The people of Kingcome appreciated what they derived from nature. From her they found food, clothing, and shelter, the three basic necessities for survival. The Indians knew that without Mother Nature they could not survive. The elders of the tribe often tried to share these values with the young ones of the tribe, but were often ignored. This frustrated them because in primitive religions traditions and stories are passed from one generation to the next by mouth. .
This worship of nature and the various rituals were, at first, a real obstacle for Mark to overcome. In the second chapter, Mark performed his first duty as the new vicar-in-residence. The "weesa-bedo" had drowned and a funeral service was in order. After conducting the short service, the tribal elders conducted their own memorial in their native tongue. Mark developed a mutual respect for the Indians and their rituals the first day he was in the village. The study of primitive religion in Religion 130, followed closely with the described rituals of the Indians. There were no written sacred writings or literature and would further be classified as a natural primitive religion. On page 37 in the textbook, the author details primitive religion as follows: "They thrive in isolation, however. While the primitive community is bound together tightly and shielded from outside ideas, the primitive religion is strong. But when it is forced to cope with new cultures and new ideas, the primitive religion begins to crumble." .
Over time, Mark became more and more comfortable with the Indians and their ways and conversely they became more comfortable with him. Later, the vicar even went as far as attending tribal dances and potlatches and going out with the fishermen on their fishing trips. By this time he had developed concrete friendships with many of the Indians in the tribe. Mark watched as the tribe struggled with the dilemma of sending their children off to the schools of the "white man".
