Near death experience gives life meaning
Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services
Kugluktuk (Jan 15/01) - Tears no longer fall when John Aviligak remembers a dream he had while lost on the tundra.
Cold, hungry and almost ready to give up his struggle to remain alive, Aviligak dreamed of two swans tied to a qamutiq. In the dream, a friend, Colin Adjun, approached the sled and tried to catch the two swans.
However brief, the full force of the image hit Aviligak the next day when a search and rescue plane flew overhead.
"The next afternoon a plane spotted us and dropped a knapsack full of food down to us," recalled Aviligak when contacted this week.
"Inside that knapsack was a note from Colin Adjun. As soon as I saw that note, I thought about the dream. It really hit me," he said.
Aviligak, 42, and his brother Gordon Ailanak, 35, were the subjects of a seven-day search at the end of October.
The brothers went out on a day-long caribou hunt but ran into trouble when one snowmobile broke down and the other ran out of gas. They rationed their food and used what little material they had to create a shelter but Aviligak began to think he was going to die.
"It still hits me once in a while. For the first few days, I would just keep crying when I thought about it. Now, not so much."
He said he believes it was the power of prayer that made for the rescue. Elders in the hamlet confirmed that notion for him after he was returned home safely.
"I met old people on the road and they told me prayers can be answered. I really believe in that," he said.
His life has changed in other ways since he returned home. He feels more deeply for his wife and children, he has a renewed interest in eating -- a lot -- and he never goes out hunting unprepared.
"When I'm going out on the land I take everything. What I learned made a big difference. My two girls are always telling me, 'dad don't go out without taking anything.' I tell them not to worry," said Aviligak.
Life changing
Ailanak said the experience also changed his life. Everything that surrounds him is imbued with deeper meaning and it all feels so sweet.
"I find work more enjoyable and life is more precious since we got found," said Ailanak, the father of four.
"I feel a lot different. I'm just glad to be around."
Ailanak said he and his wife talk a lot more now and have found a love that is difficult for him to describe. He said he'll never forget the experience nor what it taught him.
"Never give up," he said."You have to get food for your family so never give up. Just be prepared when you go out there."
