Speakers are Ḵaajín.aa Nelly Lord (left) and See.aat Lena Farkas (right). Recorded July 19, 2010 at the home of Lena Farkas in Yakutat, Alaska. Produced at the University of Alaska Southeast, this material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0853788. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Recorded by Naakil.aan Hans Mark Chester. Tlingit transcription by X̱’aaki Sháawu Keri Edwards. English translation by Ḵaakal.aat Florence Sheakley and Alice Taff. Proofread by X̱’aaki Sháawu Keri Edwards and Saḵaayí Anita Lafferty. SYMBOLS: {false start}, (added for clarity), [translator/transcriber's note]. ??? = can’t understand.

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	I'd like to introduce my sister Nellie Lord.

	From Yakutat.

	And my name is Lena Farkas from Yakutat also.

	This is my sister Nellie, her,

	her name is

	Daasdiyaa in Tlingit and

	Staan Tláa.

	Those are her two Tlingit names.

	Staan Tláa.

	Kaayjinaa.

	Kaayjinaa is another one; she has three names.

	And, she was born in Situk River

	where our grandfather had some land.

	And my name is Lena Farkas, I, I was born in Yakutat.

	My Tlingit name is Achkwéi.

	Lḵaawu G̱uls'ísx̱

	ḵa Kayeeshdi.oo.
	and Kayeeshdi.oo.

	And Tleix̱téen.

	Those are my

	my uh, Tlingit names, and Tleix̱téen was my,

	my potlatch name.

	We grew up here in Yakutat part of the time

	and went to school at,

	at Mt. Edgecomb for about five or six years.

	Okay?

	Okay.

	Wa.é deis[k'] shk'é.
	It's your turn.

	Ch'a daa sá i tuwáa sigóo. Test [kuḵwalayéix̱] at .áx̱ji.
	Whatever you want. I'm going to test the sound.

	Ḵáa x̱'eeya.áx̱ch gé i een yoo x̱'atula.átgi? Not too much.
	Can you hear when we talk to you?

	G̱unéiḵ kwshé kakḵwalaneek?
	Should I tell the story about G̱unéiḵ?

	Daa sá i tuwáa sigóo a daa yóo x̱'atula.átgi?
	What do you want us to talk about?

	Ha wé uh, yóo s a táḵde haa klag̱ás'jeen.
	We used to move there to [?].

	Naakéede áx' yóo haa kligas'geen ch'ul
	We used to move north before

	asg̱eiwú g̱unéi-, Aaá.
	seining begins-, Yes.

	Aah.

	Yáx̱ yaa kunahéini áwé
	When it was thawing out

	yaa
	that

	naakéedei yoo Hubbard Glacier x̱ándei áwé
	to the north next to the Hubbard Glacier

	natooḵúx̱ch.
	we would go by boat.

	Ax̱ éesh, ḵa ax̱ eek' hás, ḵa ax̱ tláa.
	My father, my brothers, and my mother.

	Ḵa ax̱ shátx̱.
	And my older sister.

	Wé
	The

	t'á
	king salmon

	ḵa cháatl
	and the halibut

	áwé daa has gadanáḵwch.
	they would harvest.

	Du éet tudashéeych haa, haa tláa wé x̱áat óosk'i een ḵa
	We'd help our, our mother with the small fish and

	héen yáa,
	(carrying) water,

	x̱'aan yís
	for the fire

	wé naháashadi
	the bark

	{yéi da-, yéi daa-,}

	toonéi nuch.
	we used to work on it.

	Áwé
	That is

	yáa
	this

	yá x̱áat, x̱áat ḵa cháatl daa yéi jitooneiyí áwé t'á
	when we worked on the red salmon and the halibut

	uh, wé
	the

	{x̱-} x̱aanás' áwé
	fish drying rack,

	{too-} tulayéx̱ch.
	we used to build it.

	Wé cháatl áx̱ shugoogax̱tóo-.
	Where we were going to (put) the halibut.

	A yeex' áwé, a káx̱
	On the inside, on

	a yeex' áwé,
	inside of it,

	áx̱ [katulas'áḵx̱i] nuch.
	we used to lightly smoke it.

	Katusaxóok nuch yaa gáan
	We used to dry it outside

	gáanx' awdagaaní.
	when it was sunny out.

	Áwé
	Then,

	g̱agaanich een tsú
	with the sun too,

	tusaxúkjeen.
	we used to dry it.

	A ítdáx̱ áwé tsu wé,
	After that,

	laaḵ'ásk
	black seaweed

	ḵa
	and

	yóo x'áat' [???] ḵúnáx̱ kéi ksa- kéi klaléich yé,
	where the island comes out of the water,

	áx' áwé
	that's where

	a déin tooḵúx̱ch wé
	we would go by boat to

	laaḵ'ásk kaldax'óol'.
	pick black seaweed.

	Ax̱ tláach áwé wé,
	My mother

	nadáakw ká g̱áaji wé áx̱ akoosyáaych.
	used to put table cloths on the tables.

