This past weekend I attended an annual native carvers convention at the Long House at Evergreen State College. I connected with other native craftsmen and women who shared a similar vision. We were all there with the intent to learn from each other and also to recognize similarities and difference within our aboriginal roots. My knowledge was tremendously expanded from the experience. Some of the carvers were also boat builders as well and we shared different building ideas. There were tribal people from as far away as New Zealand and Hawaii. There were a lot of people there representing the North Pacific rim. I was the only person there with ancestry from the arctic region.