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A blog by Bill Hess

Running Dog Publications

P.O. Box 872383 Wasilla, Alaska 99687

 

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Wasilla

Wasilla is the place where I have lived for the past 29 years - sort of. The house in which my wife and I raised our family sits here, but I have made my rather odd career as a different sort of photojournalist by continually wandering off to other places to photograph people and gather information, which I have then put together in various publications that have served the Alaska Native Eskimo, Indian and Aleut communities.

Although I did not have a great of free time to devote to this rather strange community, named after a Tanaina Athabascan Indian chief who knew Wasilla in the way that I so impossibly long to, I have still documented it regularly over the past quarter-century plus. In the early days, my Wasilla photographs focused mostly upon my children and the events they participated in - baseball, football, figure skating, hockey, frog catching, fire cracker detonation, Fourth of July parade - that sort of thing. 

In 2002, I purchased my first digital camera and then, whenever I was home, I began to photograph Wasilla upon a daily basis, but not in a conventional way. These were grab shots - whatever caught my eye as I took my many long walks or drove through the town, shooting through the car window at people and scenes that appeared and disappeared before I could even focus and compose in the traditional photographic way.

Thus, the Wasilla portion of this blog will be devoted both to the images that I take as I wander about and those that I have taken in the past. Despite the odd, random, nature of the images, I believe they communicate something powerful about this town that I have never seen expressed anywhere else. 

Wasilla is a sprawling community that has been slapped down hodge-podge upon what was so recently wilderness of the most exquisite beauty. In its design, it is deliberately anti-zoned, anti-planned. In the building of Wasilla, the desire to make a buck has trumped aesthetics and all other considerations. This town, built in the midst of exquisite beauty, has largely become an unsightly, unattractive, mess of urban sprawl. Largely because of this, it often seems to me that Wasilla is a community with no sense of community, a town devoid of town soul.

Yet - Wasilla is my home and if I am lucky it will be until I grow old and die. Despite its horrific failings, it is still made of the stuff of any small city: people; moms and dads, grammas and grampas, teens, children, churches, bars, professionals, laborers, soldiers, missionaries, artists, athletes, geniuses, do-gooders, hoodlums, the wealthy, the homeless, the rational and logical, the slightly insane and the wholly insane - and, yes, as is now obvious to the whole world, politicians, too.

So perhaps, if one were to search hard enough, it might just be possible to find a sense of community here, and a town soul. So, using my skills as a photojournalist and a writer, I hope to do just that. If this place has a sense of community, I will find it. If there is a town soul to Wasilla, I will document it. I won't compete with the newspapers. Hell no! But as time and income allow, it will be fun to wander into the places where the folks described above gather, and then put what I find on this blog.

 

by 300...

Anywhere within a 300 mile radius of Wasilla. This encompasses perhaps the most wild, dramatic, gorgeous, beautiful section of land and sea to be found in any comparable space anywhere on Earth. I can never explore it all, but I will do the best that I can, and will here share what I find and experience with you.  

and then some...

Anywhere else in the world that I happen to get to, such as Point Lay, Alaska; Missoula, Montana; Serenki, Chukotka, Russia; or Bangalore, India. Perhaps even Lagos, Nigeria. I have both a desire and scheme to get me there. It is a long shot. We shall see if I succeed.

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Saturday
Oct162010

Farewell to Mabel Aiken - a kind, gentle and caring lady

DateSaturday, October 16, 2010 at 7:55AM

This morning, I sit alone in a quiet motel room, yet in my head I hear hymns, sung the Iñupiaq way, and I feel a strong connection to many souls, who on this day will gather together in a church in Barrow to hold services for and pay their respects to a very dear lady by the name of Mabel Aiken. If it were at all feasible, I would be there with them, but it is not.

I wish that I had a picture of Mabel in my laptop computer so that I could post it here, but I do not. I do, however, have this picture of her husband Kunuk and many members of her family and crew at the edge of the lead, as they watch the approach of a bowhead whale.

When I took this picture, Mabel was not physically present, but she was still very much with her family and crew. Back on land, she was busily overseeing the base operations necessary to sustain them on the ice. Through the VHF radio, she kept constant contact and whenever they needed anything, she made certain it was ready to go, to be packed onto a sled and sent out. She cooked, she sewed, she prayed. She gave them encouragement.

She was not physically present on the ice, yet her presence could be felt at all times.

From this time forward, Mabel Aiken will no longer be present in the physical world, yet her spirit will be felt every day. 

Mable was a gentle, kind, soft-spoken, caring woman who was always good to me and I am blessed for having had the opportunity to spend some time with her in this life.

To Kunuk, to all the Aikens and to all those who knew and loved Mabel - may The Creator be with you on this day and bring you comfort and solace, even at those moments when it may seem that comfort and solace cannot be had.

As you sing so beautifully and with such soul and passion:

God be with you, 'til we meet again...

I love you all.

To those readers who never knew her, just know that she lived and that she made the Arctic a warmer place and all the world just a little bit better than it would have been without her.

 

AuthorWasilla, Alaska, by 300 | Comment6 Comments |
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Reader Comments (6)

Bill, thanks for sharing this wonderful recognition and tribute to Mabel. I was sad to hear of her passing.

October 16, 2010 | Unregistered CommenterWendy Warnick

Beautiful Bill. Thank you for telling us about Mabel. She will be missed by ALL.

October 16, 2010 | Unregistered CommenterKathryn Mueller

So sorry to hear of Mabel's passing... I bet she was quite a woman..

October 16, 2010 | Unregistered CommenterRocksee

Bill..I have enjoyed catching up on your recent blogs and they are beautiful. This one is no exception! Your words are eloquent and your picture is so powerful in painting a beautiful picture of an incredible woman. I know she is smiling down on this entry:) Thanks for sharing. Kathy

October 16, 2010 | Unregistered CommenterKathy Carlisle

may she RIP, thank you for sharing this with us

October 18, 2010 | Unregistered Commentertwain12

Thank you so much Bill for remembering the best wife, mother, mother in-law, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, sister in-law, aana, aunt, cousin and friend. She was known for her love for God, family, friends. We will carry her in our hearts and memories and she left a wonderful legacy and now, we must follow in her footsteps and although she had tiny feet, she left big footprints in our hearts forever. We miss her dearly and we thank everyone who came far and close to celebrate her life with love, prayers, songs, flowers, it seemed as if the food never quit? It reminded me of all the cooking mom did over the many years to feed the people of Barrow, it all came back in abundance. Mom reminded us to remember God's promise and that we should shout HALLELUJAH about it because we will see her again one day. Quyanaqpak and may God richly bless you Bill for capturing moments in time through your pictures and stories that would otherwise be lost. Lotsa love from Kunuk Aiken family in Barrow Ak.

October 20, 2010 | Unregistered CommenterJune

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