Pay-What-You-Wish
Laurel Hill West, Conservatory
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To open the first Philadelphia Death & Arts Festival, join Krista Nelson for a sacred Land Acknowledgement ceremony that honors the Lenape people—the original stewards of the land on which we gather. Rooted in reverence and renewal, this ceremonial experience invites participants to awaken a deeper connection to place, story, and spirit. Together, we will move through sacred elements of smudging, honoring the cardinal directions, music, and storytelling. The Land Acknowledgement ceremony will be followed by a performance by Shavon Norris.
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Krista Nelson bridges the gap between people and the natural world through ritual, language, and deep listening. As founder of Nature as Lover, she invites participants to speak with trees, listen to water, and enter in relationship with the living earth. Krista is a kikehwèt hitkwike, a healer among the trees or ecotherapist with the Philadelphia Ecotherapy project and the Fairmount Park Commission. She honors her Lenape ancestry through weekly Lenape language study under the guidance of the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania and has recently become an official luwensu wintemakwi, a Lenape language teacher. Krista enjoys playing Native American-style flutes and creating sacred talismans on a canvas of Native American finger weaving. She says both flute and weaving tell the untold stories of her ancestors. She lives in Philadelphia with her five children and six grandchildren.