"Just Kidding" -- Report from Kuujjuaq

Hello dear blog readers!

Today, I am writing to you again from Kuujjuaq in Nunavik, a region in Quebec's far north.

I'm here with my friend, Thomas Kneubuhler, an artist who works with photography. We are spending the week with Cyril's Sec. V students at Jaanimmarik School, helping them put together a chapter for the next edition of Quebec Roots: The Place Where I Live, a book that will be published thanks to the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation. 

The reason why I called today's blog entry "Just kidding" is that that is one of the expressions Cyril's students use most. Especially the girls like Lucina and Sianna. Often, after they say something really SMART, they add, "Just kidding!"

The students are writing and shooting photos that have to do with meeting-up places in their community. I've been teaching them how to use details in their writing, how to make readers laugh and cry, and how to transport readers to Kuujjuaq! But perhaps most importantly, I want to teach these young people to trust their own voices.

One small happy moment came for me when I was putting the words, "In the old days" on the blackboard and one of the guys called out to say they'd never use that expression: "We'd say 'back in the day.'" You can't imagine how quickly I erased "In the old days" and replaced it with "Back in the day"! It does sound way better, don't you think?!

This morning, one of the students wrote about how, for him, going to the gym is more about having a healthy lifestyle than meeting people. He wrote about how he used to drink too much. Here's my favourite line from his piece: "I started to notice that people were treating me like I was a joke." Do you see what I mean about voice here? Just reading the words gives you a sense of the lovely intelligent young man who wrote them.

I have one more thing to tell you in today's blog entry! Last night, we went to the movie theater at the town hall for a special screening of the documentary Urban Inuk, made by Inuk filmmaker Jobie Weetaluktuk, The movie is about three Inuit living in Montreal. Two of them have it really rough; the third turned her life around and is now helping other Inuit in the south.

What made the night extra-special is that Jobie was there for the screening! He talked about the challenges of being a filmmaker. "I've made five films. I always say this will be the last one," he told the audience. But then he admitted that he can't stop being creative! "It's hard to give up," he said. And then he laughed -- a wonderful warm Inuk-style laugh that comes from working through hard times and still being able to find humour and joy. Can you tell why I love it up here so much?