Caught on camera: Whales appear during Indigenous ceremony for 215 children
The video showing Cory drumming beside the ocean is the last thing he’d imagine he’d be doing, if you’d asked him a few years ago.
“Previous to 2014, I wasn’t exactly the model citizen,” Cory says.
He was struggling with addiction and disconnected from his community.
“To be honest, I had no business being around my people,” he says.
But then one day he found himself at a canoe festival, and Cory happened to have a conversation with a stranger who challenged the way he was living his life.
“After that, things changed and I wanted to learn about where we come from,” Cory says. “And learn our true responsibility as First Nations people.”
He was inspired to become a steward for the environment. He started learning about the cultural significance of things, like why the number four is sacred (“That’s always representing north, east, south and west”), and the cultural role that other animals play, like the orca:
“When somebody passes away, the past chiefs of their family will come in the form of the killer whale,” Cory says. “And they will come to carry them off to the spirit world.”
Cory also learned about the power of ceremony (like the one caught on video in Campbell River) to honour the 215 children found at the Kamloops Residential School.
“Everybody had pretty heavy hearts,” Cory says, describing the start of the ceremony. “We were still really feeling it.”
Words were shared and prayers were offered before Cory and other members of his community performed a paddle song. Then, he noticed that the people watching them were pulling out their cameras and pointing out to the ocean.
“Oh my gosh,” a woman off camera gasps. “Awesome!”
Of all the animals that could have appeared at that exact moment, it was not one whale, but four. “When that sacred number appeared, wow!”
Cory says it intensified the group’s playing.
“It was heavy.”
And the man who had once been so disengaged from his culture, couldn’t have felt more connected to it.
“Honestly, (it was) one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen and had the privilege to be part of,” Cory says.
The video shows the whales swimming close behind the performers. Cory says he was witnessing his ancestors and seeing one of their legends come to life.
“I believe they came to deliver our messages to the children,” Cory says, fighting back tears. “They’re giving the kids their final journey that should have taken place a long time ago.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Flights divert around western Iran as explosions and loud noise reportedly heard near Isfahan
Commercial flights began diverting their routes over western Iran without explanation early Friday as one semiofficial news agency in the Islamic Republic reported 'explosions' heard over the city of Isfahan. State television acknowledged 'loud noise.'
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Nearly half of China's major cities are sinking, researchers say
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Judge says 'no evidence fully supports' murder case against Umar Zameer as jury starts deliberations
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Colin Jost names one celebrity who is great at hosting 'Saturday Night Live'
Colin Jost, who co-anchors Saturday Night Live's 'Weekend Update,' revealed who he thinks is one of the best hosts on the show.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn't over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
'Shopaholic' author Sophie Kinsella reveals brain cancer diagnosis
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.