Finding the lost pieces
Thinking we were going to last
led to my despair.
You left, and became my past
this truth left me bare.
Tears on my face
rolling down like a waterfall.
Need your embrace
to pull me from this hole.
Heart as hard as a stone
the chills I felt in my bones.
I could not comprehend
how we came to this bitter end.
A question was asked
until it never stopped.
This man, at last,
filled the gap.
You are the unexpected,
the unforeseen event.
Yet my heart accepted
like you were meant.
I’ve been living here in Canada for almost three years now but this was my first time visiting Mont-Tremblant, a popular ski resort in Québec, during the Canadian Family Day weekend.
We left Ottawa at 8:30 AM, a little later than our goal departure time which should have been 30 minutes earlier. #FilipinoTime kicks in.
The 2-hour drive went smooth despite the cold breeze and fog on the road.
We arrived at nearly 12 noon and the resort was already in full swing.
As we look for a parking spot, I looked through the window and saw people in thick snow suits walked past us holding their ski and snowboard equipments, with their children beside them also dressed ready for the sport.
Just behind our parking space is a ski beginners slope. As a first timer, watching them slide down the mountain of snow and gracefully halt to a stop excites me and sparks my admiration for them.
It’s a beautiful sight to see.
Then we walked to the entrance and below was the first decent pic I took of the resort:
The sky looks warm and bright and it was indeed a good day.
After taking some shots on the sled at the front, which is purposely for picture taking, we climbed the upper part of the resort through this free cable car ride:
The view as we go up becomes even more stunning.
When we reached the top, a sea of people welcomed us. Some were skiing down from the top of the mountain, some waiting in line for the main cable car to take them back to the top, some await for their child to reach the bottom, some just strolling around, and some just enjoying the view and capturing the scenery with their phones.
The view was breathtaking. It was one of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen in my 17 years of existence. Families after families pass by to either ride the cable car going up to where we could sit, eat, and enjoy the warmth of the cabin, or ride down to get some warm coffee at Starbucks.
It was such a beautiful, sunny day in the mountain. Looking forward to going back next year and, hopefully, I already know how to ski or snowboard. Thanks Mont-Tremblant!
Nestled within the icy landscapes of the Arctic regions of North America – encompassing Alaska in United States of America, Greenland and parts of Russia – the rich and unique cultural heritage of the Inuit people thrives. Traditionally, Inuit (meaning “the people” in the Inuktitut language of the Inuit) have relied on hunting, fishing, and gathering for survival in the harsh Arctic climate. They have depended on seals, walruses, whales, fishes, and birds for their food source, cultivating a deep respect and connection to their land. This relationship with the land and animals and their daily struggles have greatly influenced their unique artistic styles and inspired the creation of useful inventions that continue to be useful today with the same purpose. The different Inuit communities all share common values, language, and artistic traditions, except for the dialects that vary between location or region. In Canada, the three main Inuit languages are Inuvialuktun, Inuinnaqtun, and Inuktitut with their own dialects. They use their own dialects to identify themselves from one another.
In this post, the evolution of Inuit artworks dating back from the pre-colonial contact until the contemporary period will be explored.
The pre-colonial contact (pre-historic period1000-1492 CE)
Pre-historic Inuit snow goggles, 1000-1600 CE, Inuit artist unknown, made of Walrus ivory.
Inupiaq snow goggles, 1961, made by Austin Thomas from caribou hoof, seal skin, and sinew, Kivalina, Alaska.
In the Arctic, Inuit people had to be resourceful to survive their extreme environment. One of the many inventions that helped them survive while hunting or travelling on ice were snow goggles. It protected their eyes from snow blindness, a condition caused by glare from UV rays reflecting off of snow. It can be made of antler, bone, wood, or ivory. This “pre-historic Inuit snow goggles” (top image) made by an unknown Inuit artist between 1000-1600 CE was made of Walrus ivory. They were crafted meticulously and with deep cultural significance, offering us a glimpse of their life in the past. They feature narrow, horizontal slits and are fitted tightly against the face of the wearer to allow the light to enter only through the front slit. The “Inupiaq snow goggles” (bottom image) made in the 1961 by Austin Thomas from caribou hoof, seal skin, and sinew is another style of snow goggles from Kivalina, Alaska. The materials used to create this protective equipment came from their surrounding environment which represents their intelligence, resourcefulness, and their deep respect for their land and animals because they make use of every part of the animal they hunted. It also represents their daily struggles in the past and how they had to rely on their hunting skills to have access to these materials. These snow goggles are a timeless invention continue to be useful today in extreme winter sports like snowboarding and skiing to protect the wearer from the wind, cold, sun, and debris.
Carved figures and baleen box, before 1500, Inuit artist unknown, baleen, wood, ivory.
Another common type of artwork during this time are carved animals made of wood. The carved figures depicted above was made by an unknown Inuit artist before the 1500s. This is a common cultural aesthetic observed in Indigenous art pieces because of the all Indigenous people’s connection to the land, nature, and animals. These small carved figures show the Inuit men’s (traditionally, only men were allowed to carve objects) great skills in carving wood because Another item depicted above is a baleen box made of baleen material sourced from bowhead of whales. This box is used for thrust-feeding whales to trap fish in their mouth while allowing the water to be expelled.
