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Felix Clary
ICT + Tulsa World
Retired Cherokee teacher Mary Clarkson and her five grandchildren shared traditional Cherokee stories and culture with elementary classes at Angus Valley Elementary in Sand Springs, Okla., Nov. 22.
The students sat around the library rug to watch the cultural presentation in celebration of Native American History Month.
“Cherokees, all Native Americans, they live in our community,” said Clarkson to the students. “They are lawyers and doctors and teachers. I am Cherokee, and I was a school teacher for second grade. They have important jobs, and we as a people are still here.”
She said her tribal nation still carries on traditions of basket weaving, jewelry making and all of the other activities she shared with the students.
“This is Sequoyah,” said Clarkson as her granddaughter held up a photo of a Cherokee ancestor. “He gave a gift to the Cherokees, and it was the greatest gift he could have ever given to our people.” She said he created the Cherokee syllabary that is used to read and write the Cherokee language.
“We never lived in tipis,” she said as she held up a figurine of a tipi. “We lived by the river and had two types of homes.” Clarkson told the students about long houses and round houses, how round keeps the winter warm and long keeps the summer cool.
“Cherokees grew large vegetable gardens,” said Addie, age 15, to the students while holding up a woven basket with plastic food inside. “Corn, beans, and squash were known as the three sisters because they grew well together.”
As a story keeper, Clarkson is teaching her grandchildren to speak the Cherokee language and tell the cultural stories.
Her grandchildren: Addie Ray (15), Tyler Ray, 13, Ava Ray, 11, Hudsyn Ray, 7, and Violet Clarkson, 4, stood around a table full of Cherokee items: blow dart guns, stick ball sticks, moccasins, baskets and more.
Each of her grandchildren took turns showing the items to the class, singing songs in the Cherokee language, or sharing information about their ribbon skirts and other traditional clothing.
They also used masks and props to tell two traditional stories: how possum lost the hair on his tail, and the water spider and the first fire.
Addie has been visiting schools to share her culture with her grandmother since she was three years old.
Last week, Clarkson shared a similar presentation at South Tulsa Baptist Church with her two grandsons Jude, 3, and Oliver, 3.
Clarkson showed the classes a picture book that her youngest granddaughter Violet created. On each page was a colorful picture with the Cherokee word for that image on the page.
The family used the book, a set of blocks with Cherokee and English letters, and a poster board of colors, numbers and animals to teach several Cherokee language words to the students, who repeated them back.
This story is co-published by the Tulsa World and ICT, a news partnership that covers Indigenous communities in the Oklahoma area.
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