Clyde River (Dec 13/04) - Ashevak Palituq barely remembers making the month-long journey by dog team with his family when he was about 12 years old.

They were moving from outside Qikiqtarjuaq to a camp between Clyde River and Pond Inlet because the hunting was said to be better there. That was almost 70 years ago. He is still in Clyde River.

Palituq more vividly remembers thinking things would get better when Nunavut became a territory.

Unilingual Inuit would have an easier time because anything they needed would be provided, he remembers being told.

"But it doesn't get better. Some things are even worse than before we had Nunavut," Palituq said through interpreter Peter Iqalukjuak.

He cites what he sees as a lack of Inuktitut translations as part of the problem.

"Sometimes I feel left out when there's no translation at public ceremonies," he says.

He also worries that too many of the territory's young people are breaking the law, though he does not always understand them himself.

He disagrees with many laws because he does not remember having regulations when he was growing up. When he was younger, he would act how he felt. But sometimes he is afraid his actions will be against the law.

When unsure, he asks younger people who can read English to help him understand a law's meaning.

While he can get upset because he does not understand the legal system, Palituq says he usually feels better after asking questions.

He also feels better when young people take time to communicate.

"The older people are just waiting for the questions, and I just love answering them."

He thinks things will be different for today's youth, just as his life has differed from his elders'.

Like many elders, he still does not know how old he is.

"80? ... 90?" he asks someone in the background near the end of a phone interview.

"79, no, 80," a woman shouts.

Because he and a number of elders were unsure of when they were born, they have adopted Jan. 1 as a collective birthday.