Hanabata Days is a graphic memoir that explores the unexpected reunion of a father and son, 47 years after separation.The diasporic story unfolds visually over the span of 60+ years navigating shifting geographic and cultural dissonance, from pre-tourism Hawai'i to present day Middle America. Its central characters' hidden pasts are made visible to one another after searching for answers compelled by hope, premonition, the stars, currents, and the introduction of ancestral coordinates unlocked via shared genetic data.How do two familial strangers proceed forward and make meaning together? What possible pasts can be known and never known? What secrets should remain buried? And is their path to redemption intricately dependent on one another? Hanabata Days connects two lives impacted by different forms of colonization, silence, and ambiguous longing. Each seeking to reckon with their complex pasts towards reclamation. Michael Hoyt is a Kanaka Maoli artist currently living on Dakota homeland, Bde Ota Othunwe, Mni Sota Makoce, Minneapolis, Minnesota. His creative practice includes drawing, painting, graphic storytelling, network technology, public participation, and community land stewardship. He believes that art and creativity can serve as a critical catalyst for social and political change by; engaging people in deliberative dialogue, illuminating concealed stories, and practicing radical healing.Hoyt's multidisciplinary work has been exhibited locally, nationally, and abroad. He has received awards from the Minnesota State Arts Board, a Northern Lights.mn Art(ists) on the Verge Fellowship, a Jerome Visual Artist Fellowship, and a McKnight Visual Artist Fellowship. He is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Leader. https: //michael-hoyt.com/portfolio/hanabata-days/