Thanksgiving & Graduation

The arctic sun slowly ascended behind the mountains on the morning of October 8, bathing the horizon in purple, pink, peach orange, and white.  As I captured the picturesque moment on camera, I noticed that a large portion of the bay was covered by ice.  Since it was early October, the ice wasn't thick enough to support skidoos, atvs, and trucks.  The required level of thickness would be reached at the end of the month.

            

In just under a month, I thought, the bay will be completely frozen.  And a few weeks after that, the sun will be 'gone'.

            

October 11, 2014

From early November to early February, the sun does not rise above the mountains.  The polar nights are long but there never is constant pitch black darkness.  There is always some light around noon.  From what I've been told, the locals do not mark the departure of the sun; they only celebrate its return in the new year.

            

October 11, 2014

Taking scenic pictures of various landscapes and cloud formations has been a hobby of mine for many years.  I find it strange seeing people walking by such things and not stop to take a picture or at least enjoy the scene for a few seconds.  Even though today's world is pretty fast paced, people should not be oblivious to their surroundings.  There is splendor everywhere, even in the worst places. 

                        

When the dismissal bell rang on October 8th, one of my Grade 10 students came into my classroom to show me the working crossbow he made in shop class.  Impressed by his accomplishment, I took a picture.  I know some of you may be shocked to hear of a student being allowed to make such a device at school, but in the north, a portion of the shop program focuses on making hunting tools and other things for use out on the land.  Hunting & camping are part of Inuit culture.  The students are taught to make items such as ulus, harpoons, hooks, and qamutiks.  The making of rifles and live ammunition is forbidden and the students are heavily instructed on how to properly operate the hunting tools they make.

            

The southern teachers celebrated Thanksgiving by having a potluck dinner on October 11.  The dinner took place at the residence of two southern teachers.  A large bowl of Caesar Salad was my contribution.  Other teachers brought stuffing, rice, mashed potatoes, turkey, steamed vegetables, bread, chicken, and extra chairs.  We talked about many things before grabbing our plates and heading over to the makeshift buffet.  The food was delicious and everyone went home with warm, filled stomachs. 

            

The music program of Inuujaq School.

Thanksgiving Monday was spent correcting class work and preparing lessons for the upcoming week of school.  I took a break in between, by reviewing all the musical instruments and equipment I had available.  My curious mind wanted to see what a $10K MusiCounts Band Aid Grant could buy.  Impressed by the collection of guitars, drums, keyboards, music stands, practice pads, and sticks, I took out my camera and snapped some photographs.  A lot has changed in the last two years.  Before, there was no music program at Inuujaq School.  Now, I have enough resources to instruct 8 guitarists and 8 drummers.  I can only imagine what the music program will look like in a year or two, but it's safe to say that it will be even bigger.

            

High school graduation occurred on the evening of Friday, October 17th, at the local community hall.  There were eight graduates this year; seven women and one man.  Graduation takes place in October because everyone is too busy camping, boating, and hunting in June.  The Graduation Committee was led by the new high school art teacher, Aga.  She was hired to replace Paulette who is on educational leave for the next year.  The committee also included several Inuit teachers and the graduates.  After many meetings and discussions, a date was set, the community hall was booked, a photographer was hired, gowns were ordered, a theme song was chosen, decorations were ordered, the dinner menu was finalized, and a celebratory cake was made.

            

On October 16th, the staff and high school students went over to the community hall to put up the decorations, and set up the tables & chairs for the graduation dinner.  The dinner would take place before the ceremony and we were expecting up to 80 guests.  While I helped with the tables and chairs, others were blowing & tying black & yellow balloons to the walls.  I should have brought my earplugs because a few of the balloons popped.  The best decorations in my view were the posters of the graduates' silhouettes; they were taped to the back wall of the stage.

            

Since Arctic Bay doesn't have a catering business (yet), the staff and graduates assisted in preparing the grad dinner food.  I prepared two big bowls of salad.  One would be Caesar and the other would be plain so that the guests could mix their own dressings and toppings.  Even though there were around nine romaine lettuce heads, I still washed my hands thoroughly and picked the heads by hand.  Using a knife just doesn't feel right to me.  I would add the croutons, bacon bits, and dressing at the community hall.    

            

Graduation Dinner

Greg, the Grade 5/6 teacher,
cuts slices of roast beef.

When the big day finally arrived, everyone hurried home to get ready for the ceremony.  When I arrived at the community hall, there were already several teachers working feverishly in the kitchen.  I took off my parka & heavy boots and put on my dress shoes & an apron to cover my suit.  I joined the teachers in the kitchen and went to work preparing the Caesar Salad bowl.  After that, I helped out with placing the prepared dishes on the assigned tables.  When all the guests had arrived, a prayer was said, and the dinner began.  The buffet consisted of ham, roast beef, turkey, chicken, mashed potatoes, salad, bread, vegetables, tea, and coffee.  The food was delicious, I had two servings, and I was glad to see an empty Caesar Salad bowl.

            

When the dinner was completed, the dirty dishes were collected, the tables were cleared & folded up, and the chairs were rearranged to face the stage.  At the back of the hall, a tall golden arch covered in black & yellow balloons was erected for the graduates to walk through.  They would then proceed down a black path covered in golden stars in the middle of the hall.  The graduates changed into their yellow graduation gowns and posed for pictures while the hall slowly filled up with people.  When the clocks struck 7:30pm, it was time for to the ceremony.

            

Piuyuq, the Grade 1 teacher, lit a qulliq to mark the beginning of the ceremony.  Two local throat singers then came on stage and performed a few songs.  The eight graduates were then introduced one-by-one after walking through the golden arch and then proceeded to take their seats on stage.  The audience cheered after every introduction.  Yolanda Adams "I Believe" was played over the hall speakers.  The principal and high school teachers sat behind the graduates.

            

Mayor Philip Kalluk (left) & Inuujaq School Principal Salam (right).
Please excuse the unintentional blurriness.

An elder said an opening prayer after the music was cut and the audience was settled.  The principal then addressed the graduates and the audience in English & Inuktitut.  Then came the most important moment - the graduates were awarded their diplomas.  Judging from the smile on their faces, they were overjoyed and relieved that they had finished high school.  They also received a free laptop from Baffinland.  The high school teachers then presented a variety of awards to the graduates.  I presented the Citizenship & Leadership Award to Cora.

            

The next part of the ceremony was having the graduates say a few words, followed by inviting parents, friends, or elders from the audience to the podium to say something.  The short speeches touched on themes of believing in yourself, never giving up, and finding support from the people you love (ie. parents).  Aga also read a message from Paulette, praising the graduates for completing high school and to follow their dreams.  There was one surprising moment that brought the whole place to a standstill.  The boyfriend of one of the graduates came up on stage, was handed the microphone, but instead, set it aside and got down on one knee.  After composing herself from the shock and surprise, she took the ring and said yes.  There were a lot cheers from the audience.

            

The ceremony ended the same way it began.  While "I Believe" played over the loud speakers, the graduates walked down the black path as the audience clapped and cheered.  They  stopped at the back of the hall so that people could personally congratulate them.  Several minutes later, the cake was brought out, and photos were taken of the graduates cutting off pieces.  The cake was devoured by everyone in a matter of minutes.  The celebrations would continue into the night, starting with the grad dance.