Secret Key

I would be remiss not to give credit first to earth and sky–my first parents–and the countless other-than-human beings who’ve held me, taught me, sheltered and fed me, and anchored me in this world. A big shout out to the waters of the Columbia and the Snake, in whose watershed I was born and have most of my life; the sacred mountains of the Tetons and Sawtooth whose peaks I grew up among and the volcanoes of Cascade Range–Wy’east, Loowit, Pahto–that hold up the sky where I live. Reverence to the high sage deserts of the Snake River Plain, and gratitude to the spirits of Cache Valley, among whose foothills I found so much of myself. And reverence to the rich lands of my first memories, in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico; your jungles are the colors of my best dreams.

Experience leads me honor the trees as my teachers and protectors, the herbs as my elders, and the animals as bringers of aid and medicine in many forms. Finally, I give honor and respect to the humans, whose names are known and unknown, who have tended these lands since time immemorial, and especially to the Chinook, Cowlitz, Klickitat, Yakama, and others who lived and still live in the place where I am honored to make my home. May they and their descendants be present in the land for ten thousand years and toward eternity.