Sorry about your sore throat. For a therapist this can be a big handicap. In my previous post I offered some ideas about a spiritual approach to problem solving. I would like to send it to you but don't know how it could be done. Speedy recovery and BTW Di might go first to Australia before NY.

Karl, I have just discovered this thread! I so apologize for my computer blind spots! I'll write you to your email and you can send me your info. I definitely "add" a spiritual component in therapy if any of my clients are spiritual / religious.

Glad to see that your throat did not prevent your participation on SC. Any interest on your part to review my work on psychotherapy?

Dear Rachel: I also wrote you on the other thread.I am offering to send you my CV so you can tap into anything I did or know. I would likle to do it, not only to regain or to merit your respect, but also to help you. As I said before I have fully and with all my abilities supported the caring staff in remote and underserviced regions. As to your comments on spirituality. I studied Comparative Theology and thus I understand and respect the aproaches, rituals and dogmas of a few religions. I also never argue a persons beliefs, except to clarify, IF his beliefs, (accepted or aquired and such which are not only the ones of formal religious origin) distort the perception of the realities of his or her life to a degree that as a result they have troublesome feelings (problems). I believe that in psychotherapy we don't take any biased views. I believe that what I consider "spirituality" in the psychotherapy I practice, simply means to help a client to accept limitations and not to look only for the higher power (including the therapist) for the needed help, but to find,with the help of the therapist, the power in himself.--- NB. I have used this approach with fairly good succes even in poverty and ill health. Best regards Karl

Dear Rachel: It is admirable how you cope with all these difficulties. Nature is so much stronger than we humans are and we have a constant battle for our survival. Only whereas the risks and dangers facing us in our urban and even rural areas are trivial, your life requires constant watchfulness. I assure you that I know what it means even if only from the stories I was told when I used to do my quarter-yearly trips up north. I also looked up on Google where you might be living and also it seem to be inhabited there and thus you have potential support from neighbours it is still very isolated. Hope that you will comtinue to have the strength to tolerate all that with equanimity. You are important for the services there and I am sure your contributions as a Clinical SW are invaluable and probably highly respected. Please be assured of my respect. Have a happy NEW YEAR. Best regards xxxx Karl

Karl, yes it is rural! My husband built his log cabin literally at the end of the road. When we married in 1988 they had continued the road out another 14 miles, with 100's, maybe 1,000's of folks tucked into the woods here and there. (The road ends on at Murphy Dome look out, where you can see for 100's of miles out to Native Villages that can only be accessed by bush plane or dog teams) Many don't have running water (on purpose) since water can freeze and pipes burst and then you have to rip out your walls, They have out houses for a potty and shower in town at the public laundromats or at the athletic club. They don't have electricity often either, but pride themselves on using a gas generator when they need electricity and use a satellite phone when they make a call. Believe it or not, many of these folks are professional teachers, lawyers, doctors and nurses. They pride themselves on the rugged individualism. I am of another type; if my husband had not put running water in the cabin by the time I met him -- he wouldn't have gotten the time of day from me! ha, ha! So glad he did! He showed me his old out house. Just a wooden raised bench sort of thing, no "house". I asked where the "house" part was and he said with great enthusiasm, "that'd spoil the view!!" Having grown up in Phoenix and S. Calif. I am definitely a city girl. It was a very hard adjustment of about 12 yrs. But, anything of value is worth fighting for. The people are beautiful and amazing. The kind who would have gone on the Mayflower to see the New World, or taken the Oregon trail to follow the others "out West".

Karl, LOVE the picture in your avatar! where is that?

I laughed my head of when I read your narrative. I have witnessed this type of living. Unfortunately the heat they generated in their houses was too dry, and as they ventilated little, not to let the precious heat escape, their kids due to the dry overheated air, were having a dry throat, closed Eustachian tubes and consequently middle ear congestion leading to chronic ear problems. I had difficult times convincing them how to remedy the problem and to prevent the horrible suffering their children had to endure. Regarding your house. I had a good view through Google of the whole Tongass area. Regarding my picture. I live just opposite that island. It is called Whitestone Island and we live on Whitestone Rd. If you have Google Earth put in my coordinates 49o 36' 08.3'' N and 124o 02'54.4'' W (the 'o' should be superscript=degree), and you can see the whole area . Our house is just across the Island, you will see about 800 m south of us. Inge and I are kayakers and we kayak around that island and down SE to a point you will see slighly projecting out. This year due to Inge's illness we kayaked less but intend to pick it up soon as now she is really rapidly improving. We have no snow and the temp. is still about 2-3 C. We get a few days below freezing point but the ocean really moderates the climate. When you will see where we live, you will see how far we have come. I was born also in a very harsh climate. My father was an itinerant type of dentist who carried his equipment in a wooden box strapped to his back and he was hiking up and down the hilly area to service the dental needs of the small farmers. The payments then were eggs, some grain, potatoes and if there were dentures to be done, a chicken. We lived in dirt floor cabin up to age 10. We had electricity only when I was about 12. I escaped after the Nazis the Communist dominated Slovakia and lived as a refugee in Vienna. Of course since we are in Canada and I got my Medical degree it was uphill and we are now well. Otherwise, as I said, You are to be admired as you tolerate that harsh life and still be able to help others. You deserve a deep respect. Are you interested to read my way to try to explain motivation of which we are not aware and also how I suggest to explore a person's individua belieef system, and the use of spiritual methods, namely finding the power in oneself to live with the realities as much as possible.etc.? If yes, may I use your mailing address on Glacier? I would then send you some material. But it is neither urgent nor vital. Wish you a happy New Year and just keep warm. Best regards Karl