	Oodagaaní ch'a a káx' áwé yéi ntoo.eich wé
	When it was sunny we would put

	wé laaḵ'ásk.
	the black seaweed.

	Yaa naxóogu áwé
	when it's drying

	scissors

	Ḵaashaxáshaa.
	Scissors.

	Ḵaashaxíshaa een áwé {a- a-} yax̱ yaa {yaksa-
	With the scissors we would

	-táx'ch} wé, wé,
	bite the uh, [She may have wanted to say "yax̱ yaa yaktulaxáshch." ʼWe'd cut it all up.ʼ (Anita Lafferty)].

	laaḵ'ásk.
	the black seaweed.

	A ítdáx̱ áwé tsu wé gáal' g̱aa wé ntoo.átch.
	And after that we would go for clams.

	Ḵa {yáa na-} yáa ixkéex' yalooleit yóo yeeysáakw.
	In the South you all call it cockles.

	Uháanch ḵu.aa áwés,
	Us though,

	uh, sáaxw yóo tuwasáaxw.
	we say sáaxw.

	Á tsú
	It too,

	yéi ntusaneich.
	we used to make it.

	K'idein
	Real good

	wé too.óos'idáx̱ áwé
	after washing it (real good),

	áwé tsu wé uh,
	and then

	uh, {sheishíx}

	{shei-} Keishísh.
	Alder.

	Huh? Keishísh. Keishísh
	Alder. Alder

	áwé k'idéin
	really good

	yaa a daadáx̱ wé,
	remove the,

	a daa kanas.éich át áwé a k'idéin a daadáx̱ too-,
	whatever grows on it, we,

	{ka-} katulax'óol'. Aag̱áa áwé {a} a tóonáx̱,
	pick it off real well. And then through it,

	{an-} a kaanáx̱ yatusahéich.
	we would gather it on it.

	Aag̱áa áwé wé, wé uh,
	And then the, the,

	wé, wé atx'aan hídix' á tsú áx̱ akantulas'éḵch.
	we would smoke it in the smoke house.

	Ha áyáx̱ áx̱ akawtulas'eig̱í áwé,
	When we smoked it just right,

	ax̱ tláach
	my mother

	wé tsaa áwé tsú haat has ayooháaych.
	they used to bring us seal also.

	Áwé
	And then

	ax̱ tláach,
	my mother,

	ax̱ éesh du éet udashéeych wé, wé tsaa.
	would help my father with the, the seal.

	Akg̱wach'éit??? nuch yax̱ áwés wé,
	He would skin it???

	wé uh,
	the

	táay áwé
	seal fat

	tsú axáshdi nuch.
	she'd cut that up too.

	Ldakát a yax̱ yaa ayaklaxáshch wé,
	She used to cut every one of them,

	ḵ'wátl tlein g̱eix' áwé
	inside the big pot,

	wé tsaa eix̱í yéi adaanéi nuch.
	she would work on the seal fat.

	Yan wuneiyí áwé yáa
	And when it was done,

	yáa ínx'eesháa geidí áwé yéi,
	into the jars

	yéi daatoonéi nuch wé
	we would put them,

	gáal' ḵa wé yalooleit.
	the clams and the cockles.

	Aag̱áa wé tsá
	And then we would

	wé uh,
	the,

	tsaa eix̱í geidí yan tusaxéiych x̱á
	we would pour seal oil in it ["Tsaa eix̱í a x̱oodé yan tusaxéich," ʼWe would pour the seal oil in it,ʼ Anita Lafferty would say.]

	yax̱ yakdultáḵch.
	and poke it around.

	Ḵa
	And

	áyáx̱ yakunageich wé, wé tsaa.
	there was enough seal to go around.

	Yáa,
	That,

	{ee-}

	áa yan wuneiyídáx̱ áwé tsá yóo-
	after it was finished, then

	{yóo- uh,}

	mountain, I forgot the name of it

	Shaa.
	Mountain.

	Yóo shaa kaadée káx' áwé daak {oo-} has
	On the mountains they would come out

	na.át wé, wé black bear.
	walking, the, the black bears.

	The valley

	the, where they have that their,

	usually right by the valley is where they have the

	uh, their uh,

	nesting place.

	And they come out on the slides there during the spring time.

	Yé áx' has awusteení wé has lunagúḵch.
	When they would see it, they would run.

	Tsu, tsu tléix' á tsú has oojaaḵch.
	They would also, also kill one.

	Ldakát áa {yan- yan t-
	All of it

	kaw-} kawtulagaayí áwé
	handing

	yáa aandé tsu g̱unéi tooḵoox̱ch.
	we would go back to the village.

	Tlél,
	No,

	tlél yóo outboard motor too.oojí; yéi áwé ax̱ éek' hás has ax̱áa nuch.
	we didn't use outboard motors; my brothers just always rowed.

	Áwé tsu, tsu sgóondei ntoo.átch wáanganeens' ch'a tléix' sándei x'áax' yáx̱ shákdei.
	We used to go to school for maybe one week.

