6th form student Dae Hyun (Sam) Kim created a children's storybook about the Hopi oral tradition, The Song of Creation. He was inspired during his stay on the reservation in Arizona over two consecutive summers. As he put it, “The Hopi children, due to modernization and the gradual disappearance of the Hopi language as it is overrun by English, are starting to forget their true oral history. I feared that the Hopi's invaluable oral traditions may be lost forever.”
Initially, Sam had an interest in American Indians and their culture. His visits had no distinct purpose. They were not missionary work or an organized service trip. He recalls, “I was by myself trying to study their culture. But when I went there, I had the privilege of being introduced to the oral traditions of the Hopi and was mesmerized by how their culture was so intricately and intimately founded on their religious beliefs and derived from beautiful fables, mythologies and folk tales.” He continues, “For some reason, perhaps because of my youth and ethnicity, people on the Hopi Reservation really opened up to me. While I was talking to some Hopi children, I realized that they did not know their tribe’s language. Only some of the elders were using the Hopi language. The rest of the Hopi people were using English.” That gave him the idea to preserve the traditions for children in a book.
Sam’s work also benefits his school. The proceeds from his book are being donated to the John Gray Park ‘28 Library at Kent who devotes them to expanding the Hopi and Native American collections. Sam generously started that process with six books in the fall.
The dedication in his book reads,“ I dedicate this book to the Hopi children whose laughter continues to resonate through my heart as a reminder and a message of hope, and my belated brother, Dae Ho Kim, whose loving memory forever serves as an impetus for me to live without fear of the unknown and in appreciation for all things that make life precious.”
For more information or to find out how to order this book, please contact the library or call Katy Armstrong at 860-927-6201.