Karl, your story about your father being paid with eggs, grain, etc. That was the same for us when I was birth to 7 yrs old. My father was a "circuit preacher" in rural Minnesota. He had 3 little churches to take care of, 3 services each Sunday with a few folks in each. He was paid with a bushel of apples, big 50# (I think?) metal milk containers with the cream on the top, boxes of peas, etc. The farmers would just leave their gifts on our back steps by our kitchen. Hobos would ride the nearby trains and come to our house for a sandwich and a cup of coffee or two (in the days before the homeless shelters and food-banks). My Mom once asked a hobo how they knew to come to our house since she had talked to our neighbors and none of them EVER had a hobo knock on their door. He told her that they had a hobo alphabet (sort of a hieroglyphic pictogram code) that they all used to leave notes at the train station for others to find food, stay away from certain homes where they might be run off by a man with a gun, etc. They had scraped on a rock our address and the image of a crude, simple cat shape= "kind lady lives here". I recently found several sites that have the "hobo alphabet" pictographs and sure enough, I found the Kind Lady Cat symbol. Such a sweet memory.

Dear Rachel:This is funny. We were continents apart yet I had the same type of experiences in my early years. We did not have the same type of Hobos but we had nomadic Gipsies and all kinds of nomadic people from the Balkans who were roaming the country, plus the younger sons of the small farmers, who could not inherit (only the oldest son inherited the farm). but had to go out into the world to earn a poor living as itinerant knife sharpeners, tinkers or glaziers. The daughters either married or went into service or if they were brighter into a convent where they could use their intelligence. We had no railroads and thus all these were walking the country, and just like my father with a wooden box strapped on their backs in which they carried their "tools". Some time they could hitch a ride between villages or to the market towns on ox or horse driven wagons. These people also had a code where to go for support or handouts. When I was growing up food was simple. We ate what the soil produced. There was always bread which we baked in our own outdoor killn. The farmers gave us produce in exchange of services. WE had a few chicken a small vegetable garden and a few fruit trees. The countryu was full of mushrooms and berries. We gathered all kinds of herbs in the summer abnd stored potatoes and pickled cabbage for the winter and eggs in calcium solution or water glass etc. We had two cows for milk and a few sheep. We spun our fibre and in winter knitted our sweaters. Onions were plenty for vitamins. (of which we knew little, but we knew that onions and garlic are good for yiu). We were never fully sated but we experienced hunger only during WWII when the German Soldiers commissioned everything and little ws left for the people. During the Communist regime it was also tough as the amount of work ws prescribed and everything was rationed and one needed coupons which were given out as payment for work. Rachel: Life was tough when we were chidren but we did not know anything else. Now I know and my heart aches for everybody who has to experienmce feras and hunger. Unfortunately nowadays people want more than a hunk of bead a piece of bacon and an onjon, which was the food we took when we went out in the fields to cut the hay or gather wood etc. I am growing nostalgic. Yet now I am happy as we are well off and all our children have a job. Dina our second youngest has difficulty findimg permanent jobs but with our help she also manaegs and the other 3 are really well Forgve me for growing maudlin but you rekindled memories of times past. I don't know if you came accross Virgil's Aeneis in your High School yeras. But when he lands in Lybia on his travels and the Queen asks him about his past he answers: Infandum Regina iubes renovare dolorem.... You Queen ask me to renew pain etc. Anyway thank you. It was a nice trip down memory lane. You just remain well and just don' t let the tough life grind you down. Have a good New Year and don't mind me and my memories. Best regards Karl

Karl, what a wonderful walk down memory lane. My dearest young friend (32) was born in Bulgaria in an orphanage and has many memories like yours of the food, traveling very simply by donkey and a cart, cooking on a stove that in the US would be considered an antique. She told me that if the US ever was seriously attacked all the people would die except the immigrants who knew how to live simply. I think all of us should have the survival skills that she has. I had another silly memory about that first day here at our cabin. Besides the outhouse without the "house", Richard said, "hey, I want to show you my bear skull on the roof". (HUH?!) ME: "what in the world are you talking about?" HIM: "well, I shot this bear a few years ago and I wanted to keep the skull but not have to do all the cleaning that usually takes I put it on the roof of the cabin and figured that the sun/ wind/snow/ rain would eventually clean off the bear and just leave the skull". He climbed up onto the roof as I was thinking, "what in the world have I gotten into!?" (honestly, Alaska is not just a different state from the Lower 48, it is a different Planet!!)