	Uh, ḵa
	And

	wé tsaa tsú ḵa wé uh,
	the seal also and the

	cháatl ḵa t'á
	halibut and king salmon

	áyáx̱ koogeiyí áwé ch'a wé yaakw g̱éix' wé has ajoonaaḵch aadóo sá tuwáa sagoowú.
	if there was enough, they used to leave it in the boat for whoever wanted some.

	Aax̱
	From there

	yé aakdusneich x̱á
	they would take some

	atx̱á sákw.
	for food.

	Áwé tsú yá Satáḵ yaa commercial fishing
	And also the commercial fishing at Situk

	uh, open-x̱ wudulyeix̱í áwé tsu aadé haa klagás'ch school yan shaawahík dei.
	when they opened it we would go back (to camp) when school was already over.

	Áx' áwé tsú,
	There also,

	tlél yá towndé,
	not in the town,

	wé railroad tracks áx' yéi téeyin wé little
	there were small railroad tracks there

	wé trainx' kát áwé haa ndusx̱út'ch.
	we were pulled on the train.

	Satáḵ ch'a ḵa Aan Tlein.
	Situk and Ahrnklin.

	Aan tleinx' áwé tlél tsú yá aan
	At Ahrnklin, the town,

	káx̱ tsu kootootín nuch.
	we didn't come back to it again.

	Áx'
	At

	wé Aan Tleinx' áwé
	Ahrnklin

	Saturday káx' shákdéi wé andusg̱eiwúch.
	maybe it was on Saturday that they seined.

	Dei tsu ax̱ tláa x̱á du jeeyís héen tooyáa ḵa wé
	For my mother again we would pack water and the

	wé uh, t'á, ḵa
	the king salmon and

	ḵa sockeye á áwé.
	and sockeye.

	K'idéin daatoonéi nuch
	We would work on it good

	du jeeyís.
	for her.

	K'idéin wutoo.óos'idáx̱ áwé wé
	After we washed it real good

	wé atx'aan hídix' yax̱,
	in the smoke house

	{yan yax̱ tushi- yax̱-}

	[shayatootéeych] du jeeyís.
	we would hang them for her.

	Ch'a yáa
	And this

	héen a daatx̱
	water from it

	yéi ng̱aneit.
	would drip.

	Á áwé
	And that

	aax̱, aax̱ shoowtudaḵeeyí ḵeix̱'éix' áwé tlei ch'a yóok' haa shoosḵéeych ch'u l yéil du.aax̱jí.
	they used to wake us up early in the morning before the raven crows.

	Aag̱áa áwé
	And then

	yaa
	this

	hóoch ḵwá aklats'éitʼ ??? nuch áwé wé
	after she would [???] the [Anita Lafferty would say, "hóoch ḵwá aklax'ásdi nuch," ʼafter she would slice it.ʼ]

	at yoowax'éishi a daadáx̱.
	fine meat from it.

	Ḵaa yáa
	And this

	yáat'aa
	one

	wé uh,
	that

	ḵúnáx̱ éix̱
	oily

	fish

	eix̱í áa yéi nateech yáat,
	fish is always oily here,

	collar yóo duwasáakw, fish collar.
	collar it's called, fish collar.

	Á áwé tsú aax̱ akanalts'étʼch [???].
	That too she would carefully slice off.

	Ch'a g̱óot tsu
	Without it

	tsu wé tíx' een áwé
	with the string

	{wóosht katool-, wóosht katool-}

	tíx' een wóosht katulas'eet.
	we used to tie them together.

	Aag̱áa áwé
	And then we

	tsú wé
	also that

	atx'aan hídi yix̱ sha[ya]tootéeych.
	we would hang them in the smokehouse.

	Ḵa yáa
	And this

	yáa a l'eedí tsú, the tail.
	also the tail.

	Á tsú tooxash nuch woosh géide.
	We used to cut them also in the opposite direction.

	Aag̱áa áwé wé, wé, uh,
	And then, the, the,

	s'é {jika-} jikakáas' káx̱
	on the sticks

	shayootootéeych há.
	we would hang them

	Ákwé s'óos'ni yóo duwasáakw.
	Aren't they called s'óos'ani? [sticks poked through the fish tails and hung up].

	S'óos'ni? Yeah.

	Á áwé uh,
	And

	Sunday káx' ḵwá wéi s toolsáaych ch'as wé
	on Sunday we would rest, just the

	[at]x'aan daakahídi {wé daak}
	smokehouse

	a daat haa yoostaaḵch ḵa wé, wé yaakw daaḵ,
	we would tend to, and the boat,

	daaḵ shuktusayéich.
	we would tend to the outhaul.

	Yaa commercial fishing Monday kax' start-x̱ gux̱sateeyí.
	The commercial fishing would start on Monday.

	Yá haa s'íx'
	And our dish

	yáa
	this

	tléiḵw kawut'aayí áwé tsú
	when the berries got ripe

	tlél tsu yáa town ḵutooteen[x̱] tlei ch'a áx' áwé.
	we'd never come to town, we would just stay there.

