An Eskimo Heritage Reader
Stories from the Bering Straits Elders
Developed by Kawerak Adult Basic Education, Nome, December 1987
Preface
Since 1979, Kawerak has sponsored an annual Elder’s Conference, bringing together Bering Straits elders to share their knowledge and experience. The proceedings have been recorded, translated into English, and transcribed. Under the Eskimo Heritage Project, village elders have contributed more material: legends, life histories, and traditional lore. This rich archive, the Eskimo Heritage Collection, is now preserved for future generations of Eskimo people.
This reader has been developed by the Kawerak Adult Basic Education staff as part of our literacy outreach program. These stories were chosen because of their interest and appeal to adult learners in this area. We have tried to preserve the style and charm of the original speaker, while simplifying the language for the new reader. We hope that they will be enjoyed by all readers of all ages.
--Anne Will, editor, December 1987
Personally, I would like to note that I am reproducing this for educational and informational purposes only. Please remember that I don’t make any money whatsoever off this personal website.
Speak the Truth by Job Kokochuruk of White Mountain
I believe that the root of success lies in the proper teaching of our young people. They missed out on the kagri teaching of long ago. They have gotten away from the old values.
The first lesson should be about words. How important it is to watch your words. That is the first step in attaining success in this world. That’s the lesson they taught us long ago. Secondly, don’t talk badly to anything or any animal. That includes your tools. If you do, they won’t help you. Those were the rules.
Today people talk any old way. They don’t watch their mouths. If something doesn’t go right for young people today, they swear at it. They say it’s a bum piece and curse it. Well, Eskimos believe that if a man talks badly to his tools, they will go against him all his life. You should talk positively to anything that is under you. Then it will help you.
That’s what the young people today don’t know. They think they’re going to have good luck in life. They think that they can do whatever they see and that they will become famous. They don’t know that the first thing a man has to conquer is his own mouth and hands and thinking. No matter how much he wants to succeed, he will fall down without this lesson.
These young people don’t watch their words. They talk proudly. They swear at anything. They even swear at their own clothes! They use words they should never speak. These young people speak lightly of time. They have no patience. That’s a poor, poor attitude for a hunter. But that’s what our young people think.
This earth, the elders say, is governed by an unseen being. Whatever you say or do will come back to you. That is the main lesson I learned from the Eskimos long ago. If you talk carelessly, you will learn your lesson. If you speak proudly, you will face a time when you must prove whether your words are true or not. You might be confronted by a bear and that bear’s going to test you.
I was taught that I should go out to the water hole early in the morning and open it up for the old people. If I do that, then the things I want will happen. It might be success as a hunter. Today, it might be a job. But if I follow the teaching of the elders it will come to me. And I won’t have to wait very long.
Nowadays, young people wait for the elders to open the water hole. They are ruled by objects now. They’re overpowered by them. They have no control. No matter how much money they have to spend, our Eskimos will never attain success until they first conquer their thinking.
By Job Kokochuruk of White Mountain
Stories from the Bering Straits Elders
Developed by Kawerak Adult Basic Education, Nome, December 1987
Preface
Since 1979, Kawerak has sponsored an annual Elder’s Conference, bringing together Bering Straits elders to share their knowledge and experience. The proceedings have been recorded, translated into English, and transcribed. Under the Eskimo Heritage Project, village elders have contributed more material: legends, life histories, and traditional lore. This rich archive, the Eskimo Heritage Collection, is now preserved for future generations of Eskimo people.
This reader has been developed by the Kawerak Adult Basic Education staff as part of our literacy outreach program. These stories were chosen because of their interest and appeal to adult learners in this area. We have tried to preserve the style and charm of the original speaker, while simplifying the language for the new reader. We hope that they will be enjoyed by all readers of all ages.
--Anne Will, editor, December 1987
Personally, I would like to note that I am reproducing this for educational and informational purposes only. Please remember that I don’t make any money whatsoever off this personal website.
Speak the Truth by Job Kokochuruk of White Mountain
I believe that the root of success lies in the proper teaching of our young people. They missed out on the kagri teaching of long ago. They have gotten away from the old values.
The first lesson should be about words. How important it is to watch your words. That is the first step in attaining success in this world. That’s the lesson they taught us long ago. Secondly, don’t talk badly to anything or any animal. That includes your tools. If you do, they won’t help you. Those were the rules.
Today people talk any old way. They don’t watch their mouths. If something doesn’t go right for young people today, they swear at it. They say it’s a bum piece and curse it. Well, Eskimos believe that if a man talks badly to his tools, they will go against him all his life. You should talk positively to anything that is under you. Then it will help you.
That’s what the young people today don’t know. They think they’re going to have good luck in life. They think that they can do whatever they see and that they will become famous. They don’t know that the first thing a man has to conquer is his own mouth and hands and thinking. No matter how much he wants to succeed, he will fall down without this lesson.
These young people don’t watch their words. They talk proudly. They swear at anything. They even swear at their own clothes! They use words they should never speak. These young people speak lightly of time. They have no patience. That’s a poor, poor attitude for a hunter. But that’s what our young people think.
This earth, the elders say, is governed by an unseen being. Whatever you say or do will come back to you. That is the main lesson I learned from the Eskimos long ago. If you talk carelessly, you will learn your lesson. If you speak proudly, you will face a time when you must prove whether your words are true or not. You might be confronted by a bear and that bear’s going to test you.
I was taught that I should go out to the water hole early in the morning and open it up for the old people. If I do that, then the things I want will happen. It might be success as a hunter. Today, it might be a job. But if I follow the teaching of the elders it will come to me. And I won’t have to wait very long.
Nowadays, young people wait for the elders to open the water hole. They are ruled by objects now. They’re overpowered by them. They have no control. No matter how much money they have to spend, our Eskimos will never attain success until they first conquer their thinking.
By Job Kokochuruk of White Mountain
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