DEMANDS THAT MAKE THE HEART GROW COLDER

My home is in Northwest Russia. The White Sea is to the west stretching out to the base of Taymr Peninsula which is on the east side and the Sayan Mountains which are on the south side lead all the way down to the Arctic Ocean on the north side. Oymyakon is the village I live in. The closest village to where I live is Yuchyugei. We are in the thick of the tundra. Temperatures drop below -40° celsius on a regular basis.

My name is Sergey, I am a reindeer herder from a long line of Sami people. We are the indigenous Nenets. For generations my people have prospered by following the annual reindeer migration, up to 100km, on the Road of Bones. My father told me the Gulag prisoners were who built the Road of Bones. Sadly so many prisoners had never even committed a crime. Stalin put many people away in prisons to work and others to exile. It was very sad, but for my people these ancient migration routes are how we have survived.

My people's way of life, has changed so much over the years. Now only 2% of Sami work in the reindeer industry. Last I heard there are only 2000 of us left. These statistics don't sit well with me. I feel like the Sami are heading to extinction, the deficiency of the land and the decline of indigenous leadership do not help the situation.

Twenty years ago was our vieru (marriage). Of course, it was arranged, there was much importance in maintaining the reindeer community. My wife's name is Natasha. She is a beautiful blonde haired, blue eyed, hard working woman who never complains.

Natasha made my life complete when she brought our twins into the world. My son, Maksim, was my first born by a minute and a half. He is strong, smart and extremely ambitious. My daughter, Svetlana, is the apple of my eye, although her modern ways and desires were breaking my heart. Everything is a fight with her. The conflict with these two began when they started going to school.

The new generation of Sami children get collected annually by helicopters and are taken away to boarding schools for nine months out of the year. That is when the problems began. They were tempted by the big city life. Once Maksim and Svetlana learned that because they were of the indigenous Nenets, there were scholarships and grants available for them. They really could go to a university. Their excitement rose when they learned they could leave the reindeer herding community and adopt modern life styles and modern jobs.

Natasha and I were so excited our children were coming home for a few weeks for Christmas vacation. We were not familiar with Christmas but we couldn't wait to see Maksim and Svetlana.

In our culture, Animism is the religion we practice. The multitude of spirits is found in animals, plants and rocks and all other natural objects. They all have a soul and should be honored.

Now our children are blending nature, spirit and Christian influence. I feel school has corrupted them. They are forgetting their ice nomadic pastoralism roots. Our traditions are becoming obsolete. Before the helicopters started coming to take our children away, Maksim and Svetlana found joy in finding sacred items (bear skins, religious figures and coins) which we secured to our holy sleigh. The contents were only revealed during special occasions and sacrifices. Now their minds are clouded, I have no idea how to keep my family and culture intact.

After much contemplation, I decided I just wanted to enjoy the children, so I had no plans of getting into any deep religious or cultural discussions while they were home for the next two weeks. I knew this would also make Natasha happy.

When the children arrived, Borya, our Laika (hunting dog) was going crazy. He was so happy to see them. When they go back to school Borya would be overcome with sadness again.

Maksim and Svetlana return to their chum in the tented settlement they called home. They know they have to move every three to five days so they can keep up with the herd. It's things like this that make them enjoy city life.

From the moment Svetlana removed her school uniform and had to change into her malista, all she wanted to do is go back to the city. She could never say any of that, it would break her mother's heart. Natasha worked so hard to make her malista, it was made from four reindeer skins. The fur feels good up against her skin and the leather outside truly protects against the elements.

As Svetlana watches Maksim put on his parka, "skin coat", she wonders if his arctic jacket makes him feel like she does in her malista. The twins love to spend time with their parents.

It's the small things of the city life that are actually huge. When nature calls out in the tundra, it is a long walk into the snow to get out of sight from others. Males walk to the right of the camp and females to the left. No matter which way you walk, it's freezing. There's no way Svetlana could keep the desire for that heated indoor bathroom at bay.

The first week went pretty smooth. The kids didn't complain for the first move, but when it was time for the second move, silence was forgotten and all that was heard was non-stop complaining. With each passing day the temperatures are dropping drastically. Everyday is a constant battle against the cold.