	Wé neigóong̱aa ntooḵúx̱ch
	Weʼd go on a boat for nagoon berries

	ḵa
	and

	wé uh,
	that

	kanat'á.
	blueberries.

	Á áwé
	And that

	kanéegwál' áwé yéi anasneich wé,
	she made Tlingit pudding

	wé tsaa
	the seal

	wé k'wát', tsaa
	the egg, seal

	fish eggs

	Kaháakw.
	Fish eggs.

	Kaháakw, good.
	Fish eggs.

	Wé kaháakw tsú, wé, wé
	Those fish eggs too, the, the

	x̱áat axaashí wé ax̱ tláa á tsú,
	when she was cutting fish my mother. that too.

	wé ḵ'wátl g̱eix' áwé yéi ana.eich.
	inside the pot she would put it.

	Aag̱áa áwé wé {wé, wéi}
	And then

	a shóox̱ tooḵéeych wé
	we would sit

	wé kaháakw yóo
	the fish eggs

	katulda-
	we-

	what do you call it? Gwál.
	Mash.

	Aaá, katula-,
	Yes, we,

	Gwál kwshé?
	Mash, maybe?

	Yeah. [Katulagwálx̱?]. [Anita Lafferty suggests: "katulaG̱útlx̱" for ʼwe mash it with our handsʼ.]
	Yes, we would mash them.

	Aag̱áa áwé
	And then

	wé tlélḵw haat yéi wtusaneiyí áwé á tsú
	when we'd bring the berries, that too

	tsú clean-x̱ wutuliyeix̱ch há.
	we would also clean them.[Anita Lafferty suggests: "katools'eexwtáḵ nooch" for ʼwe'd always clean them (specifically berries)ʼ].

	Aag̱áa áwé
	And then

	wé
	that

	ḵ'wátl tlein áwé
	great big pot

	wé stoox káa yan ootaanch.
	would be put on the stove.

	Haa jee yéi googéink' héen áwé
	Just a little water

	a káx' yéi ana.éich.
	would be put in there.

	Aag̱áa áwé wé tléiḵw
	And then the berries

	a x̱oo yéi ana.eich.
	would be mixed in.

	De ḵúnáx̱ áyáx̱
	When you really

	wé tléig̱u .eeyí áwé wé k'wát'.
	cook the berries the fish eggs

	kag̱útlx̱i áwé
	mashed berries

	shál een áwé yóo a, a g̱eex' ashakoolwús'ch.
	you scrape the sides with a spoon and mix it.

	Yaa kg̱a.éet.
	As itʼs cooking.

	Aax̱ áwé gáanx' yan oostéeych áwé.
	And then she would leave it outside. [Anita Lafferty suggests: gáanx' yan oos.éench "she would put it outside" to refer specifically to a pot of food. (Classificatory verb)]

	Uh tlei wus.áat'i áwé tsá wé
	When it gets cold

	wé uh, ínx'eesháa ḵa ch'u yáa
	the glass jars or

	yaa uh,
	that

	fish cans g̱eidí
	in fish cans

	yéi ntusaneich.
	we would put it in.

	Aax̱ áwé
	And then

	tsú á tsú
	it also

	tlél, tlél tsú
	and no, no,

	hél uh,
	not

	What do you call those

	pots, uh,

	you make canned fish in?

	Pressure cooker.

	Aaá, pressure cooker.
	Yes,

	Hél yéi át oo.óo haa tláa.
	Our mother didnʼt have one.

	Tlei ch'a wé uh,
	And that also

	uh, tub tlein áwé
	a big tub

	héen { }
	we'd fill it with water

	a kaadéi ntooyáaych ḵa wé.
	we would fill it (with water).

	Ax̱ éeshch áwé wé
	My father would

	x̱'aan xáay, ch'a yéi akunalgeich [???].
	make a great big fire, he'd make it this big.

	A káx' áwé yan ootaanch wé uh,
	And it would sit on it

	Tub.

	wé fish, wé tub.
	the fish, the tub.

	Káast gé?
	Barrel?

	Aaá.
	Yes.

	{a-} Tléix' gaaw x'áak ḵa ashoowú yáx̱ gé wé has ool.úkch [???].
	They would boil it for an hour and a half.

	l ushk'idéin oonanéig̱aa.
	So it wouldnʼt spoil.

	Ḵa wé káast
	And the barrel

	{yéi-} yéidax̱ kunageich.
	used to be this big.

	A g̱eix' áwé tsú yéi s aanasneich wé
	They would make some inside

	kanéegwál' yáx̱ x̱aa
	like the Tlingit pudding

	yog̱urt yáx̱.
	like yogurt.

	Aatx̱ áwé tsu wé
	And then from there

	uh, shákw áwé kanat'éich Satáḵx'.
	the strawberries would grow at Situk.

	Uh, tsú aadé
	And also there

	natooḵúx̱ch Satáḵde.
	we would go by boat to Situk.

	Satáḵ áwé too.een nuch wé
	We would pick in Situk

	wé shákw.
	the strawberries.