During colonial contact (historic period from 1700s to 1940s)
The historic period began in the mid 1700s until the 1940s. This period for Inuit people was the start of their interaction with traders, whalers, and sailors, and their introduction to trade and souvenir art. The traditional Inuit art began changing, becoming less traditional due to influence from European traders who came after the Hudson’s Bay company started fur trade in the 1830s. In the middle of 1800s, many art crafted by the Inuit were made for the ‘tourist’ market and traders because of the demand and their reluctance to sell their traditional objects.
The Inuit’s unique creations were made for personal use and kid’s entertainment that the European traders found interesting. Inuit’s artifacts include carvings, dolls, ornaments, clothing, needles and thread, and more. These are often made of driftwood, animal bones, and ivory. This ornament entitled “Eskimo Ornament” made by an unknown Inuit artist in the 1880 was made of ivory and originated from the Marble Island region, West Coast of Hudson Bay in Nunavut. Another creation is a “Toy Seal” made of ivory in 1916 by an unknown artist from Chesterfield Inlet also in Nunavut.
Eskimo Ornament, 1880, Inuit artist unknown, ivory, Marble Island region, West Coast of Hudson Bay, Nunavut.
Toy Seal, 1916, Inuit artist unknown, ivory, area around Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut.
Carved Narwhal Tusk (top), circa 1900-60, unknown Inuit artist, narwhal ivory
This Carved Narwhal Tusk made between the 1900 and 1960 was made of narwhal ivory. This is a tool used by Inuit hunter to “help pry a sledge from the ice” according to Dr. Martin Nweeia, a scientist who conducted the Narwhal Tusk Research.
Post-colonial contact (contemporary period from 1940s to present)
The contemporary period represent Inuit arts made after 1949 which mainly includes printmaking, drawings, and paintings, but carvings are still popular as shown below.
Kayak Hunter, 1962, Eleeshushe Parr, Inuit, print, stone cut
This print in stone cut was entitled “Kayak Hunter” made in 1962 by Eleeshushe Parr, an Inuit graphic artist in Cape Dorset. This print represent the Inuit’s lifestyle of hunting fish and other sea animals for food, tools, and clothing. Seal, whales, walrus, and polar bear were the most common sea mammals they hunted. The kayak represent a traditional technology used mainly for hunting rather than as a means of transport to survive in the harsh Arctic environment.
Drummer, 1974, Davie Atchealak, whale bone, green stone, antler, scraped sealskin, and sinew.
This sculpture of called “Drummer” was made by Davie Atchealak, an Inuit artist from Ikirasak camp, Northwest Territories in 1947 and moved to Iqaluit, Nunavut in 2006. This detailed artwork represent their culture and tradition in the past where they would gather around a drum dance. This specifically represent the drum dance in the winter because the man is stripped to the waist, showing how physically demanding drumming was. He wanted to show how the lifestyle of Inuk (singular of Inuit, referring to person) was hard which gave those muscles.
Qilalugaq (Narwhal), 2014, Ruben Komangapik, Inuit, narwhal tusk, sterling silver, polar bear claw, sperm whale tooth, muskox horn, blood stone and baleen, from Iqaluit, Nunavut.
This “Qilalugaq” meaning Narwhal is made in 2014 by Ruben Komangapik, born in 1976 in Iqaluit, Nunavut, using common traditional Inuit materials such as narwhal tusk, sterling silver, polar bear claw, sperm whale tooth, muskox horn, blood stone and baleen. This artwork represents his connection with his ancestors and culture who also used these materials found in nature.
Today I turned 21, yet nothing has changed. In 2020, I celebrated my birthday with only my family, the first in my 20 years of existence that I did not get to celebrate with friends. Jokes on me for thinking this year will be any different. Anyways, I just came here to share that I sometimes forget I even had my 20th birthday. This year, I am hoping that I will remember my 21st even if it did not go according to my plan. I might go hiking in a nearby trail with my family. I have yet to decide where we will go. I am craving for the smell of trees, the feel of soil under my shoes, and the heat of the sun over my head. Just the feeling of being close to nature and seeing the wonders around me make everything a little better. Cheers to all April babies! Have fun and stay safe! ♡
Her eyes lost its shine
Her smile barely reached her ear
Her laugh wasn’t as pure
But then you came and changed her world.
Because of you
Her face lights up
Her smile grows bigger as days pass by
Everything she sees reminds her of you
Everything she thinks of relates to you
You are the reason she is smiling again.
It’s been so long since the last time we talked.
You and I would be on the phone all night long,
laughing at each other’s joke, not minding the time difference.
At that moment, I was the happiest.
You made me feel all different kind of emotions.
You were easily one of the closest to me,
one of the few that I trusted my heart with.
But what we had is all gone now.
It has become one of those memories that
once happened but never again.
10.13.18
When you walked into my life I was whole.
When you looked into my eyes I was loved.
. . . .
When you didn’t look back I was hurt.
When you left, you left me shattered.
. . .
You came in and completed me,
but you left without knowing it would break me.
People die everyday.
I just didn’t expect that one of them would be you.
My Lola Tinang,
My Tito Jimmy,
and now my Tito Arnel.
May you all Rest In Peace.
I left when everything was good
I left for something better
I left with things still familiar
I left, hoping nothing’s gonna change
I left with the thought that no one goes without coming back
I left, our friendship still intact
I left, our family still complete
One year have passed
Something changed
We lost two,
And I also lost you.
A notification from you makes me smile.
Your words make me laugh.
Your jokes never get old.
Whenever we talk it always feel warm and bright.
You are my happy pill and I need my daily dose of you.
Photographs and Alphabets 