To Fall from the Sky, To Cross Over the Sea: Stories and conversation with Kaitlin Curtice | S7 Ep10

OUR STORY

In the Potawatomi origin story, the pregnant Sky Woman, Giizhgokwe, falls from Sky World. She is caught by a flock of geese and lowered onto mshiké, Turtle, whose back becomes this continent we know as Turtle Island (known in Potawatomi as Mshike Minis).

Our guest, Kaitlin Curtice weaves her ancestral story with her own story. As a young mother, walking a trail outside Atlanta while nursing her baby, she felt the presence of her ancestors. These were the women who had walked before her, those who mothered their own children on the 1838 Trail of Death when 800 Potawatomi people were forced from Indiana to Kansas over a two-month-long trek.

OUR GUEST

Kaitlin Curtice is an award-winning author, poet-storyteller, and enrolled citizen of the Potawatomi Nation. She writes and speaks at the intersections of indigenous spirituality, identity, and the stories that shape us. Her books include Native, Living Resistance, and her most recent, Everything Is a Story. She also writes at The Liminality Journal and is co-founder of the Aki Institute. Kaitlin lives near Philadelphia with her family.

Find her at kaitlincurtice.com

IN THIS CONVERSATION

• As the United States marks 250 years, Kaitlin reflects on indigenous grief around the Fourth of July. “Chemokmankik” which loosely means “land of the long butchering knives”

is the Potawatomi word for the US.

• Spéirbhean, the sky woman of the Irish aisling tradition, and how Kaitlin found her resonance with Giizhgokwe across ocean and culture
• Azho gami, the Potawatomi word for "across the sea," and what it means to carry that word onto an overnight flight to Ireland
• The sacred reciprocity of kinship: why we need each other to grieve, to dream, and to build toward future generations
• Start a practice of writing love notes to Segmekwé, Mother Earth, in order to begin repairing a fractured relationship with the land

WORK WITH MARISA

• 1:1 Writing Coaching: If you are working on a spiritual memoir, or are a wellness professional or creative entrepreneur who wants to use stories to build your business, book a free consultation with Marisa. Learn more at www.marisagoudy.com
• Learn about our global writing communities, the Authors' Knot: www.marisagoudy.com/writing-groups
• Follow the show on Substack, Instagram, and Facebook.

Music by Beth Sweeney and Billy Hardy: billyandbeth.com

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