Hi, welcome to my family’s lessons. I’m Michelle Bridges, and I have been married to Douglas for over 25 years. We have two children, Charles and Pamela, and one grandchild, Nova. Both my husband and I have Indigenous roots, with my upbringing being significantly influenced by Cherokee culture. I spent several vacations on the Qualla Boundary, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

I grew up immersed in the lore, stories, traditions, recipes, medicine, beliefs, true history, and poetic language of my heritage. I refer to “true history” not to spark a debate, but to acknowledge a reality: the lessons I learned in public school did not convey the complete truth. There are always various perspectives on any story, and everyone has their own agenda.

Many are reluctant to admit that the United States has its own history of genocide on its soil. I am not here for political reasons or to assign blame; instead, I aim to provide a service. This is a service I wish had been available during my childhood, and I want to provide it for my own children.

Doug and I agreed early in our marriage that we admired a particular quality in the foreigners coming to our country, whether their status was legal or not. That quality was their commitment to teaching their children about their heritage. Inspired by this, I subscribed to Ancestry and began a journey to explore our own roots. We wanted our children to learn about the cultures they came from, not just our Native American heritage but also our Irish and German backgrounds.

We aimed to provide them with knowledge of the tales, original languages, and traditions from these countries. Our children were among the first from Illinois to enroll in Ed Field’s online language program through the Durbin Foundation, if I remember correctly. Our daughter even sang Gospel hymns in Tsalagi at church functions, Girl Scouts, and Stepping Stones.

As a biology major focused on conservation, Pam immerses herself in Cherokee beliefs and emphasizes the importance of self-sustainability. She believes that this way of life should be adopted by more than just Indigenous peoples to help protect our planet and appreciate the beauty that God has entrusted to us.

While my children were learning through Ed Fields, we searched for books written in Tsalagi for them to read. I knew there wouldn’t be many available, but I hoped that since my childhood, someone might have come forward to create original stories in the Syllabary. Unfortunately, I was left disappointed. While there were books on myths, culture, plants, and traditions, I couldn’t find any bedtime stories to read to my children, nor any “learn to read” books or even chapter books. In response, I wrote a collection of stories for them to translate and read.

Our first grandchild, Nova, was born, and once again, our family searched for books. More than a decade later, there are now a few educational teaching materials available. Michael Joyner’s translation of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” is one of them. Traci Sorelli has been publishing children’s stories that introduce some Tsalagi words, which is a personal favorite in our household. Brian Wilkes’ invaluable dictionary includes different dialects, although I believe it could benefit from an update with the syllabary and a brief explanation of silent sounds. Another great resource is Brad Montgomery-Anderson’s “Cherokee Reference Grammar,” which is easy to understand and follow. Ed Fields informed us about a teacher in North Carolina who spent two years translating “Charlotte’s Web.” Unfortunately, none of these resources were what we were initially looking for.

As a family, we decided to publish the short stories I wrote many years ago. “Funny Farm” was released in 2018 through Archway Publishing, marking the beginning of our journey. Although we were not satisfied with the quality of the book or our experience with Archway, we continued to move forward to share the Cherokee language with those living beyond the reservations. We don’t claim to be 100% accurate, as we are only human. I was not raised on a reservation, but I learned about the language during my vacations and through cousins who speak it.

Doug decided to take the next step. “You can draw,” he said, suggesting that I use social media to share my lessons. We began with one word a week, then moved to two: Mondays and Wednesdays. We started on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram but eventually left Twitter due to its increasingly political nature.

We decided to start making videos, so I went back to the books to learn about computer animation. We signed up for a subscription service that allowed me to create the videos, and we launched a YouTube channel. I understand that the AI does not pronounce the sounds of the Syllabary very well, but I am currently limited to what I can afford and, well, limitations until technology improves. Next, we decided to create free worksheets and offer grammar lessons on Fridays, which eventually led to the establishment of our website: BridgesFamBooks.com.

In our next book project, we began by creating a workbook that teaches how to write the Syllabary using Amazon’s Kindle. While we searched for a publisher for our children’s stories and, hopefully, young adult chapter books, we decided to publish under the name BridgesFamBooks. This name reflects our identity as the Bridges family working together as a unified family unit.

While the system isn’t perfect, we are dedicating as much time as possible to this project while balancing our full-time jobs. We are actively collaborating with companies to improve AI technology, such as refining the tones used in our videos. We are just getting started and hope to expand our efforts soon by involving more people. Ultimately, our main goal is to inspire others to learn and express themselves through Tsalagi. We aim to highlight the creativity, inspiration, and imagination of individuals, moving beyond cultural stereotypes and traditions.

We cannot wait for the day when we can walk into a mainstream brick-and-mortar or online store with departments and menus that welcome every culture and every language. While we have a bias towards Tsalagi, we also recognize and celebrate everyone for who they are: their uniqueness, race, gender, and everything that makes them individuals. You are you, and that alone deserves mutual respect.

We are hopeful for an increase in Tsalagi representation across various media, from television to comics, toys to board games. Our aim is to inspire and encourage everyone to dream big, reach for the stars, and express their true selves.

So, let’s get started……

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