PIURAAGIAQTA‏, AGVANNIAQTIT NUNAAQQINAT, SIQINGUM ATAANI

The days are wonderfully long here in Barrow.  The sun shines brightly late into the evening and is up well before I begin my walk to work close to 7:30 am.  It seems as if more people are outdoors in the evening, especially children.  My pleasant, but quiet, walks home from work have transitioned into enjoyable ones with friendly waves from children sledding on high mounds of snow in their front yards, jumping on trampolines, still bundled in their heavy winter clothing, riding snow machines or playing with dogs.  The temperatures have been hovering between – 16 to +8ᵒ F this week and last, so warmer than the consistent -20ᵒ or colder in the weeks before.

There is a long, tall three-sectioned staircase on the side of the apartment building next to mine that isn’t in use, at least as a traditional staircase.  It’s been filled with snow and packed down to make a course perfect for young children to slide down from top to bottom.  I often hear laughing and watch as they either make the slippery and obviously fun trip down, or are climbing back to the top for another run.

My co-workers and I received an email from the North Slope Borough Mayor last week letting us know that all NSB employees would be released at noon in order to participate in the beginning of Piuraagiaqta, the annual spring festival held here.  The program of events was impressive and inviting spanning Friday morning through Monday evening. 

The large middle lagoon had been prepared for many outdoor activities including snow art sculptures, sledding and sliding on a very large mountain of snow, ice skating, dog sled rides, snow machine races, Tupiqquarraq (a whaling crew tent contest), harpoon throwing, umiaq racing, an avataqpak (buoy) race, whaling crew sled races, Nigliq (goose) calling contest, a family sled-pulling race, maklak (?) races and a 3 km run.  A groomed cross country ski trail was prepared to the north behind Hopson Middle School for those wanting to get out for a tour on the tundra.  Indoor activities held at various buildings including City Hall, the Senior Center, Piuraagvik (the rec center), the roller rink and the Tuzzy Library included an amateur “Harlem Nights” video contest, a scavenger hunt, food bank collections, Snerts (possibly a problem solving contest?), a book sale, a duct tape dress contest, a basketball hot shots contest, the Spring Fest Kick off Dance, a pancake breakfast, a Sailor Boy cooking contest, a chess tournament, an Eskimo ice cream contest, whaling crew tea races (an not sure about this one…will have to go next year), Uqsrukuaqtaq (Eskimo donut contest), a pool tournament, and music by local musicians including the Barrowtones.  A parade of fire engine and tanker trucks and other vehicles whose passengers threw handfuls of candy to children slowly made its way from City Hall through Barrow, north of the small lagoon and finally to the Browerville Fire Station. 

The Health Department sponsored the pancake feed on Saturday morning and Public Health Nursing, among other areas of the department, was asked to volunteer.  I have to say that my philosophy on health doesn’t include pancakes, syrup, sausage, and eggs, but I did have a wonderful time helping to serve up several hundred plates as people came through the line.  I’m always impressed with the care people express to their elders here.  Many people asked for plates for elders who had been seated and many asked for plates that they would take to the homes of those not able to attend. 

All of the volunteers received long-sleeved t-shirts with a screen print of a whale tale inside the sun beneath a bow head whale arch.  Above the emblem are the words “Agvanniaqtit Nunaaqqinat” which means “Whale of a Town” and “Siqingum Ataani” which means “Under the Sun”. 

I had hoped to be further along with learning Inupiaq words by now, but have resolved that it will come over time and as the years go by.  The language is complex and the age group I see in the clinic use English predominantly although many are fluent and speak their native language at home.  Below is a link to an online dictionary of Inupiaq words for those interested.  There are sketches of some objects that are well done and add to the understanding of the words they describe.

http://www.alaskool.org/language/dictionaries/inupiaq/natwords.asp?lookup=ma

The pancake feed lasted for four hours...an enjoyable morning of decorating with a Spring theme, serving people, and getting to know my fellow volunteers, sharing stories of why we were in Barrow as well as many laughs about things I can't recall now.  I was ready to be outdoors in the sunshine and fresh air after my time in the kitchen was over.  

I enjoyed walking to the lagoon to see some participants warming up for snow machine races and children climbing the tall snow mound and racing to the bottom where the ice had been cleared for skating with dogs dancing happily behind them.  The parade began to the south of the lagoon with loud sirens making it possible to follow their progress through Barrow and then to Browerville.  I stood across the road from the post office and enjoyed watching children and their Akka's (grandmothers) run for the candy being thrown.  

I met a new friend, Mari, while watching and we both agreed that taking a dog sled ride would be next on our agenda.  Many children and adults stood in line while those in the sled were pulled in a large circle down the hill, onto the lagoon and up again.  By the time it was either Mari's or my turn, the dogs looked tired, so we decided to spare them our heavy loads.  Our next destination was the library where we meandered for more than an hour, looking at books for sale...much too much time I'm afraid, missing much of the outdoor activities, but my feet had long been asking for warmth, so the rest of me felt obliged to succumb.  Being cold for a long period of time can make one sleep deeply, so once home and having consumed a hot mug of tea and a large salad, I slept for several hours, missing the evening music.  By next year, I'll have warmer clothing, skates and cross country skiis.  And maybe the trick to staying warm is a large stack of pancakes, a few sausage links and a pile of eggs...who knows?  Next year might call for an experiment or a daily intake of maktak to create some internal insulation...this does sound like the healthier option.   

I regret not having taken more pictures while on the lagoon, but close to frozen hands are unwilling and uncooperative.  I'll take and post many more pictures after the temperatures rise and the snow melts, I'm sure.