Re-Telling S'Klallam Stories: Stories are All We Are

"Slapu" structure made from bamboo and various grasses. My S'Klallams are trying not to end up in her basket.

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As some of you may know, my kiddos and husband are Port Gamble S'Klallam enrolled tribal members. My kids love to read and listen to old S'Klallam stories. Their favorite storytellers are Roger Fernandes and Elaine Grinell, both of whom are also S'Klallam from different bands (areas). It just so happens that I also work at the local botanical garden, Heronswood Garden, which is owned by the Port Gamble Tribe. This year, Heronswood wanted to honor their S'Klallam connection by housing figures made mostly from garden material. My coworkers and I were responsible for this task, which was a lot of hard work but also a lot of fun.

The other part of my task was to represent the stories we were re-telling. Below is a link to the S'Klallam Foundation website and the stories I re-wrote for the guests who came to the garden, along with information about where those stories come from. So, for this week, my free short stories are these, which are not mine. They belong to the S'Klallam people, but I think they are important and should be known.

If you are a Washington local or will be in the Kingston Area, please stop by our garden during October to experience the figures we worked so hard to construct. They really turned out well. 

Chances to See These Garden Structures:

Pumpkin Carving Contest/ Tea & Tarot Event on Sat. October 20th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Haunted Heronswood: Friday October 26th and Saturday October 27th, 5-9 p.m. 

More Details about these events will follow on the: Heronswood Events Page
Follow Heronswood on Twitter for updates about other events: Twitter

Enjoy my re-telling of these wonderful stories here:

Three Modern Retellings of S'Klallam Stories by H.M. Jones