	Tsú, tsú
	Also, also

	Aan Tlein jitoox̱áaych.
	weʼd bring it to Ahrnklin.

	Áx' áwé tsú wé
	And there too

	uh, kanéegwál' yéi anasneich.
	they would make Tlingit pudding.

	Wáanganeens'ís ch'a wé ínx'eesháa tóox' áwé oos.éeych há.
	Sometimes it would be cooked right in the jars.

	Shóogaa a x̱oox' yéi ana.eich.
	Adding sugar to it.

	Uh, áa yan kawtulagaayi,
	When we finished this,

	áwé tsú wé naakée Aan Tlein.
	weʼd go up to Ahrnklin.

	Ahrnklin.

	Ax̱ éesh aaní.
	My fatherʼs land.

	Aadéi wé ntooḵúx̱ch wé
	We would go there by boat

	a shoowú yáx̱ wé atx'éeshi ḵa wé
	half of the dry fish and the

	wé kanéegwál' aadé yan toox̱éich yóo Aan Tlein.
	the Tlingit pudding we would take to Ahrnklin.

	Áx'
	There

	ax̱ éesh ḵa ax̱ éek' hás
	my father and my brothers

	g̱aatáa yei s ana.eich, trapping
	they used to take traps

	cabin and, and uh, putting out traps.

	Tsú áx' áwé tlei tláakw has ashunaḵúx̱ch
	And there they would tow it fast

	has ashunaḵúx̱ch wé,
	they would tow it the,

	wé g̱eiwú.
	the seine.

	Á áwé
	And that

	atx'aan daakahídi wé has oolyeix̱ch.
	they would build a smokehouse.

	Aag̱áa áwé tsu [x̱áat] tsu [ax̱] tláach
	And then the fish, my mother

	tsú anaxásh tsu.
	would cut it again.

	Héen [tsú ooyáa nooch ???] wé éeḵdáx̱ tsú.
	She would bring water from the beach too.

	K'idéin,
	Really well,

	k'idéin natoo.óos'ch.
	we'd wash it (the fish) real wellly.

	Áwé yax̱ {shatoo-} yax̱ shootooteeyí áwé.
	We'd hang them all up.

	Wé x'aat ákwé naakée.
	The small island up north.

	Á áwé wé, wé keishísh áa yéi nateech.
	Thatʼs where the, the alder is.

	Ax̱ éeshch áwé yéi uh,
	My father would

	uh, shanaxwáayi yádi
	a small hatchet

	yóo duwasáakw.
	itʼs called.

	Little axe.

	Á áwé ḵúnáx̱,
	Really,

	k'idéin
	really well

	sharp [oolyéx̱ch].
	heʼd sharpen it.

	Áwé aadé haa lunagúḵch wé haa éek' haa een.
	We would run there with our brothers.

	Yeisú [???]
	Still [???]

	déex̱ ḵach'u nás'k táakw shákdé haa yáanáx̱.
	two or three years older than we are.

	Áwé áx' áwé tláakw,
	And there, fast,

	tlél tsú tutuda.ús'x̱.
	we never pouted.

	Tlei áwé tlei ch'a sagúx̱ tulayéx̱ch dei.
	We'd just have fun.

	Tláakw yaa haa tugagúḵch [???] aadóoch,
	We would run real fast, whoever,

	sá ch'a yóok'
	right away

	wé, wé a daa
	around it

	leaves {yei- aax̱-} aax̱ katoo-
	weʼd take the leaves,

	we chopped the leaves off.

	Aag̱áa áwé tláakw aan yaa haa lugagúḵch áwé
	Then we would run fast and that

	áwé
	and that

	wé (at) x'aan daakahídidé áx' áwé tlei táakw tsú
	to the smoke house and there fast too

	yax̱ yaktulax̱út'ch
	we would chop up

	wé keishísh.
	the alder.

	Yóo x̱'áan
	That fire

	wé,
	that,

	Tlei ch'a wáa sá dei yóo x̱'aḵataan.
	Iʼm just speaking any old way now.

	Wé
	The

	smokehouse-idé yéi áwé
	to the smokehouse and that

	wáanganeens' daak oostaanch ách áwé yaa
	sometimes it would rain that is why

	smokehouse {yoo-} katoochákch
	we would pack it into the smokehouse

	wé
	that

	wé keishísh.
	that alder.

	Ch'a ldakát wé has du
	All of their

	has du g̱aatáayi
	their traps

	aan has na.átch haa
	they would go with

	haa wé dáasʼaa yóo duwasaakw.
	that Tlingit-made trap it's called.

	Á áwé
	And that

	wé coyote ḵa
	that coyote and

	ḵa wolf ḵa
	and wolf and

	ḵa
	and

	wé land otter, mink, marten
	that land otter, mink, marten

	ldakát áwé haa g̱áa has, has wé g̱aatáa yéi s anasneich.
	they would trap all of these.

	Áyáx̱ gán koowtulax̱óot'i ḵa
	When we chopped enough wood and

	has akg̱wax̱áa át
	the food theyʼre going to eat

	yan wuneiyí áwé haa náḵ has naḵúx̱ch.
	when it was finished they would leave us.

