Bar study and snowflakes

I figured I should post something, just so you know we are all doing fine. Terrence is busily studying for the Alaska Bar. He will fly to Anchorage for a week on the 21st to take it. The school year is moving along, Jamie is doing well in all of his subjects. He is making leaps and bounds in reading right now, he has started reading everything he sees, including his Gatorade bottle, "Mom what does p-o-t-t-a-s-i-u-m spell?" I took James and his friend to a play last weekend, The Bethel Actors Guild put on the "Wizard of Oz" and it was pretty good.

It has been snowing a lot lately, and the temperature has been pretty cold but not horrible. I think everyone everywhere is getting tired of winter, so you can probably imagine how we feel here. James and I are dreaming of some far off camping trip, when it is warmer. He is also dreaming, like a lot of the kids in Bethel, of going to Chuck E Cheese or the indoor water park in Anchorage. Terrence's co-workers claim that to maintain sanity one must leave Bethel at least once every six months, I suppose that means Jamie and I are due for a bout of craziness any time now.

Surprisingly, we are still doing just fine. It is hard not to feel fortunate for what we do have when we see so many people experiencing hardship around us. Terrence and I are constantly trying to get a handle on the cultural decimation we see going on here, the breakdown in family structure, the loss of so many different things. As outsiders, we understand so little of what is really happening, or what needs to happen to make it better. We are simaltenously worried and in awe, because this culture is truly unique and impressive and is undergoing so many changes.

The planning for Camai is getting underway. It is a dance festival held here in Bethel, lots of local and regional dance groups perform. This picture is from the festival in 2007. From what I hear it is a really nice event. Here is a link to a web site about it, www.bethelarts.com.