HANDBOOK FOR

BY SIDNEY STEPHENS

“In the winter in Selawik, if it's clear and cold, -20° or -30°F, maybe there are a few clouds but it's nice and calm. The wind isn't supposed to blow now. If the wind starts to blow when it's not supposed to, people gathered maybe in the store will say "ooo, cold". In Iñupiat they say qiunaurauqtuq which means he's beckoning the storm. You know it will be stormy—blowing, drifting snow. It makes you decide to stay home. Animals will stay home too. This is very reliable.”

Jonas Ramoth, Iñupiaq Elder