pssst...ASPEN SWITZER'S CD, "NARROW SKY", IS HERE!

Aspen, of Thistledowne, has a brand new CD called Narrow Sky, and it's available at Otter Books in Nelson. Soon you can buy it online at her website, too.

Aspen has a lovely voice and wrote most of the songs on the CD. Also appearing are her Thistledowne cohorts, Jessa Koerber, who lends her voice singing backup on three of the tracks, and Jesse Lee, who plays guitar, bass, or sings backup on pretty much all of it.

Remember how I told you they wowed the crowd at Our Way Home with their rendition of "Jerusalem"? You can hear it on Aspen's site on the audio page. It's number 9.

Aspen's Trio (Jessa Koerber and Kasia Juno) is touring the Kootenays this summer thanks to a Columbia Basin Trust grant. Don't miss her if you get a chance.

Jesse Lee had to decline touring this summer as he has to make a living, being a young father and all, but Thistledowne will reunite on Wednesday, August 9 in Castlegar, 6:30 PM at the Kinnaird Park.

BRIDESMAID AGAIN (Poem: STONES FOR THE FIRE PIT)

Just got word via email that this poem was a runner up in the Free Verse Category of The Ontario Poetry Society's "Winsome Words" poetry contest! I get a chapbook for my contribution.

The contest involved 18 words that had to appear in the poem. They were: star, percolate, majestic, evocative, blush, fan, breath, gather, ebullient, land, safe, pool, meandering, linoleum, aloe, tender, elapse, and long.

I have to take my hat off to Ruth Latta, who won first and second prize in the Rhyming Category, plus had one that was a runner up as well. I struggled for about 2 months to produce ONE poem, trying this tack and that, before finally just writing lines that came to me for each word and not trying to link them. This resulted in the following:


STONES FOR THE FIRE PIT

On the beach where you gather stones for the fire pit
Stories percolate like coffee on a cold morning,
Stories as new as the first time you ride a bike
Or land a fish,
Old as how you couldn’t wait to get away.
But now you’re back to watch the sky evolve from blue to blush
And the first star shines as it never could in a city.
No fan of winter, each year you long for its elapse,
Grow tired of watching ice form on the pool behind the house,
Smooth as linoleum, slick as aloe on a burn.

Here, the wind has pine on its breath,
Stick-figure trees unfurl their leaves,
Stand majestic once again
Upon the new and tender ground.
The chitter of newly-fledged flickers in the apple tree,
The two-tone song of chickadees,
Evocative of every spring you’ve ever known
Delights you, invites you to dance
On this sun-parched earth,
Eubullient as an eagle on a thermal,
Satisfied as any lover.
You know you’re safe here,
Meandering through the seasons.
Home at last; there’s nowhere else to go.

THE ENTERTAINMENT...WHAT'S THAT SOUND?

The entertainment was top-notch. The Doukhobor Men's Choir. Nicola Harwood, Judy Wapp and Bessie Wapp were there for "Hello I Must Be Going", the play they wrote, with Bessie performing a couple of scenes from it. Pied Pumpkin was as manic as ever, and Country Joe McDonald livened up his stories with a liberal sprinkling of the f-word, much to the consternation of some of the Doukhobor ladies who were present. Country Joe also played some very pretty songs.

Saturday afternoon Thistledowne got to follow George McGovern, and they earned themselves a standing ovation when they sang Jerusalem. That's Mark Nykanen introducing them (Jessa Koerber has her back to the camera), and there's a shot of Aspen Switzer, who has a CD coming out soon, and Jesse Lee, my very own boy, can be seen with his guitar, and then talking with Alan Rinehard, who played some Brazilian music on classical guitar earlier in the proceedings.

Buffy Ste. Marie was on Saturday night, as was D.O.A., but I was exhausted by the time they were coming on, so I missed seeing them play, although Kyran and his friend Fidel chatted up one of the D.O.A. guys during an earlier intermission. The inimitable Holly Near wrapped things up on Sunday.

