Special People I Have Met

People in Alaska are interesting to me. Being the typical New Yorker that I am, I tend to jaywalk. The cars always stopped and waited for me to cross, never honked or got mad. Restaurant workers let tourists use their bathrooms even if they weren't customers and the bouncer in a bar even apologized for not carding my group while he carded the group in front of us.

One of the people we met was a guy named Sam. He is a Native American, living in a little town about 250 miles north of Denali. He is a leader of his community, has a master's degree in urban development and is working to keep his culture alive in his community. I know it is a prejudice, but most of us do not think of Native Americans this way. Sam spoke to a group on a tour in Denali. He explained his culture and the reasons he is the leader--because of his intellect and education, not because his father and grandfather were leaders. The guy was great. The vest, gloves and hat were all hand made by his mother.

Brian was the tour guide that brought us to the park. He has two masters degrees and loves plants. His mother and brother both died young and he decided that he is not going to die without experiencing life. He worked various jobs all over the country and came to Alaska as a cook. (His father complained about him wasting his expensive education.) After people met him, he moved from kitchen to security to bus driver. He knew everything about the plants and the animals we saw. He was interesting and knowledgeable. His next move is a PhD program in Australia.

My favorite person was Chuck. Chuck is a Broadway actress that we met on a catamaran tour to the glaciers. She lives in a heat less cabin. To take a shower, she has to heat rain water and then mix it with cooler water. Her shower cannot take more than 3 minutes because that is all the hot water she has. Her bathroom is an outhouse. Right now, she works in Alaska every other year. If she signs a contract to come back and an acting job comes along, she turns it down. She said that acting is a job, working in Alaska is living.

Sara is a 21 year old service representative from Chicago. She is working at the Princess Patter in Mt. McKinley because it is the only way she can afford to be in Alaska. She lives for her minutes off and sits and stares at the beauty around her. The day I met her was the day the mountain was in view. Instead of running around and taking care of her nails, hair, etc, she sat and stared in wonder at the mountain.

I could go on and on forever about the people I have met. I was in MGM shoes this afternoon and listened to a mother and daughter oohing and aahing over bargain shoes, shoes that were just like 30 other pairs sitting in their closet at home. I left without buying or even trying anything on. I know I can never be a nature person but I don't want to be like these women either. I want to enjoy all the beauty that earth has to offer.