Because she has been very ill and weak, River cannot join in the dancing at this year's tribal powwow, she can only watch from the sidelines as her sisters and cousins dance the celebration--but as the drum beats she finds the faith to believe that she will recover and dance again.

Fifteen-year-old Mark Centeno convinces his father, who is Filipino and Mexican, to let him spend time with his mother's Chumash and Crow family in California in hopes of surfing with his friends but, instead, connects with his heritage through dance.