	Wáanganeens' tléix' has oox̱éich.
	Sometimes they would be gone for a day.

	Aadé wé shaa
	Up to the mountains

	mountain goat-g̱aa.
	for mountain goats.

	Has du jeet áwé haa ée áwé haat has ooḵoox̱ch.
	When they got some then would come back.

	Haa jeeyís k'idéin has anasneich áwé wé
	They would prepare them really good for us

	wé uh, haa éesh.
	our father.

	Wé yáa
	That

	yáat'aa yáa du ḵáashaa
	the hindquarter ["a G̱ádzi" is ʼhindquarterʼ]

	á áwé neil has oostéeych.
	they would bring it inside.

	Á áwé haa éet wultóow áwé wé
	Then they would teach us

	wé uh, a doogú aax̱ yéi daané
	taking the skin off it.

	Ch'a yeisú ḵúnáx̱ yan wuduwax'ás' hú du aayí du, du,
	They really sharpened her, her,

	du lítayi há yan has, they sharpened her knife.
	her knife, they sharpened her knife.

	{I} Áwé tlél x̱wasakú, I didn't know it was way over here already
	I didnʼt know

	and she, she

	lifted the skin and just, it cut my finger, I still got the scar there.

	Tlei ḵúnáx̱ áwé x̱ag̱áax̱.
	I was really crying.

	I was in trouble.

	Wáa sá, wáa sá, wáa sás iyasáa[kw] "I was in trouble" Lingít x̱'éináx̱?
	How, how, how would you say, "I was in trouble," in Tlingit?

	X̱at koowdix̱íl'.
	I was in trouble.

	Áwé wé
	That

	a taayí yá a yik taayí ḵudzitee x̱á.
	there is fat on the inside which is fat.

	The fat in the stomach.

	Áwé ax̱ tláa a daa yéi jinaneich há.
	My mother would work on it.

	Wé uh, k'idéin awusneiyí {jee-} oos.éeych shákdé tsú.
	After she finished fixing it real well she probably cooked it too.

	Ch'u l oos.éeji áwé, uh,
	Before she cooked it

	it was kinda hard and like, uh, fat or something. Like lard.

	Á áwé tlei haa jeedé yéi adaa[néi] nuch, uh,
	She would give it to us

	marshmallow yáx̱.
	(it was) like marshmallows.

	Á áwé {tóo-} uh, we put it on the fire to burn
	And then,

	áwé toox̱áa nuch.
	we would eat it.

	Éitsk'!
	Yum!

	We were healthy.

	Aaá.
	Yes.

	Wáa sá duwasáakw wé, wé táay?
	What's the fat called?

	{Nayeisʼí}
	["yaneis'í" is ʼfatʼ].

	Yaneis'í.
	Fat.

	Linúkdzi yaneis'í gwál marshmallow yóo gax̱toosáa.
	Maybe we should call marshmallow "sweet fat".

	It looked like it; they came in little pieces like that.

	Á áwé
	And that

	tlei ch'as sagú wé yaa yaktusaxíxch tlél, tlél tsu goox' sá
	we always had fun, I never, never

	uh x̱wasakú haa koowdax̱éel'i x̱áach áyá át haa lunagúḵch.
	knew where trouble was, we were just running around.

	Haa tláa éet wudashí.
	Helping our mother.

	Uh,

	{Tlei, uh} tlei wáa sáwé haa toowú sagóo nuch wé naakéede haa yoo gax̱dux̱aayí.
	We would really be happy when they were going to take us inland.

	Ḵa wé satáḵdei.
	And also to Situk.

	Ldakát wé atyátx'i áwé át lunagúḵch wé éiḵ has kus.úk nuch.
	All the children would run around and play on the beach.

	Tlei picnic all summer yáx̱ nateech
	It would be like a picnic all summer

	adusg̱eiwúyi.
	when they were fishing.

	Áwé
	And

	Christmas kaadé áwé
	towards Christmas

	éiḵ too.aatch ldakat uháan.
	weʼd all go to the beach.

	Ax̱ éeshch wulduyáx̱ [wuliyéx̱]
	My father made

	wé shít'aa.
	the sled. [???].

	Áwé uh
	And

	g̱agaan yá dleitdé
	the sun, and the snow

	x̱aa kéi ndag̱át
	getting deep

	áwé
	and

	wé boots k'isáani wé haa jeeyís nadu.eijí a tóot wé yaaktoo.átch yá aandé.
	they would buy us small boots and we'd walk through it to town.

	Keitl tlein áwé du jeex' yéi wootee haa léelk'w
	Our grandmother had a great big dog

	Satáḵ héeni; Koos.átk yóo dusáagun.
	at the Situk River; Koos.átk it was called.

	Uh, Spuddy yóo duwasáakw wé keitl tlein, it must have been a great dane, a big dog.
	The great big dog was named Spuddy,

	Hú áwé haa een yaa lugagúḵch
	Heʼs the one that would run with us

	yáa aandé.
	to town.