Karl and Rachel, I hope you don't mind, but I have been reading your forum posts and this is fascinating. It is such a different life than what my childhood was like and I find this so interesting. Rachel, what did the bear head look like when you saw it. Was it cleaned by the weather?

@dphifer, hi Denise!! Glad you are enjoying our little chatter. That darn bear skull was up there a good 5 more years. I do not understand men! Most of the "true" Alaskans have all sorts of dead critters decorating the outside of the cabin/house. Our next door neighbor has at least 20 stuffed heads with horns, etc. nailed on his garage and front of his house (and he is an accomplished chemistry degree fellow!). You would think an animal mortuary set up shop over the whole state! (PLEASE, IF YOU ARE A 'Save The animal person", DO NOT GO ON AND ON WITH ME ABOUT IT. I totally agree with your right to live how you do and expect the same from you for me. thanks) Denise, did you know people EAT BEAR? I was shocked to hear that. Turns out they taste like whatever they have eaten; i.e., dead fish makes it's meat taste like dead fish. The University of Alaska, Fairbanks, did a study on how to cheaply feed livestock, and so they got a bunch of beat up chum salmon to feed the pigs. The meat was un-eatable to humans and they fed sled dogs (dog mushing) with the pork. It tasted like FISH BACON!

Your life is just amazing! And no, I did not know people eat bear. I believe I stick to my regular bacon - the fish bacon comment just turned my stomach Happy New Year and many blessings to you and your family!

I join Denise in wishing yiu and the bear eater all the best for 2013. BTW. I ate already worse food than fish bacon, but as you know, food was scarce and one often ate what was available. I shall write you soon to continue your stories. Regards Karl

Karl, I have just read and re-read your story. It is very moving... how your family worked so hard and VALUED the food and simple things. I am grateful every time I meet an immigrant to the US. There are lots of Russians, Vietnamese, Samoans, Koreans, Thai, and Mexicans in Alaska. They work like crazy doing 2 jobs at a time and little sleep. I wish they would rub off on the "lazy Americans" who have been here for generations and just blended in with everyone and sort of lost the values that once made America great. I thank every immigrant I meet, seriously!

Thank you Rachel for your sentiments. It was not that tough. We did not know that any different life exist anywhere. When we were growing up there was no radio. I constructed a crystal type receiver on which I heard some noises and the occasional word. We were rich compared to te itinerant tinkers and the nomadic people. We eve had a hand cranked record player on which we heard some scratchy songs if we kept the player kranked.up all the time. We heard occasionally some stories about people who immigrated to the States and made it and became prosperous. But we were not unhappy and did not believe that the work was too hard. More later as I have some questions to ask you. Love Karl

Did the tremors affect you?. I understand that it is not uncommion to have earthquakes in that region? Is otherwuise everyth8ing OK? I had computer troubles and was not on yestreday. Are you very busy? If you have some time to write I would like to ask you a few questions about some information in one of your prior postings. Regardfs Karl

Karl, until I read this right now (8:45PM Sat night, Jan 5th) I had no idea we had a 7.5 earthquake! I just googled quakes in Alaska and saw that big number. One of the problems (or one could also see it as a blessing?) is that the state is so darn BIG that we are very far away from each other. If Alaska was placed on top of a map of the Lower 48 states our Northern border would touch Canada, our southern border would touch Mexico, and the long sweep of South Western volcanic islands would touch Southern California and the lower southeast sweep of land/islands is a rain forest that would touch Florida! "Yes", to answer your question, "we are OK". When we had the biggest quake in over 150 yrs. in all of North America in 2003 (the Denali Fault Quake of 2002 if you Wikipedia the event) no one was hurt, thank God! I am actually fairly sensitive (i.e. scared) re: quakes since I lived in S. Calif. for 10 yrs before coming to Alaska. Thanks for asking, Karl. So kind. (When the Tokyo earthquake happened a year or so back a friend called me and left a worried message as to our safety in the event of a tsunami. I was very touched.)

Thank you for answer. I knew that Alaska is big but the imagery you posted makeb it so much clearer. .Hope that you continue to be well.