Easter in Kotzebue and Kivalina

Easter is a time of renewal in Kotzebue.

Easter is a very important holiday to Eskimo people living in Qikiktagruk, or Kotzebue as it is most widely known. A ray of hope shines brightly for these deeply religious people. Easter is a time of renewal and celebration. Their hearts are filled with gratitude for another year of survival and for a resurrection that continues to promise them relief and salvation. The worst of the Arctic cold has subsided, the melt has begun, and the temperatures warm their bodies. Other signs of Easter can be found here.

While Rick and I were out yesterday, we saw many cars parked at the Baptist Church along Front Street. Friday night was filled with praise and worship at the local churches. There are many churches located in this hub city above the Arctic Circle. Represented are the Roman Catholic Church, Episcopal, Quaker (The Friends Church), several Baptist churches, the Church of the Latter Day Saints, and the Seventh Day Adventist Church.

Perhaps there are so many churches in this village of 3300 because the Inupiat people throughout history have been deeply spiritual. Their culture was at one time guided by their 17 Inupiaq values. And at the heart of those values is a respect for elders, for others, and a respect for nature. When the missionaries came to this foreign land in the early 1900s, these people were converted to Christianity. Their native practices were shunned and their children forced to attend schools far away from their parents. As time went on, the Inupiaq values were no longer taught to their children. But those values remained in the hearts of the elders.

Today there are many attempts to bring back the old ways, including the Inupiaq values. At the club, we are teaching the kids those values. The youth are recognizing their use and importance in their everyday life. At the recent Arctic Circle Spring Festival, there were traditional activities including Eskimo football, an ice fishing derby, and harpoon contest, and snowshoeing race. At the awards banquet where the winners of the Kobuk 440 were announced, Eskimo dancing and drumming entertained attendees. Families recovering from addiction may a visit to the old Spud Farm as part of their rehabilitation. These families learn the Inupiaq values and engage in traditional subsistence activities.

Kivalina is located on an 8-mile barrier reef. near Chukchi Sea.

Residents of the Eskimo village of Kivalina celebrate Holy Week with food, prayer, singing and fellowship. Each day Eskimos spend hours collectively in preparation for their most important holiday: Easter. Services on Good Friday and Easter may last up to four hours each or more. As part of the preparations for this most holy holiday, cold storage units are cleaned out in preparation for whaling season. Eskimos in this village 120 miles north of the Arctic Circle continue to hunt beluga whales for their survival. Teams of hunters will begin to follow the ice leads in search of migrating whales. (For a personal accounting of whaling in the Barrow area, click on the link.)

The Alaska Commercial store in Kotzebue displayed the western symbols of Easter. A large display at its entrance contained Easter baskets, candy and lilies beginning early this month. Easter candy was a favorite purchase among youth and adults throughout Lent. Kids showed up at the club on Friday buzzed out on sugar from candy eaten at school that day.

The peace and relief is in the air in this Eskimo Village. May the blessings be realized in Kotzebue, Kivalina and the other villages throughout the Northwest Arctic Borough on this day. May we all enjoy the plentiful light in the sky and the warmer temperatures as the season of Melt continues.

Spring in Kotzebue

Sunrise over the Tundra in Kotzebue.

Sometime between the end of March and the beginning of April, spring arrives in the Northwest Arctic. The temperatures hover in the single digits and the daylight becomes everyone's best friend again. We went from near total darkness just before Christmas to more than 15 hours of daylight in the span of three months.

A visitor might wonder what's different about this Eskimo village now that the sun has returned. Many things remain the same. The temperatures continue to fall below zero degrees at night. The snow melts and refreezes, brought on by climate change and a hint of warmer weather. The snow glitters like diamonds and falls so gently on the frozen earth. However, many things are different. The light welcomes us in the morning and stays with us long after many have retired for the night.

Our bodies are adjusting to the additional light. We show our hardiness to the cold by casting aside our snow pants. Some of the youth wear capri pants or thin fleece jackets when their parents let them. Sunglasses or goggles are worn to protect our eyes from snow blindness. We stay up later and our bodies require less sleep. The youth play out at night. The drone of snow machines can be heard from our living room until the late hours.

Sunset over the tundra outside of Kotzebue.

What is most interesting is the location of the sun. The sun skips around the sky throughout the year rising in an area for a short period time before occupying another space on the horizon. The sunsets change their escape from the sky along the horizon in many places. This fireball clings to the horizon when it begins its ascent into the small sky. Its long stretch above the horizon distorts the round shape of the orange sphere.

The sun throws color into the sky announcing its presence around 7 am each morning. When Rick and I head off to work at 8, the sun hangs in the sky as though it were nearly noon. Long after our return from work, the sun washes the small sky with fushia, orange and yellow. Between those times, the sun consumes the sky and the earth of this Eskimo village. The flatness of the earth on this gravel spit makes the sky appear as though it were hugging the horizon on all sides, especially during the winter.

Cemetery Hill outside of Kotzebue.

There is much beauty in this city located above the Arctic Circle. The sun brings color to the sky, and the snow glitters in its light. The low lying brush of the tundra is covered by deep snow, only occasionally showing its dried branches laced with white. The frozen waterways make travel to the other villages easy with snow machines or dog sleds. This shroud of white brings a simplicity to the landscape.

With all this daylight, some of us are sprouting flower seeds and preparing our indoor gardens for another growing season. Recently I attended a seed planting workshop at the Senior Center. We are growing flowers for the elders in a large window at the club. During the summer months, raised beds will create a garden experience for the elders living at this home for the elders in the community. Others will grow short-season crops in outdoor beds at their homes. Some will even make their own compost.

We are all happy that spring is here. The sun is back. The orange orb shines with a brightness that is native to this place. In another few months, the ice will recede from the land and the Kotzebue Sound. Another winter has passed.