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Brian Keenan – Four Quarters of Light

Lena and Charlie had had  thirteen children, two of which died in infancy and one as an adult. Lena raised these kids while moving and travelling from camp to camp. It was a lifestyle even more difficult than the way they lived now, which was basic enough but in comparison to those years on the tundra quite plush.

During the winter Charlie made a living making log houses, and eventually boats as well.  When he was in his thirties he suffered a stroke which left him debilitated. That's when he became a healer. He healed himself by massaging and moving his body, bringing himself back to complete recovery. That was the beginning of his unique and particular brand of healing. He continued by helping others. Soon he became well known and sought after.

Apparently, some years later Charlie sustained a second, more severe stroke, which again he overcame by his own healing methods. Both strokes, Debra explained, had been confirmed by doctors at the medical centre in Kotzebue. Those same doctors could not explain how Charlie had managed his own recovery twice, but they were content to let him treat other patients for whom their own skills and medicines had little effect.