Maksim and Svetlana were supposed to be picked up today to go back to school. Today is the coldest day ever recorded in Oymyakon. It's-71.2°C. I knew there was a storm coming in, but these temperatures are unheard of.

The helicopters are unable to fly in these conditions. The twins were not happy about having to spend anymore time in the freezing tundra. They were stuck and no one had any answers as to when the storm would pass and the helicopters could fly again.

It was time to move today, to keep up with the herd, but the weather did not permit it. The move will have to happen tomorrow. The complaining was obsessive. I could take no more.

I knew I had promised Natasha I would not pressure Maksim into taking over the herd, but I could no longer hold my tongue. We need to show the children the Nenets' ways.

They need to learn to take pride in being a Nenet.

Nenet translates into "man". I want with all my heart, for Maksim to want to be the man who steps up to take over the herd. For generations our people have been herders. They used reindeer for food, clothing and trade. Over the years they have been a form of money and labor to keep the Sami spirit alive.

All I know is I must teach the children to love the environment and live in it. Today we have to move, on this day I will talk to my children. The twins are not happy, they don't want to move again. They just want to be on that helicopter on their way back to school, not traveling down the migration trail.

Hundreds of reindeer, each with a fifteen year lifespan, need a herder. Watching the hungry reindeer, scrap snow away with their hooves to did craters in the snow in search for reindeer moss, I just want to know they will be taken care of. Reindeer are curious, friendly social animals whose entire life revolves around traveling and feedings. Their only real enemies are gray wolves, brown bears and arctic foxes. I carry two knives to protect my family and my herd. I will need to teach Maksim how to use them properly.

I decided after smoking, drying and roasting the venison I would share the importance of Maksim taking over the herd. I wish so much that they found value in their roles. Males were reindeer herders and females created duodji (artesian goods) mostly for survival in the harsh elements. My children want nothing to do with their roots.

Maksim and Svetlana are miserable. Today was the coldest day they had ever experienced. They thought yesterday was horrible but today is much worse. As if the weather wasn't enough, now I'm trying to pitch a career in herding reindeer to my son. When I tried to share that he could make up to 23600 SEK, he practically laughed in my face. I know he would've if I wasn't his father. I wish he had a desire to keep our society alive, but all he wants is city life.

A hundred miles above the Arctic Circle, the Sami are the oldest culture, I explain to the twins. Svetlana starts talking about all the reasons that the Sami lifestyle was going to become extinct: problems of mining, over fishing, losing parts of their land and the proposal to build a dam in the Alta River. I could see my children only want to celebrate Sami People's Day on February 6th. They do not want to be Sami. This observation pained me deeply.

My children are at witts end. They read me wrong. My reaction to their dreams and desires only angers them further. My son is so upset. He is ranting that my reaction to him pouring his heart out to me, was cold and heartless. He swears that my heart has grown colder and colder from living a life of isolation on the Road of Bones with only his mother and the herd.

Maksim and Svetlana feel their dreams are being destroyed by my demands. The twins want to return to the university. I can't permit my son to return, I need him here. I will release my daughter from her responsibilities, so she can complete her education. Maksim is so mad, proclaiming it is unfair that Svetlana gets to move forward to a modern life and he was stuck in the past. He said he will not stay, that I'm holding him back from the future he so much desires.

My tone is icy. My heart is colder than any day in Oymyakon. I feel betrayed...by my own children. The helicopter came and the twins were whisked away. I couldn't feel much worse, or so I thought.

Two weeks later, Maksim and Svetlana were called out of their classes to be told their father was in critical condition. He had a severe heart attack. The doctors said he has a cardiovascular disease, that most likely came about from having a diet high in animal protein and fat with low fiber. They knew they had to get home as soon as possible, but the arrangements seemed impossible. Before the twins made it back to Oymyakon, their father, Sergey, had passed away.

This destroyed Maksim. He couldn't stop beating himself up for how him and his father's last conversation ended. Now he felt obligated to stay, to take care of his mother and take over the herd.

It was the beginning of his miserable existence stuck in Oymyakon. Maksim could feel his heart becoming colder and colder. He wondered how he would ever accept the life he thought he left behind? ...maybe in another life.