Living Dangerously

Well that's what I get for living dangerously. I went on a cruise to Alaska and got Covid. I had intended to wear a mask at least on the plane, but then I forgot to grab it with my suitcases. Most of the cruise I was fine, if cold, but then I got a scratchy throat and fever one night. But the next morning the fever was gone, so I figured it was only a mild cold. But eventually it came back harder with chills, hacking coughs, and a runny nose. I've never sneezed so suddenly and violently either. When I got home, a test confirmed it was Covid. So I guess I should have been more careful.

But I did like seeing Alaska, visiting some real life places I'd seen on Molly of Denali such as Sitka, Glacier Bay, and Juneau. We remained in the southeastern "Inside Passage" region, so too far south to see any Northern Lights or Denali itself. On one excursion to Icy Strait Point (near Hoonah) I watched a tribal show featuring 4 or 5 creation myths about Raven. One older man played the drum and narrated, while the younger guy wore a mask and cape to act out Raven stealing the sun, moon, and stars to light the world. He did a very good Raven caw, and multiple costume changes. After the show the young man explained that they were trying to raise money to go to Celebration in Juneau, which they hadn't been to since Covid hit. They must have already missed the one in June this year, so they must be fundraising for 2026. As I left the theatre, I happened to look up and see two ravens perched on the roof of a building opposite. I tried to get a picture, but my phone's camera couldn't zoom enough to distinguish the two ravens, so they blended together.

This was the best I could do at zooming in and photo editing afterward. See the 2nd beak, and how fat the bird is? That's because it's two different birds perched close together.

Oh, and the tribal show mentioned that the trickster Raven used to be white, until he got stuck in a smoke hole and turned black from the soot. At the time I thought this white color to be purely mystical symbolism, but now I've read that white ravens do indeed exist, and Anchorage has one. I hope that this is a good omen for the world. Thank you to all the indigenous peoples who took care of the world for so long, and are continuing to care for it when governments don't impede them. Let's hope the rest of us start to be good stewards in time to save the world.