Elisapee Ishulutak on Traditional Medicine, White Ravens and Animal Health

English Transcript: Back then, nobody hardly got sick because we were the only family out there. Nowadays, everyone is mingling amongst communities, and we get sick. It was not like that before. Sometimes we would get sick and use things from the land to heal us, like mushrooms and their powder and longs from a rabbit we'd use as band-aids, and tissue from ujuk fat. We'd take the fat out and use the tissue for big cuts. They're the best. For myself, I had a burn and it was healed by an ujuk tissue. The ujuk fat is the best.

I've seen it a leg broken. They put two sticks beside it. I forget who it was. They wrapped and tied it. I was just a child. I forget who he was.

Yes, our parents used to talk to us. The white raven will turn white. And so, I've seen the white raven, it is said they will turn white. It was said to us and now they are turning white. They're just following the environment. (Silamik malikamik)

Our mother use to tell us when ravens turn white and she'd say that when they turn white, you'll have it. When ravens turn white, I wondered what it was.

These young sea gulls, we don't eat them anymore. They were the only birds to eat. Even adult sea gulls, we ate them all. That time, they were not eating garbage, that's when they're inedible. They're eating garbage.

No, seal skins are the same, but they seem to be softer now when you're working on it. In the past, they were all the same. To me, they are different now.