Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk - Sanaaq - An Inuit Novel

Qalingu no longer hunted because his wife was very weak and because he tended to tire quickly, having long been inactive. His son was now in good health. The child was glad not to have gone away and to have his mother back.

Qumaq too was glad, even though her mother was still so weak. She made a top out of an old sewing spool. With an ulu, she cut out a piece of wood to make a peg for the top and a piece of cardboard to make it spin. She handed it to her brother, saying, “Here’s a toy for you!”

Sanaaq’s condition was deteriorating, so her camp mates came to pay a visit.

“ Qatannguuk! ” said Aqiarulaaq. “You’ll have to go away again. It’s important for you to recover completely.”

“It sure is. I can’t sleep at night. I can’t eat and I’m again having pains, more acute than before.”

Qalingu went to tell the Qallunaat.

“My wife is ill again. Maybe she didn’t get enough treatment… If she has to be taken away again, I’ll be unhappy, but she’s suffering a lot and I don’t want her to die!”

“If she’s very ill,” he was told, “we won’t be able to treat her here. She’ll have to be taken away again, perhaps as soon as tomorrow.”

Qalingu, saddened that nothing could be done locally, added, “I really am the one to blame. A while ago, I hit her when she was behaving badly. I hit her without meaning to hurt her and it’s my fault if she’s not doing well now. If she must leave, I’d like to go with her!”

“You can’t go with her. You’re not ill. Only Sanaaq has to go. She should get better this time, and you’ll not be held accountable as long as you don’t repeat the same offence.”

Qalingu went home and said, “ Aippaa! You’ll have to be taken away again, but this time you’re going to be cured completely!”

“Alright, if that’s what has to happen, even though it doesn’t please me at all!”

When a plane arrived, she was taken away to the hospital where she would be treated.

“As soon as you’re cured,” she was told, “you’ll go home. Don’t bother yourself about having to be taken away!”

She nonetheless longed for her family. Whenever Inuit, either men or women, are sent to hospital for treatment, they are always very anxious to return home. They fervently wish to return to their loved ones. They miss the country food and suffer from staying in an overheated place. Sanaaq, after being in pain for a long time, now noticed a daily improvement in her health. She and the other Inuit were happy, for they were being well taken care of. Yet they dearly wanted to go home. They preferred their country, where there was no overheating. Sanaaq was thankful to the nurses and the hospital, her pains having gone. But she could not forget her son. She thought continually about him, from the moment she got up to the moment she went to bed.

After a long while, Sanaaq regained much of her strength, so much so that she often went for walks outside. She was back in shape and would soon be going home. Out of affection for her, the other Inuit at the hospital came to see her off on the day of her departure.

Her folks were likewise very happy to have her back. Everyone was on hand to greet her when the plane arrived. She herself was happy to be finally back with her family, but she was also tired from the trip and, since it was late, her whole family decided to go to bed. Sanaaq tried to sleep but could not. All kinds of thoughts came to mind.

“If my son had died, how would I have reacted? Maybe that would’ve broken me… Had he been the one to go away, I would’ve been shattered…”

She eventually fell asleep, late at night. She had an uqumangirniq. Her body became paralyzed and she dreamed that someone very bad was trying to enter her home. Still asleep and dreaming, she heard footsteps in the entranceway. She opened her eyes in her sleep and then tried to shut them, but could not. She feared seeing a big tuurngaq, but her body was frozen. Unable to close her eyes, she thought, “I’ll shut my eyes as soon as I see something!”

Another thought crossed her mind, with her eyes now closed: “Maybe if I tried to move during the uqumangirniq, I’d actually move and I’d break free of it…”

She made an abrupt movement in her sleep, while dreaming that the big tuurngaq who had been trying to enter had succeeded and was now grabbing hold of her. Increasingly afraid, she tried to kick her feet and move her body. And so, bit by bit, she managed to move and come out of her deep sleep.

“I really had an uqumangirniq, ” she told herself, “and if I just roll over onto my other side I won’t have another one!”

But before she could roll over, she fell asleep again and had a new nightmare. Fear took hold of her and she let out a scream. She tried to talk but could made no sound… Qalingu, who was sleeping beside her, finally awoke and saw her trying to talk while the rest of her body remained still. He grabbed her by the hand and tried to wake her.

“What’s wrong with you, Sanaaq?”

“Oh, thank you! I’ve been having nightmares all night long… I wanted to roll over onto my other side but was just too drowsy… I dreamed that a tuurngaq was trying to grab me… I had the impression he was really there… If I had managed to roll over, I think I would’ve snapped out of it!”

The next morning, everyone woke up, but Sanaaq was still groggy from lack of sleep. She spent the whole day not wanting to do anything.

Qumaq was growing up. She was now a young woman. Her brother too had grown up and was almost old enough to think for himself. His father had bought him a qukiutiaruk, and he was going to fire it for the first time. He took aim at a stone and completely missed it five times… His mother watched closely, fearing the recoil might throw him back. Sanaaq told Qalingu, “My son shouldn’t fire too many times. He might hit someone by accident!”

“It’s better if he’s trained to shoot now,” answered Qalingu. “Otherwise, when he reaches adulthood he might be thrown off-balance even more and lack judgment. By then, it’ll be harder for him to learn.”

“ Ai! ” said Sanaaq.

Her son took his new rifle and went hunting for aqiggit with his sister Qumaq. When they reached a small plain, Qumaq was the first to see a ptarmigan.

“Look, little brother. An aqiggiq. Are you going to shoot? Look over there!”

He fired.

“Yes, I got it, little sister! I broke its wing!”

Both brother and sister ran after the injured bird. With its broken wing, the ptarmigan could no longer fly… They ran for a long time, holding back their shouts of glee, so as not to lose sight of it… The little brother finally caught hold of the bird.

“I caught an aqiggiq! I got my first aqiggiq! Come, let’s go home, little sister!”

“Yes! Let me carry your rifle. It must be very heavy!”

“Go ahead!”

They came home and walked in. Their mother was inside. When her son opened the door, she said, “This aqiggiq, are you the one who killed it?”

“Yes!” answered her son.

“He killed the aqiggiq after hurting it in the wing,” recounted Arnatuinnaq.

“ Suvakkualuk! ” said Sanaaq. “We’ll quarter it, all of us together. First take it to his arnaquti! ”

Sanaaq went to Ningiukuluk’s place. She entered and said, “Your angusiaq has just killed his first aqiggiq! ”

“I’m so delighted to hear that! We’ll all quarter it together… I’ll hold the head of the first aqiggiq of my angusiaq! ”