Lushootseed Virtual Choir
ti dʔaciɬtalbixʷ (My People)
The song was composed and sung by Rachelle Claudia Armstead a Tulalip Tribal member. The song’s lyrics were written by Tulalip Lushootseed Teacher Sarah Miller .
Rachelle Claudia Armstead is working on her Master’s of Music in Composition program at the University of South Carolina and will be graduating in May 2022.
ti dʔaciɬtalbixʷ | My People |
gʷəc čəɬ ʔə ti t̕it̕ət̕əwaʔs. gʷəɬ čəɬ dxʷʔal ti sɬukʷaɬ. ʔəsɬaɬlil čəɬ ʔə ti sɬukʷalb. sʔuladxʷ čəɬ ʔal ti x̌ʷəlč. ʔudᶻubalikʷ čəɬ x̌ʷul̕ab ʔə ti x̌payʔac. didti čəɬ ti qal̕qaləx̌ič. ʔah ti st̕əlǰixʷ ʔal ti stuligʷədčəɬ. uʔxʷ, baliic čəɬ sc̓aliʔčəɬ ti swatixʷtəd. baliic čəɬ dxʷʔal ʔəɬtxʷ ti shəliʔčəɬ ʔəsq̓ʷuʔ ʔə ti slələʔulbčəɬ. baliic čəɬ gʷəluƛ̕ ʔi ti x̌aʔx̌aʔ ti sgʷadgʷadtədčəɬ. huy… c̓kʷaqid ɬuʔaʔsil ti x̌əččəɬ… …qəɬəd, ʔal kʷi sləx̌il. | We are born from the stars. We belong to the sun. We live by the moon. We are the salmon in the sea. We are the dancing cedar trees. We are the powerful killer whale. There is magic in our blood. Still, we forget that the earth is our heart. We forget to feed our souls with our histories. We forget that our words are ancient and sacred. But our spirit will always wait for us… …to, one day, wake up. |
Information about the song and its lyrics and meaning can be found here.