Welcoming the sun’s return

Cambridge Bay elders Bessie Pihuak Omilgoetok, left, and Mary Akariuk Kaotalok, who are both in their 80s, celebrate the return of the sun by following the same tradition that Omilgoetok learned from her grandparents, on Wednesday, Jan 13. “The practice is to have a drink of water to welcome and honour the sun so it always comes back and then throw the water towards the sun for it to return again,” the Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq, or Kitikmeot Heritage Society, said in a social media post. “We do this in honour of our ancestors, traditions, culture and language. We will do this every year to keep this tradition going in celebration of who we are as a people: Inuinnaujugut.” (Image courtesy of Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq / Kitikmeot Heritage Society)