Reflections of the Past – Perseverance, Education, and Embracing Identity

You don’t teach everyone the same weave because then they won’t need each other. Chehalis elder, Yvonne Peterson, walks us through the generational journey of her family as they negotiated the impact of Federal Indian Policy with frankness and insight. Both of her parents were “boarding school survivors.” She recounts different strengths and lessons from her mother and father in shaping her character and strong sense of identity. Yvonne’s mother, Hazel Pete, passed on the ancestral knowledge and weaving technique to her that she now shares with her family and community, building a new generation of master weavers. Yvonne tells us to “hold tight to identity,” but not so tight that you can’t share with those outside your cultural circle.You don’t teach everyone the same weave because then they won’t need each other.

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