The Roar of the Falls: My Journey with Kaya

Discusses how Kaya, her family, and the Nimiipuu would’ve grown up and lived. Topics include:

• Kaya and the other Nimíipuu children grew up under the watchful eyes of a large and loving family
• Grandparents were a child’s main teachers, and brothers, sisters, and cousins all learned and played together
• Handmade toys and games would have kept the children entertained while others worked
• When Kaya’s grandmother was a girl, horses were not a part of life, but children like Kaya grew up with horses, and children rode well and knew how to train and care for their horses
• Girls and boys were taught to respect all creatures with whom they shared the land
  • Kaya would begin each day with a prayer of thanks to Hun-ya-wat for all the living things around her as well as the earth, the sky, and the water
• The seasons brought change and the opportunity to travel, which the Nimiipuu people loved to do
  • Kaya and her family would follow the seasons to gather roots and berries and to hunt and fish
  • In the early spring, when salmon reached the canyon streams, the Nimiipuu traveled to the traditional fishing grounds at Celilo Falls
  • Thousands of other Indian people join the Nimiipuu to celebrate the return of the salmon and to fish the wild waters at the base of the falls
• Salmon season was a festive time of year
  • Everyone would enjoy feasting, drumming, and dancing
  • There would be games, races, and trading
  • Celilo Falls was one of the greatest trading sites on the whole continent
  • People came from as far away as modern-day California, Alaska, and Missouri to trade everything from blankets to buffalo robes, horses to hand-painted hides
• Today, one of the most exciting and beautiful celebrations of Indian culture is the modern pow-wow
  • Nimiipuu, now known as Nez Perce, gather to celebrate their heritage