Curt's Ponderings From The Bioshelter

  After arriving in Kaktovik on Friday I learned that I will not be in town for the Nalukataq festival after all.   Although I was told the Nalukataq would be held this week, I was not told a day.   The plan now is to hold it the day I leave, which is a definite disappointment.   Still, I find myself thinking about past Nalukataqs, and how they continue to symbolize for me so much about healthy relationships. For instance, one of the most important aspects of the blanket toss part of Nalukataq, is the teamwork that goes into it.   The blanket, itself, is made from split ug  ruk hide (bearded seal), which requires skilled craftswomen to make (splitting the hide has traditionally been women’s work).   Around the edges of the blanket are dozens of rope handles.   It takes a community to make the blanket, and to wield it. I love this about the blanket toss. The pictures I have for the blanket toss don’t really show the handles.   This on...

I am scheduled to spend the next week in the village of Kaktovik, located on the Beaufort Sea in the far, northeast corner of Alaska.   The first time I visited Kaktovik was in 1978, when I was serving as Lay Pastor of a multi-cultural church in Fairbanks.   They asked me to spend five weeks in Kaktovik, leading Vacation Bible School, leading worship services, and learning from the saints who live there.   I have had occasion to visit Kaktovik off and on ever since. Over the years I have found that my Christian outlook has been deeply affected by the teaching I have received from the Native American folks in Alaska’s churches.   The teaching sometimes comes through word and sometimes through actions, but always through relationships.   Over the years I continue to work with people from the villages, and I continue to be privileged to listen, to meditate, and to learn.   In fact, much of my understanding of why we live the way we do in the bi...