VERBUM SAP!: July 2005

From June 11-18, 2005, through a class at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, I had the opportunity to stay for eight days in an Athabascan Indian village called Old Minto. There were ten of us students and our teacher. The only way to get there is by boat. We rode from Fairbanks to Nenana where we waited to be picked up by our guide, Tom. Tom grew up in Old Minto and Nenana and maneuvered the Tanana River very effectively. It took almost two hours to get to the village, but the ride along the way was beautiful. We kept our eyes peeled for wildlife, but usually only saw the things that Tom would point to including a bald eagle in its huge nest and its mate sitting on a nearby branch.

We each stayed in our tents by the Tanana River. The Tanana River merges with the Nenana River in Nenana and empties into the Yukon River. It is very silty due to glacial melt up river so you can't swim in it. The silt gets in your clothes very quickly and will pull you down and drown you. We didn't want to drown so we stayed out of the river. It's about 1/3 of a mile across where Old Minto is located.

There was no running water or electricity! NO BATHS!!! We did have the Bonya so we learned how to get clean in it from a fellow student who is Yupik. A Bonya is similar to a steam room where you sweat your dirt off and then rinse yourself with some cool water. After the first time we were old pros!

As an adventure and learning experience, we were taken to the old village cemetery by a couple of the lady Elders. We were led into parts of the forest where people don’t go anymore. There were signs of moose and bears, but we were protected as we did have two guides that were well armed. It was a moving experience to hear the ladies tell of days gone by and how many of these relatives of theirs died from diseases such as small pox or many from suicide. Also, there were several children and babies buried there. Life in the village was not easy. Before motor boats, the quickest way to get to a doctor was to paddle up river to Nenana which took four days.

We learned how to gather bark from Birch trees during our trip to the cemetery. Birch bark can be used to make different items. We made picture frames, canoes, and baskets, but the Natives used it for even more meaningful goods. Their canoes, baby baskets, and food baskets, as well as many other things were made from the Birch tree bark. We also learned how to get the limbs of a Diamond Willow to make into beautiful walking sticks.

We were taken to an area by boat up river where there were many Spruce trees and taught how to dig for the roots. These roots may serve several purposes, and we were fortunate to have learned how to use it for sewing up Birch Bark. The roots have to be kept moist while stripping the outer bark off them and while splitting them into at least two pieces, depending on the width of the original piece. The root must also be kept somewhat moist as it is used for sewing.

We were also taken to one of the Elder’s fish camps. It was super actually getting to see this place that we had been hearing stories of. This fish camp had a cabin, a smoke house, drying racks, and other structures that were used during salmon season. This fish camp was special in that it had fresh drinking water from a hand pump that had been drilled. Due to erosion, this hand pump is almost completely in the river and has not been able to be replaced.

River water is useful at the village, but not for drinking. Filtered water is used for cleaning and washing dishes. The process begins with the back-breaking job of hauling water in metal buckets from the river to the filter system which consists of two large barrels filled with larger rocks, smaller rocks, sand, and mud. There is a hole at the bottom of these elevated barrels to let the filtered water drain into a tub placed below it. The water trickles through this filtration system and comes out looking very clear. Boiling the water for long enough would probably make the water drinkable, but we got our water from an outside faucet at the River Front Restaurant in Nenana. We’d pull up in our boat after riding up river for two hours and drag the water hose over to our water coolers to fill them up.

During our last full day at the village, we spent hours preparing for a Potlatch. A Potlatch is a ceremony usually in honor of someone who died or to celebrate some wonderful occasion such as a boy coming of age and taking the name of one who has recently died. Our Potlatch was different because we were the hosts and were putting on the Potlatch for the Elders. It was a learning process, but also a time of celebration with the village folks and others who traveled to attend the occasion. It took all day to prepare this meal. We started as soon as we finished breakfast. The men’s work consisted of cooking the moose, beaver, and salmon. The moose and beaver were cut up and cooked down near the river at a specially designated area where some of it was cooked over the fire and some was boiled in a stew/soup. This part of the meal is considered very special. The salmon was also cooked by a male in big outdoor ovens.

The women worked hard in the kitchen preparing all the other foods that are eaten during a Potlatch. We went to great lengths to ensure that we made all recipes from scratch, including the delicious fry bread.

Some guests arrived early in the day and enjoyed visiting with the Elders. It was quite an experience to see folks arriving by boat. Every time a boat would come, the entire village would go out to meet them. (Having visitors was actually one of the highlights of the day during our stay.) When the food was ready to be brought out to the area where we would eat, we first had to set the benches around some big blue tarps. Next, we put down butcher paper in front of the benches so we would have a place to put the food. When we started getting the area ready, folks started finding the place where they wanted to sit. It was intriguing to see the way the food was served. We each chose a dish to serve from and were told to follow the person in front of us. The leader served the Elders first and then went from person-to-person giving food and drink in the direction of the setting sun. After going around and giving everyone a helping, we were instructed to keep going and give more until our pots or bowls were empty. As you’ll see if you look at the pictures on my blog, there was a lot of food given away. As the Natives are accustomed to this since it is part of their culture they came well prepared with bowls and bags in which to carry extra food home.

The most important part about my week at Old Minto was the message of respect. We were told that our number one priority was to respect and help the Elders. We were taught to anticipate the needs of the Elders, and we initiated help as we saw appropriate. If we saw an Elder carrying their cup to get more coffee, we were to take the cup from them and get them the coffee. I didn’t ever observe a moment of disrespect among any of the Natives and the Elders or us students.

One of the most enjoyable times for us as students was when the Natives, young and old, would sing and dance in their Native ways. It was wonderful to try to join in and learn these unique songs. The dance was also fun as it didn’t involve any fancy dance steps. Sometimes, usually in the evenings, we’d sit around and visit, and then someone would start the songs and dancing. A couple of times, the guys would beat on a pan or bucket as if it was a drum. It was a treat for us when Brandon, one of the young Native men, did use an authentic drum. What a wonderful way to end a day of hard work.