	Ch'u tléix' yagiyee Christmas
	One day on Christmas

	{ḵoos- uh} yakg̱waxeexí áwé
	it happened that

	haat too.aatch
	we would come

	wé storage áwé
	that storage that

	.óow nuch há wé, wé ldakát yéide
	would buy everything

	aasgutu.ádi.
	in the forest.

	Has aawusháadi yáa
	The captured animals

	yá a doogú áwé
	the skin

	nadu.eich.
	was bought.

	Ḵa
	And

	ANB Hall-dei ntoo.átch, Christmas.
	We would go to ANB Hall for Christmas.

	Aag̱áa áwé ítdáx̱ áwé ch'u schóoldei ntoo.átch.
	And then after that we would go to the school.

	Dei tsú
	And also

	April

	May-t ḵooháaych tlei tsú yóo naakéede haa klagás'ch.
	May would come and weʼd go back out to camp.

	We traveled with the season.

	We never stayed in town for any length of time.

	Going to Juneau and going to Situk and Ahrnklin was like going to Juneau or Anchorage so as we'd never been to Juneau or Anchorage.

	So it was just fun for us cause we were doing things with our parents.

	You know, we were

	I know I was real secure until my dad died.

	cause we, every

	all the time he was

	him and mom were doing things with us

	and traveling and protecting us. I remember

	the last time

	that we went

	up the Ahrnklin.

	My brother Robert and Nellie were in a little canoe.

	That's what they took up to the,

	you know, up, up to the mountains for mountain goat hunting.

	Well they were behind us and, and uh,

	we were in a skiff, probably about a 16-ft. skiff.

	And my, my little sister and myself were with,

	with our mother in back of the skiff.

	And Nellie was with, with Robert.

	We were kinda towing them, you know; they were behind us.

	And the ice was already coming down.

	And my father,

	he was an old man already but he was tall like huge, just big and broad.

	I couldn't believe it. He jumped out of the boat in that ice water and pulled the boat, the skiff so that we could

	pull them

	cause they were getting

	iced in there

	and we still had about two or three miles to go

	to, to the camp we were going to.

	And, uh,

	that was last time I could remember we went.

	We went trapping because Roy and,

	and my sister Nellie had to go to the

	sanitarium in Skagway and I think my dad just didn't have the heart to go up there

	without them.

	and so we never did go back.

	There was a comic I found

	in that trapping camp

	that I couldn't read. When my mother told us to lay down to nap on the top bunk, we used to look out the window. She saw a big frog out there.

	And then, I'd be laying there looking at that comic.

	And one year I came back and I could read it.

	That little comic stayed there all those years.

	Yisigóo gé a saayí gé ḵudzitee "comic"? Elmer, Elmer Fudd.
	Do you know if there's a name for "comic"?

	Goes back to where I was probably eight or nine years old.

	Oh!

	Those were my really secure

	life that I could remember. Even my brother Paul Henry, you probably knew him,

	the last, I think the last time we went up there he went with us too.

	Kawóot' gé? Kawóot'k'? Aaá.
	Is it Kawóot'k' [personal name]? Yes.

	Yeah.

	Their mother was L'uknax̱.ádi, so he was L'uknax̱.ádi.

	But, uh, it was fun. It was just fun going.

	So we never got bored.

	We just,

	we just had things to do, you know?

	"Bored" ḵu.aas, wáa sás iyasáa? Huh?
	How do you say "bored"?

	"Bored".

	"Bored"? Um,

	Lingít x̱'éináx̱.
	In Tlingit.

	Hey, I gotta think about it a while.

	Bored is

	not knowing what to do with yourself and

	and, uh,

	thinking you should be doing something, something but you don't know what.

	When my children were small, my Gary and Joe,

	Joe never said anything, he was a bookworm

	so he was, he always had a book to read.

	And Gary would come to me and he says, "Mom, I'm bored."

	"Go down to

	your dresser out and

	and wash the walls in your bedroom, don't tell me you're bored!"

	They never came to me after that.

	So, you know, it, it was

	we had a good life. My brothers knew how to play the instrument.

	Robert, he could play the

	uh, accordian

	and my brother Paul played the saxophone.

	My brother Charles played, played the

	the big uh,

	one of those that looks like a guitar. Cello.

	And uh, Robert could play guitar also and uh,

	We'd be out Ahrnklin and on a sunshiney day Robert would get up on the roof and he'd be playing songs.

	And, up the Ahrnklin,

	in the evenings,

	Break gé i tuwáa sigóo?
	Do you want a break?

	Gax̱toolsáa shákdé?
	Shall we rest?

	Ã wooden box, thatʼs what theyʼd make for it.

	Aag̱áa áwé
	Then

	uh wé g̱agaanch áwé usxúkch.
	the sun dries it.

	Aag̱áa áwé a g̱eidé,
	Then in it,

	ch'a aadé yaa naxúk yáx̱ áwé a g̱eidé kducháak nuch há
	while it's drying it's put in the middle

	wé laaḵ'ásk'.
	the seaweed.

