Author Information
Prose Poem
Memeluck Fur Dolls
It’s amazing how a simple possession can represent a person in many ways, not only it can reflect your personality, but behind a special object there’s more of a story to tell. Manuel Hernández, who I call Grandfather is a hard workingman that has fight for his comfort in life. He, in search of wellness left Mexico, and arrived to Alaska where he created his new life. He became an expert in mastering different kinds of fine furs, he had become himself a furrier. He made fashion fur coats, hats gloves and parkas, but his best creations were made from the bottom of his heart, Eskimo Fur Dolls. It all started when my cousin left her doll in my granddad’s workshop, he thought that it would be a nice gesture if he made my cousin’s doll an Alaskan inspired outfit. He started to sew the little doll a parka, which is a coat that Eskimos use. Then he started making his boots and finally his gloves. When a customer entered the store he asked if the little doll was for sale, my granddad said that it wasn’t for sale. The man, who was a tourist visiting Alaska wanted to buy the doll as a souvenir. Then it was when my Grandpa came up with the idea of making the Fur Dolls to sell them. He inspired from his eighteen lovely grandchildren, and created an Eskimo Doll for each one. Every single piece of an Eskimo Doll was handmade, from the porcelain or carved wood faces to their little fur parkas and their boots. Each grandson had their unique design, with their own characteristics and names. He felt in love with his creation and made thousands of them, each with different fur types and colors. His business started to grow amazingly and tourist demanded for more Eskimo Dolls. My doll is named Marcelak, she is a wooden carved Eskimo, with a variety of fine furs trimmed in fox. It is one of the best sellers since its price is an average price for the market. After years and years of hard work Manuel Hernández still makes his amazing Fur Dolls and he sell them through the Internet. All of his prices vary from 35 Dollars to the finest doll of 800 Dollars. My granddad’s possessions that represent him are his dolls, because of his time spent on them and his story throughout his life. It was a really nice coincidence when I visited a friend’s house and found one of my Grandfather’s Eskimo Dolls, she told me that her Grandmother had bought her the doll when she went to a cruise in Alaska. I felt proud of my Grandfather’s souvenir product that once was a just a simple hobby.
