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.” He turned to the pilot as Mac came over.“Thanks for bringing him down in one piece, Mac.The weather turned bad, I was worried.”“My pleasure, Per.Nice kid you’ve got here.Better looking than his old man, too! He was good company.” Mac looked at David and grinned.“But I think at one point, he imagined we were flying upside down! Couldn’t see the sky or the ground.”“You’re lucky I didn’t throw up,” David said.“Next time I go anywhere, I’ll walk.”The incident of a few moments before seemed forgotten as the two men discussed weather conditions before Per turned to David again.“What do you say we go back to the native room for a “mug-up”—that’s what Eskimos call their tea breaks.You’d be surprised how much tea they drink.”“You two have a lot of catching up to do,” Mac said.“I have some mail and packages to bring in, but I’ll be along shortly.” He secured his parka against the storm and left the building.“I remember the tea and the cold,” David said when they were alone again.“I assume most Eskimo villages are about the same as far as culture goes.”“There are a few differences, which you’ll find out.But they do love their tea, especially when their insides are frozen.”“Frozen insides? It gets that cold up here?”“Colder!” Per laughed.“But you’ll get used to the weather, and you’ll soon have tea coming out your ears.There’s nothing more comforting to these people than socializing over a cup of hot tea.On the other hand, some of the men drink home-brews, unless I catch them.A drunk Eskimo is a lazy Eskimo who won’t hunt, and the Hudson’s Bay Company is all about hunting and trading furs.”“I have a lot to learn.” David looked around the room again, noting how rustic and ancient it looked, as though he’d stepped back in time.All the basics for life in Gjoa Haven seemed to be on display in this one area.In a moment of lightheadedness, he was overcome with a feeling of déjà vu.I know this place! But the feeling vanished quickly and he refocused on what Per was saying.“Your two most important lessons will be patience and acceptance.You’ll need both to stay sane in the dark winter months.There’ll be times when you lose your patience, David, but if you don’t accept things the way they are, you’ll be asking for trouble.”Are we going to stand around all day while he gives me the whole history of the Arctic?“Do you still have that little book of Eskimo words?”“I don’t know where it is,” Per said.“I speak Inuktitut fluently now, so I don’t need it.I’ve spent years learning their language.”Not only that, but Per Jansson had even rejected the anglicized version of his name when he reached adulthood, and he’d once held the distinction of being a family man with the Hudson’s Bay Company in remote northern areas reserved for young single men.As a rule, managers never stayed long at one trading post.But Per had been at Gjoa Haven longer than usual after the company moved him from Perry River when Ingrid’s health deteriorated and he returned her to Alberta with their son.“I won’t know how to talk to these people,” David said.“I’m sure I’ll make a fool of myself.”“You’ll do fine,” Per said.“The Eskimos are good teachers.”“Do they speak other languages?”“Some speak English, a little French.Most prefer their own language.”Per led David into a small room at the back of the store, speaking as he went.“The Eskimos are friendly, but they’re people with problems like anyone else: illnesses, blood feuds, hunger.Religious taboos, a shaman’s black magic.It’s a hard life but they deal with it.Some of us aren’t so lucky.” He motioned to one of two tables with checkerboards set up.“Have a seat.This is where Eskimos come to socialize and play games.I’ll brew some tea while you give me the family news.”“There’s not much to tell.I went to school and helped on the farm.That’s about it.”David removed his parka and sat down as Per moved quickly from the cupboard to a cast-iron heating stove that radiated warmth into the room.The man talked incessantly, and his hands trembled when he measured tea.“I think you’re going to like it here once you get used to the people and the climate.”“I don’t have a choice, do I?”“Nope.After the plane leaves, you’re stuck until the next mail delivery, and that could be months.You’ll probably feel like a stranger for a few weeks, but I hope you give the place a chance.”“I tried to learn more about Eskimos before I left Peace River.” David studied the game board.“You mentioned black magic, but I think shamanism’s the real thing.One of my friends knew someone whose grandfather was healed by a shaman.”“Is that right?” Per sat down across from his son.“Don’t mess with that stuff, David, it’s hocus-pocus!”“But I don’t see—”“Shamanism’s dangerous.Don’t get involved.” Per changed the subject abruptly, indicating the discussion was closed.“So, how was life on the farm? What did you do?”David couldn’t recall a time when he’d been cut off right in the middle of a conversation, and Per’s comments disturbed him.But what could he do? If he pursued the subject, it would only make things worse.He decided to ignore it, and Per was waiting for an answer.“What did I do? I lifted bulls and baled hay.”Per burst out laughing.“Shoveled manure!”“Yeah, lots of that.”“Gerda didn’t write much,” Per said.“And the mail’s often late because of the weather.So I don’t know much about your life in Peace River.How did they survive the Depression?”“Okay I guess.I don’t remember doing without anything.”Per thought for a moment.“Lars was lucky to keep the farm.”“We didn’t starve if that’s what you mean.But some of my friends had a hard time with their dads out of work.We gave away tons of food.I didn’t think you’d remember Uncle Lars and Aunt Gerda.”“Why wouldn’t I? Lars—big man, country face.And Gerda is—”“Aunt Gerda is as wide as Lars is tall!” David grinned.“Oh, and Mother’s family called me Johnson, not Jansson.”“I’m not surprised
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