your life will beenriched, just as mine has been.
And those are the stories thatcontinue to share.
(31:16):
And I certainly don't want peopleto call themselves colonizers.
Seems to be a popular term nowadays,but it's a term that's not used with
love. It's a very weird labeling.I heard this from school board
member Bill. Verdict.Bill, I know you and I pointed
to each school member.At least I was picturing myself
(31:38):
pointing to them like, I know you.I know this thing at names you
have been given.You walk among the people.
Colonizers is not a term of love.I've seen what happens when we label
people differently from ourselves.They start marching them off to the
showers. The showers with no water.I don't ever want to hear you
(32:01):
say that.You are a human being that
happens to be on land.That ancestrally is where the Tlingit
have lived since time immemorial.We're going to work together,
and it's going to be okay.I don't want you to feel like you're
any less because you're not thinking.Like, would you want me to feel
(32:22):
any less because I'm not Jewish?It's like. I don't think so.
We have something in common.We're human.
So I never go into, like, the massadoptions that I see nowadays.
It's like saying they're not enough.It's like, you know what?
You are enough.You're more than enough.
Sit down and share with methings that you know about your
(32:43):
culture or what you don't knowabout your culture.
Let's talk about that because Ilove that.
What's your favorite season in Sitkaand why? My favorite season in Sitka.
That has to be spring.Things are starting to pop up.
I get to smell all the newthings when I'm walking along,
and I get to walk by some of myfavorite rock walls, and I get to
(33:06):
touch those rock walls that havebeen there since I was a child.
I get to remember all the stories ofour lives growing up here in Sitka.
If Raven showed up at your doortoday, what do you think he'd say?
What would Raven say if he showed upto my door today? Let's fly together.
I think about that because,as I've said earlier,
(33:29):
like when I tell a story,I become every character in the
story, including Raven.And I really love Raven.
He's over the top.He's ridiculous. He's crazy.
And I like that he tries torearrange the world and be himself.
He doesn't care that he's fittinginto all the norms Yeah. Of life.
(33:53):
He's being himself again.That kind of reminds me of
Elphaba from wicked.It just seems like it would be
resonant until.Like when I tell those stories
of Raven. Who am I?I'm Raven, fighting his uncle.
I'm Raven's uncle fighting him.I'm the Tlingit running up the
mountains. To. Escape the flood.Like I'm the animals that are
(34:13):
shapeshifting.To adjust to this new world where the
flood is happening. So who am I?I am Raven, flying up to the sky.
I am every storyteller who hasever lived.
I get to call the end back tothe beginning.
I get to be that crazy,silly Raven and he would invite
(34:34):
me to go along with the ride.I feel so blessed that I,
I don't know the stumbled acrossthis raven about Sitka opportunity.
Like I could have picked anything,but you know, I just wanted to do
something about Sitka and in myresearch. Raven is so prominent.
And everything, every episode, everybit of research, every interview
(34:58):
I do is so related to Raven.I just feel like I just fell
into this thing and it's great.So thank you so much for your
time today. Thank you.Anything else you want to say to
the listeners?Quite often we say thank you,
but literally it means notpossible without you.
And no person is an island.Even my autistic spectrum life.
(35:22):
I may walk alone, but I'm not alone.I have a lot of people around me
throughout every step of my life,and you too,
likewise have people all around you.Sometimes it may feel awkward
and alone, but you're not alone.We're here together.
Which in a city we're livingtogether.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.