Smoke From His Fire
Adam Dick or Kwaxsistala is the Clan Chief of the Kwakwaka'wakw Nation and the last orally trained Potlatch Speaker of his people. Adam came to be known as Kwaxsistala, meaning the smoke from his Big House fire reaches around the world. Born to a Clan Chief mother and Clan Chief father, all corners of his world were nobility.
This is a story of a young boy and his journey to manhood as the old people worked tirelessly to fill him up with teachings to secure their culture. He was a boy who sacrificed his childhood and play to receive the old people's teachings, born at the height of the assimilation and genocide of his people. Smoke from his Fire is a bittersweet story of how a people survived with hope, courage, and endurance.