Angaangaq refers to himself as an Eskimo. When I first met him he was dressed in traditional clothes wearing a fur skin, beating the great drum and singing with his full, deep voice. He looked exactly like an Eskimo from one of my childhood picture books. Read more
Angaangaq, whose name means “The Man Who Looks Like His Uncle,” is an Eskimo-Kalaallit Elder. Fondly known as “Uncle,” his family belongs to the healers and WisdomKeepers of the Far North. From Kalaallit Nunaat Greenland, Uncle is a healer whose traditions of storytelling, chanting, Qilaut drumming and performing ceremony are directed at Melting the Ice in the Heart of Man. “Uncle” is an internationally recognized Elder among native communities and a keynote speaker at international conferences and symposia on environmental and indigenous issues. His work in personal and global transformation has taken him to five continents and over 40 countries. Read more
Several years ago I had the privilege of experiencing a woman melt the ice in the hearts of people in her midst with the simplest of gestures. On a Monday morning, I arrived at a bus station at the bottom of Mt. Washington in the heart of LA. The streets were fairly vacant with the exception of an older woman sitting at the bus stop. I greeted her and inquired if she knew much about the bus schedules. She glared at me as I asked her about what bus would take me to the train station and after sizing me up, she barked out the bus number. Her expression made it clear that no further inquiries would be welcome. Read more