Alaskan winter

You know it is funny. Every time I talk with someone in the lower 48 they always ask how cold it is. I wonder when this question will get old. The funny thing is is that I am not the only Alaskan to be asked that. People in the lower 48 think that there is always snow on the ground, it is always below zero, we wear skins for clothes, and we travel by dog sled. This may be true for some of the Natives and outlying villages, but where we live it isn't true. We are in an area where we take care of our own though. I love this mentality compared to the lower 48 and even in the Anchorage area. Not to say that I wouldn't love to live like that, but there are some things you can live without!

We have sure learned allot having been in Barrow for two years. You learn what you can live without and how to make friends. Up here you don't always have your extended family around you and the people that you meet become your family because they are in the same place as you. We lived in a small town in the lower 48 for 5 years and could say we really didn't know a single person. We lived in Barrow for 2 years and I have some of the greatest friends I have ever found. Misery loves company as they say!
Our pastor asked me if I liked Barrow and I have to say that, "Yes, I loved Barrow without a doubt." It has it's downsides but I learned so much. There were mountains and valleys to walk through and I had to learn to see myself. Barrow is a place that you meet yourself in. It's not glamorous, it's not exciting, but there was a reason the Lord had us there. It is definitely a place where you either get to know God or you run away. Winter in Alaska is sure a time for that. At least where we are now I can drive somewhere. Thank God for the automobile.