I am from a small Native village on the coast of Kodiak Island in Alaska. My people are Alutiiq, one of the twelve major indigenous cultural groups in Alaska. Our village is isolated, snuggled between spruce trees and mountains in the Gulf of Alaska. It is so quiet I can hear ocean waves beating on the black sand beaches.
In stark contrast, as part of the Marshall Memorial Fellowship I stood last week in Bilbao, Spain, among thousands of people, noise, thousands of contemporary buildings and old buildings. Bilbao is beautiful in its history, complex angles, and warmth. Here live the Basque, an ancient culture centered on its language.
Despite our striking differences in place, culture, and way of life, I find similarities between my native land and the Basque county. Our history, love of our culture and traditions, and, most of all, our drive to maintain our traditional languages give us a common bond.
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