Louisiana's Inuk friend in faraway North Alaska writes her newfound friend in Tennessee a letter. She is sotry to learn that Louisiana is sick.
Sunday, August 8, 2004~
Dear Louisiana:
I am so sorry to learn that you are not feeling well. I saw your latest entry in your journal that you post online, and you stated that you had a sinus infection coupled with a migraine headache. That sounds absolutely DREADFUL! I am so sorry you are ill; here is hoping that you will be feeling MUCH better by the time you receive this!
This is your Inuk friend, Sikik. I am doing quite well for myself, and my family members are all well, too. They are certainly doing much better than you! I showed my brothers and sisters your picture that you sent me on your last email, and they said that you are really cute; they said that you look Inuk, what with your short, squat build, and your dark skin, dark hair, and dark eyes! Your husband, though, is very tall; just HOW tall IS he? Where did you meet him? In TEXAS?? (I hear things in Texas are big...well, Texas may be BIG, but Alaska is BIGGER! Texas does NOT have ANYTHING on ALASKA! LOL)
The weather is fairly warm still, but today is partly cloudy out. It may rain by tomorrow or Tuesday, according to the local weather reports. The dogs aren't hot anymore; it's cooled off some, but at least it is no longer hot! How is the weather down there in Tennessee? I bet it is HOT there! I would NOT like it, I bet!
I got your package today; thank you for sending me your book. I love the picture of your family on the cover; you have a beautiful looking family! But I thought you said you had 50 kids; on the cover, I only saw 12! Where were the others? Didn't they want their picture taken? And I loved the picture on the back, with two of your children. Your son is cute, and your daughter, she looks just like you! How old are they, and what are their names? (I also was wondering why the little boy has oxygen on. I am sorry he isn't well; that made me sad to see it! But I did love his big grin; he is such a cute little boy!) I shall start reading your book later tonight or maybe tomorrow, depending on how busy I will be or if I have anything to do. I have to take care of my parents, and also the dogs, and also do my running around, paying bills, going to the store, that sort of thing..I do that every Monday, usually. When I get home after doing all that, then I take care of my dogs and take care of Mother and Father. I also cook, clean, and do my laundry. But I will now have something to look forward to when I retire tomororow night; thank you so much for sending me a copy of your book! And thanks for the autograph; you have pretty writing! Me, when I write, it looks like chicken scratching! LOL Very hard to read! (I never was good with a pen...at school, my teachers were always getting mad at me about my writing, and I am afraid it hasn't really improved all that much as I grew older! Maybe that is one reason why I prefer to do my writing on a computer, as it is a LOT easier for people to read! LOL)
You will have to tell me about your Cajun culture. That sounds really interesting. I will share some more of my Inuit heritage with you in future letters; maybe I will even try to teach you basic Inupiat, our language! But it is hard to understand; but I think it is beautiful! Do you speak any other languages besides French or English? Do you know any Inupiat? If not, I will be more than happy to teach you! LOL I will also tell you about some of our rites and legends, if you will do the same with your Cajun.
I will have to go now; Mother is calling. I think she wants to have a bath or something to eat. I will have to see what she wants, and then tend to that. I will write more when I get a letter from you! Thank you again for writing, and sorry for your being sick and for my not writing sooner, but now you know why I didn't reply as soon as I would have liked. Busy, busy, that is me, Sikik! LOL Until later, Louisiana, take care, and hope you feel better soon!
Love from Alaska, your friend, Sikik Grace Eegeesiak. :)
P.S.: Since you like the aurora borealis so much, I thought you would like to see a picture of an all-red one. They may be breathtaking to see, but we Inuit fear them because to us, it means bad things are about to happen. Whenever we see an all-red aurora, we get scared, and we say prayers to the Great Spirit, in the hopes that he will protect us from harm, sickness, or death. Although I may not like it, I hope you like the picture I have chosen. It was taken last year, and it scared the hell out of me.
That's a marvelous picture, Karen, and a most interesting letter.
I'd love to learn Inupiat myself! And Sikik is so right; Alaska is Monstrous - I've read that there are parts of Alaska that no man has ever stepped on - Imagine That!!
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Sunday, August 8, 2004~
