Letter From the Manager

The biggest part of being Inuvialuit to me is sharing our experiences with others. Passing on our knowledge orally in story has been a major part of our culture. Sharing our own lives with others is a healthy way to create community and bond with each other. It is a mission of mine to share my stories with as many people as I can, and I hope that it encourages others to open up as well.

From a young age, I remember being in Rosie Albert’s Inuvialuktun class at Samuel Hearne Secondary School. She would teach us words and phrases of our language, but more importantly, she taught us our culture. We would be learning fun games and ways to pass the time from the old days. She shared her experiences and taught us life lessons about compassion and how to get along.

In past editorials, I have written about the commonalities we share, the struggles, the ambitions and wanting a healthy, vibrant community in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region. Once we break down the stigmas of communicating our emotions with others, we can all grow together.

Recently I did a series of public talks about the benefits of using comedy and performance to spread a message. I was able to share my personal experiences with a group of strangers and it felt great! Some of the participants in my talks came back and shared how my words affected them, so it really made a good connection. In turn, that made me feel great and I have been projecting that in my daily life since then. It sounds so clichéd, but the power of positive thinking has helped me greatly.

There are some around me who might consider me a bit off, somewhat odd or just straight up weird. I am totally okay with that and I agree. I don’t think like a lot of the people around me. It’s almost atypical how I see myself in this world. But it makes me think of something I read a while back. There is no “real” version of you. The way you see yourself is very different from the way you are perceived by those around you. Your parents see you as a different person than, say, your best friend, who then sees you as someone totally different than your spouse or partner. So really, if all these versions of you exist, then what does it matter what anyone thinks of you, because it’s all somewhat different anyways?

Don’t shy away from telling your story the way you want to tell it. Sure, it might not fit the “norms” of society, but at least you’re being true to yourself. And at the end of the day, I think that’s all we truly want: that inner peace, that calmness that we can escape to when things get tough, and of course they always do. But it’s in our blood, it’s in our beings to overcome those adversities. Please explore what it means to be you, because I promise you’re worth more than you think. Until next time, I’m going to be me, so you be you, too.

Dez Loreen

Manager, Inuvialuit Communications Society