SEAL SKIN BACK PACK ....BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Be careful what you say!!! Last NOVEMBER we were at the annual Nome Craft Fair…actually they call in “Black Saturday” instead of “Black Friday” the day after Thanksgiving….in this instance the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Well, there was a sweet little lady there selling a seal skin back pack….and I commented on how I LOVED that backpack and how beautiful it was….and asked how much it cost. She matter of factly said $350. In my mind I was thinking YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!!! I told her I would SOMEDAY like to get one so she took my name and number. She had given me her name and number as well. So one day in Dec. I called to ask her and asked how the seal skin back pack making was going…..and if she had made anymore. WELL I GET THIS CALL IN JANUARY SAYING “YOUR BACK PACK IS READY…THAT WILL BE $350” Of course I had to get it…..my integrity is worth everything. I have the most expensive back pack I think I have ever seen. So that is what I used to take my Bible and Sunday School books in last Sunday…I guess it could never be holding a more precious item. Everyone that has seen it has said I got a good deal and how beautiful it is….which it is!! My dream is to get some “mukluks” that is seal skin boots…and this lady knew that….so when I went to pick up my million dollar back pack she said I will have the lady start on your mukluks (they are $800)….I SAID NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I WILL NOTIFY HER WHEN I AM READY!! SHE CALLED ME AGAIN TODAY TO TELL ME SHE COULD HAVE THE LADY START MAKING THEM ….. I TOLD HER AGAIN AS POLITELY AS I POSSIBLY COULD THAT I AM NOT READY TO BUY ANY ANYTIME SOON AND I WILL CALL HER WHEN I AM READY. COULD BE YEARS FROM NOW!!!!!!!!!!
Okay…here is for the big news….I was not going to write about it but I think I will now.
Last week when I was in Savoonga…I always get asked if I have any children at which I always reply with the same answer “The Lord has not blessed us with any children, but one day we hope to adopt a child…we would love to adopt a child from here”…well, not a minute later here comes a pregnant woman who came up to me and said I heard you were looking to adopt a baby. I said yes, but my husband and I really need to pray about it. If you are ever in Nome you are welcome to come to our house for dinner and meet my husband. I ever so politely asked her why she wanted to give the baby up for adoption… she simply said “I have one of each”. Hmmmmmmm She is about 36 weeks pregnant and never once had an OB exam (which all medical care here is totally FREE!). When she thought I might be taking the baby she went to the Savoonga clinic for a pregnancy test…WHAT?? She was so big she was about to pop. They immediately shipped her to Nome. They have a prematernal home here in Nome for all the woman in the villages to fly here at 8 months pregnant to stay till they have their babies. It is VERY nice…like single apartments and all their meals are free! Everything is free! Soooo…..I get this call last Saturday and it was this mother and she said “the baby has dropped…” in other words you will have a baby in few days! I did NOT KNOW what to say!!! Of course Iran and I are not ready at all to take on a baby with no notice…not to mention the legal issues!!!! And apparently this young woman had told the hospital personnel that Lisa the public health nurse was adopting the baby!!!!!! I as so nervous that I asked her if she wanted to go out with me for dinner so I could gently explain we could not take this baby….so we went and she did not know how to even order a sandwich….I was so embarrassed for her…I did not want to embarrass her more by ordering for her---it was very akward …I just kind of told her what they had…and thankfully we got through it. She is from Savoonga…they have no restaurants or anything like that…they have NOTHING in Savoonga…NOTHING…and her native language is Siberian Yupik . Sweet little Tisha was not understanding me and told me…”Just tell me what I need to do”. I knew then this conversation was not working out. So I dropped her back off at the prematernal home and wish her a good weekend.
On Monday morning I went STRAIGHT to social services and told them what had happened. They told me an adoption has to go through the tribe and I could be fired immediately for this. FOR WHAT….I HAD DONE NOTHING WRONG. Social Services said that it would look like …I, someone with power (public health nurse…so highly respected..anyone in the medical field is) talked this young mother into giving me her child! That is what the tribe would think. It is that easy to adopt a child if your are native, but being white…that is a different story. All other family members are asked first if they would like the baby…then all people from that village…and then finally a white person MIGHT have a chance at adoption...but it is not easy. NOR are Iran and ready at this moment with 3 days notice. Diapers here are $65 for a case!!!!!!!!!!! They told me I could not speak to this woman again……which made me so sad, I was so hoping to befriend her….what a mess!!!! I have really been sad about the whole deal. I called my dear friend in Savoonga Rosemary (also known as Noy) and asked her to PLEASE explain to Tisha WHY I was not allowed to speak to her.....Noy will be able to talk to her so at least she knows I do care about her. All I can do is pray for her and hope she knows my heart.
SO MY LESSONED LEARNED YOU MIGHT ASK???? BECAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY……OR YOU MAY HAVE A $350 SEAL SKIN BACK PACK….A NEW BABY OR BE JOBLESS!!!!!