There's Alaska... and then there's true Alaska

Last night the older kids went to see Shrek the 3rd at the movie theater in Eagle River. Stephen, Alicia, and I went out for Chinese at the China Lights restaurant. Then we took a short stroll along some of the trails near the Eagle River. There's a nice, and I believe pretty extensive, trail system with easy access from "downtown Eagle River".

Alicia May thrilled at gathering and throwing rocks into the river and little creeks flowing into it. She's got a pretty good arm.

Stephen's trip to Deering was an interesting experience last Thursday. He flew into Kotzebue on a 737 and landed on a paved runway. Then he transferred to a little 10 seater and took off from a dirt runway to go to Deering. He thought that was neat... the real Alaska thing.

Then he saw the airstrip they were intended to land on at Deering. Basically, it's a clearing in a field with a couple little buildings nearby.

The fella who picked him up from the Deering airstrip was driving an old Chevy truck which had just been broken out of winter storage the day before. It was running very rough. And when they stopped to pick up some keys, it wouldn't start back up. So they called someone and a woman on a 4-wheeler pulling a little trailer showed up. Stephen's work supplies were loaded on the trailer and he and the other fella perched on both sides of the back of the ATV. This is how he got to his inspection site.

He worked a few hours at the site. He didn't really have sufficient time to do all he needed. But he had to get back to the airstrip to catch his flight back to Kotzebue. He made it to the airstrip 5 minutes before his plane left. He was the only passenger this time on a 6-seater.

These planes are the supply lifeline for small villages around the state. Stephen said it was just like you see in the movies. The little plane lands, a bunch of locals run out to unload the supplies brought by the plane. They reload the plane with luggage and supplies of outgoing passengers, those folks get on and the plane flys away. He said he'd love to be a pilot working a route like that. Who knows... maybe someday!

When he reported his story to me, he said he hadn't been very well received in Deering. They weren't unfriendly. They just weren't really hospitable either.

I told him (and I should've told him before he left, but at the time, I didn't know he was going to a Native village), that next time he needs to change his approach. One thing in particular that probably would have made a big difference would have been to inquire of the village elders. All outsiders are expected to go through the elders before doing anything that affects the village. He should have brought a gift of some sort for the elders (fresh fruit is great because it's so hard to get in those distant places). And he should have been prepared to "visit".

You figure, these people see the same 136 people 365 days a year. When someone new shows up, it's polite to visit. Even peddlers of colonial America days knew that.... Socialize before business.

Had he taken these simple steps, I'm pretty sure his reception would have been completely different. It's almost an old-fashioned mindset.

We live in a busy, populated space. Yes, it's Alaska. But we may as well be living in Cincinnati. I'm convinced that more than half of all Alaskans have no idea what it's like to live in Alaska. That's the percentage which lives in Anchorage. Our lives are busy and urban or suburban. I think it's great that Stephen's getting the opportunity to see the true Alaska. And with some more practice, maybe he'll even learn how to slow down and savor the difference.