In 1984 when two dug-out canoes were unearthed on a private estate in Malone, New York, it was a very special occasion for the Mohawk Indian Nation at Akwesasne. These two artifacts preserved for 400-500 years in the mud of the Malone pond, were the oldest known artifacts linking the Mohawks to their past. Deeply moved by their excavation, and the subsequent unsuccessful effort to place the dug-outs in the Indian Museum at Akwesasne, Native American poet Maurice Kenny wrote an epic poem that serves as the textual base for this radio work. His performance evokes the past of the Mohawk Nation and its present. As history, family, ritual and nature merge in Kenny's poem, so do voices, sounds and music in the production. Commissioned by New American Radio.