	Tlei- tlei- tlei watermelon or cantelope yáx̱ áwé haa x̱'éi k'éi nuch.
	It tastes good to us, like watermelon or cantelope.

	Haaw, wé tléix'aa ḵwás ḵ'áach x̱á.
	The next one is ribbon seaweed.

	Ḵ'áach áwé, uh,
	Ribbon seaweed,

	tsú a daa yéi jitoonéi nuch tsú wé.
	we always work on it too.

	Point Carrew out there, across the bay.

	Aatlein áa kana.éich.
	A lot of it grows there.

	Á áwé tsú a daa yéi jitoonéi nuch.
	We work on that too.

	Tlél, tlél tsú x̱sakú ax̱ tláa ḵúnáx̱ áwé du tuwáa sigóo ḵaa x̱'éix̱ a teex̱í.
	I didn't know that my mother wanted to give food away to people.

	Há yáadu tsú yáat'aa.
	This here also.

	Hey, ax̱ shátx̱ du eetí áyá.
	Hey, my older sister made this.

	Aatlein gunalchéesh.
	Thank you very much.

	At x̱'éeshi gé ilayéx̱ yeedát?
	Do you (build) dry fish now? [Anita lafferty suggests: "At x̱'éeshi gé yéi ysinei tsú?" ʼDo you still make dryfish?ʼ]

	G̱aat ákyá?
	Is this sockeye?

	Mm-hmm, g̱aat.
	Yes, sockeye.

	At x̱'éeshi gé?
	Dry fish?

	Is that OK to call it at x̱'éeshi?
	Is that OK to call it "dry fish?"

	Mm-hmm, at x̱'éeshi.
	Yes, dry fish.

	Éitsk', gunalchéesh.
	Yum, thank you.

	X̱'alitseen ax̱ yóo x̱'atángi.
	My words are expensive.

	Ch'a du ée x̱át g̱aashóo x̱át ḵu.aa.
	I'm just hanging off of her.

	Aaá. Wé, wé uh,
	Yes. The

	jánwu daa {yan-} yéi jitooneiyí áwé,
	mountain goat, when we're working on it,

	uh, wé
	uh, the

	ducks-g̱aa
	going for ducks

	yóo ixkéede ntooḵúx̱ch Aan Tleindáx̱.
	we'd go south by boat from Ahrnklin.

	T'aawáḵ.
	Canadian Geese.

	T'aawáḵ, Canadian t'aawáḵ.
	Canadian geese.

	Wáa sá duwasáakw "traps"?
	How do you say "traps"?

	Uh, g̱aatáa.
	Trap.

	Aah, g̱aatáa. G̱aatáa.
	Oh, trap. Trap.

	Wáa sá, wáa sá duwasáakw?
	What, what do you call it?

	A taayí.
	Fat.

	{Tá-}

	{Tá-} Xáas' Axáas'. Axáas'
	S/he is scraping it. S/he is scraping it.

	Wé taay.
	The fat.

	Or, axáas' a taayí?
	Or, s/he is scraping its fat? [Anita Lafferty offered: "Átx̱ duxáas' nooch a taayí." ʼPeople scrape the fat off.ʼ]

	Dleit ḵáa ḵusteeyí áwé dáanaa.
	Money is the white man's culture.

	Sh x̱'aydliyéil'.
	[Anita Lafferty says: sh x̱'adliyéil means "s/he is lying". Has awliyél would mean "they fooled him/her."]

	Likoodzí háwé {haa tundatán-} haa tundatáani, haa léelk'u hás aayí.
	Our grandparents' ideas were amazing.

	Lidzée áwé ḵustí ch'áakw.
	Life was difficult long ago.

	Wulidzée ḵustí.
	Life was difficult.

	Tlax̱ ḵúnáx̱ ḵus haa ée wook'é.
	It was really good for us, though.

	Yeedát ḵu.aas ch'as ax̱ aayí áyá.
	Now it's mine.

	I aayí kḵwasak'éit.
	I'll eat yours up.

	Tlei, tlei wé toilet tsú chú ash,
	The toilet just,

	tlei ch'a aadé,
	it just,

	flush-x̱ ulyéx̱ch.
	it flushes itself.

	Tlél shákdé tsu aadé,
	Maybe not the way,

	yáa yeedáx̱,
	from now on,

	yáa yeedát
	now

	ḵúx̱
	back

	(ḵúx̱) yidagoodí yéi tsu áyáx̱
	if you came back

	tsu wé ch'áagu yáx̱
	long ago the way

	ḵux̱asteeyí há
	people lived

	ḵútx̱déi haa (éex̱) woodaa yáa
	we're used to this

	yáa ḵustí.
	this life.

	Haa éex̱ woodaa.
	We're used to it.

	Tlei wé x̱at sakg̱wa.áat'.
	Then I'll be cold.

	To submit CORRECTIONS or COMMENTS, please email alicetaff@gmail.com.
	All improvements are welcomed.