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A MOST THOUGHTFUL
GIFT Christmas is a very special day for my teammates and me. We always take the day off and enjoy a feast. One year we got big, fat, juicy hamburgers, another time we ate ground turkey, and then there was the year we each enjoyed a big serving of fried liver. Ummm.
It stormed very hard all that night. In the morning none of us wanted to move because we were so cold and thirsty. But Pam made us get up and start pulling the sled. The work helped us warm up a little but I worried. My youngsters, Anna (1992-2007), Sojo (1992-2008), and Roald (1992-2007) were on the team. I knew they would never give up but I was afraid they might die from cold and thirst. After five miserable days, we pulled into Pelly Bay. Everyone was exhausted. We were a very long way from home and I didn’t expect a Christmas feast. But it didn’t matter we were safe and together. On Christmas Day, Pam came down early in the morning with a big burlap bag and a big smile. She told us that the people in Pelly Bay had kindly given us a gift. I watched in amazement as Pam reached into the bag, pulled out a huge fish and gave it to Douggie. Then she gave one fish to Anna, Sojo, Roald, Mighty-Matt, me, Lucy, and Robert. For a moment I stopped munching on my fish and looked over at my youngsters. They’d been through a very tough time, but none of them had given up. I was very proud of them. All my teammates looked happy and healthy as we enjoyed a Christmas feast of this most thoughtful gift from the people of Pelly Bay. Read the Newshound Report by Douggie-Dog right here! |
But one Christmas feast stands
out in my mind as the best of
all. It was the Christmas of 1993. My team was sledding 220 miles
from the town of Gjoa Haven to the village of Pelly Bay. It was
cold, dark and windy every day. One night when we were half way to
Pelly Bay the camp stove broke down and our human, Pam, had no way
to melt snow. We had to eat our food dry and gulp cold snow to get
water.