Kimama’s Wings Synopsis

Children’s Drama

Vicky (Victoria), a 7-year-old African American girl and her 15-year-old Japanese American sister Becca, have everything they could ever want in San Francisco. Becca’s Japanese mother Aiya and her father Joe adopted Vicki when she was just a baby. Becca didn’t understand why her parents had to adopt another daughter when they already had one.

But they are a happy family until tragedy strikes when Joe is diagnosed with cancer and soon dies. They are all devastated and not sure what they should do. Aiya knows they cannot afford to stay in their beautiful home.

Aiya’s brother Nick, a realtor, tries to help. But Aiya is just not ready to move on especially since she has no idea where to go. Her family is in Japan, and she doesn’t want to totally uproot the girls by leaving the United States. Joe’s mom passed away years ago, but his dad Buzz owns a ranch in Washington State. There’s only one problem; Buzz is a bigot. That’s why Joe moved to California when he married Aiya and his dad told him to never come back.

Aiya decides to visit the ranch when Buzz reluctantly asks them to come, coaxed by his family friend Julie. Becca is moody and withdrawn but Vicki is excited and eager to see the horses and all the farm animals. In her innocence she has no idea what it’s like to be around people who are racist.

When the family arrives, Buzz is nowhere to be found. But Becca perks up when she sees the ranch hand 16-year-old Finn. And Vicki soon meets a charismatic 8-year-old neighbor girl Chloe who loves blue butterflies and kitties. So, the visit is better than they all thought it would be until Buzz begins to voice his cruel mind.

But there is a healer in their midst and Vicki is the first one to see. She realizes her favorite time is sunrise because it calms her heart somehow. It’s when a Native American woman who works there walks the horses into the paddock and prays for the day with sage smoke and chanting.

One early morning Vicki startles the woman when she runs after her into the barn. But instead of being afraid of her questioning face, Vicki shares a big smile stating her name. The woman softens and tells Vicki that she is Kimama, meaning butterfly. She is a horse whisperer and a chiefess of her people.

Kimama is wise and unassuming, and she helps this hurting family see something greater than themselves. Vicki learns from the horses that listen to the whisperer and from the powerful lesson of the pupa that turns into a butterfly. She and her family find peace, and in the end, even Buzz takes a step toward the light.