Lightning in Our Roots

A timeless expression of ancestors’ voices as they transmit stories and witness truths for future generations. In Lightning in Our Roots, Avis Blackbird invites the reader on a journey to feel Indigenous fluidity of space and time, the impact of colonization, enduring connections to the land, lived urbanized experience, and finally the rising hope of Indigenous communities and cultures to thrive. Inspired by Tommy Pico and Kae Tempest, these short lyric poems draw from Blackbird’s personal experiences of her youth in the city, removed from Indigenous traditions, to her adulthood, where she and her family healed their connection to their cultural pride. The underlying sentiment of strength and love defies the injustices inflicted upon communities for generations. Her poetry is wholehearted as she soars in the company of birds and reconnects to her ancestral Salish heritage. As she imagines a rightful place for youth waiting in the wings, the ancestors dance with her.