iirpak...

I have been given an Eskimo name. It's iirpak, pronounced ik-bok. I know it's not spelled like it's pronounced but it is spelled correctly. It's the Inupiat Eskimo word for Big Eyes. Harvey, one of the other students here, said to me one day, "You have big beautiful eyes. I am going to call you "Iirpak" from now on." And some days he does and some days he doesn't. I just feel honored that I was given an Eskimo name so soon. Others have been in Alaska their whole lives and have never received one.