The Old Bone Fire
Storywork and cultural inquiry: reconciliation, traditional knowledge, history and heritage.
The Old Bone Fire is a winter series of storywork that dives into traditional stories from diverse cultural lineages, exploring their rich layers of insight, meaning, and guidance. Registration is per session, or sign up for all sessions for a discounted rate.
Stories have the power to touch us deeply, illuminating hidden threads in our lives and reflecting the bigger stories we may be living, or resisting. Through an oral telling, Kes invites participants to enter the story’s landscape, where each tale can weave its mysterious influence and open pathways of personal and cultural reflection. Within a supportive container, and some provided cultural and historical context for each story, we explore not only individual resonance but also the worldviews embedded within these myths.
Each story represents a window into an older, place-based mythology, offering insights from times when our ancestors were deeply connected to land, community, and the natural cycles of life. These stories bring forward values of reciprocity, kinship, and respect for all life—teachings that feel ever more urgent in today’s world of ecological and social challenges.
As settlers on unceded Indigenous lands, our work includes acknowledging our heritage whilst honouring the Indigenous cultures around us. The Old Bone Fire invites participants to explore how traditional narratives can guide our search for belonging, responsibility, and reconciliation.
By listening to these ancient voices, we hope to remember pathways to a more meaningful, reciprocal relationship with the earth and each other.
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Kes' heritage stems from the Indo-European and Tibeto-Burman culture areas, and his cultural mentorship from the Western Amazon basin. These traditions will inform the stories we work with, immersing ourselves into one story each session, exploring the wisdom and cultural depth it carries.
*Stories available upon request the week before if you would like a chance to read through before the session
Program Steward
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Kes
"Working with Kes has re-ignited a sense of spiritedness I have not experienced since I was a young boy. His well-honed skills in bushcraft, song, and storytelling are not the focus; they support an experience of ease, facilitate encounters with mystery, and provoke curiosity and wonder. Don’t struggle alone when there’s a guide like Kes to walk beside."
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-Cameron, Comox Valley