THE WORKSHOPS...WHAT IT IS AIN'T EXACTLY CLEAR

On Saturday and Sunday mornings there was a choice of about six workshops, any of which would have been interesting. I hate that, when you want to be three places at once. As the conference was focused on getting vets and resisters together, or no, it was resisters and the Canadians who assisted them, as well as on peace, the workshops revolved around issues related to these things. I chose to go to one facilitated by Earl Hamilton, long time high school English teacher (my son loved him as a teacher) of Nelson, that focused on popular songs of the era and how they depicted war.

Earl played his guitar and banjo, and the other guitar was one of the fellows in the Elmer Creek Conspiracy from the East Kootenay. I got their CD, 'America in Denial'. Blogging etiquette...if you're going to blog about people, get their names...point taken, and I apologize to Tom, Les, and Len: one of you was there but I'm not sure who.

"War Resisters Music Circle" was the title of the workshop, and that's what we did; sang old war-related songs like Where Have All the Flowers Gone and Ohio and One Tin Soldier and more. My vocal cords felt it afterwards, but it sure was fun. I'd forgotten how much I like to sing.

On Sunday there was a Poetry workshop. Finally, a reason for all this to be in this blog! Roger Davies, who lives in Nova Scotia now, brought booklets of Vietnam war-related poetry, including translations of some by both North and South Vietnamese writers. How is it that we humans are all the same, really, yet have such a time of it trying to get along. If we even bother trying...

We read some poems aloud, Roger read one of his poems and I read a couple of mine, one of which Roger really liked so I sent him a copy. I want to submit it somewhere, so I'm not posting it here right now.

OUR WAY HOME REUNION...SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE

It was a historic event. For four days we gathered at Selkirk College for workshops, went to Nelson for a film, were fed delicious food lovingly prepared by the Doukhobor ladies at the Brilliant Cultural Centre, listened to informed and inspirational speakers, and were entertained by some of the best in the business. The Our Way Home Reunion was born out of a desire to acknowledge the thousands upon thousands of war resisters who came to Canada during the Vietnam War, and the Canadians who assisted them. 

Our Way Home opened Thursday morning, July 6, with a workshop that was designed to foster dialogue between Vietnam veterans and Vietnam war resisters. I had another commitment on Thursday and couldn't go, unfortunately. I understand it was very healing for many of the participants. I did go the movie Thursday night in Nelson, when Sir! No! Sir! played at the Capitol Theatre. I'd just seen Escape to Canada, and this movie was an effective counterpoint. It was the perfect introduction to the rest of the weekend. I joined the conference Friday at lunch, served downstairs at Cultural Centre. Lunch was a colourful variety of salads, whole wheat rolls, a variety pack of squares, plus juice and tea or coffee. Lunch was prepared by the Doukhabor ladies who are always cooking something at the Brilliant Cultural Centre.

The last time I was there was for Polly-from-next-door's funeral. It was November 19, easy to remember because that's the anniversary of when Ted crashed the plane and subsequently lost his leg. We entered the main room at the Centre, and the pew-like benches were set up perpendicular to the stage, in two rows with an aisle in between, men on the left, women on the right. One of the women who was sitting in the midde of the pew beckoned me over and patted the seat beside her, for which I shall be forever grateful. The men were singing in Russian, their powerful voices reverberating off the walls and through the room. Dan and Judie came to Polly's funeral too, because when Judie and Ted moved to the property in Ootischenia back in the seventie's, one of the things that came with it were their next-door neighbours,  Mike and Polly. Keepers of the land, they helped the young couple from the city by explaining how things were (Mike) and doling out the occasional jar of borsch (Polly). I wasn't around yet when they were living next door. I only met Polly when she was living in a Baba house in Naramata, in the mid-nineties, and then again when she moved back to Castlegar and was living at Talarico Place, getting the regular nursing care and assistance she now needed. She used to call Ted every so often, wanting him to come visit. Once she asked him to bring his camera and when we got there she was wearing her beautiful platok (shawl, like that worn by the women in the Doukhabor Women's Choir on Sunday), one with flowers embroidered on it, and she wanted Ted to take her picture wearing it. The woman I was sitting beside whispered that people were going up to pay their respect to Polly and her family, so away I went. When I got to the first person whose hand I was going to shake, I introduced myself by saying, "I'm Linda Crosfield, Ted's wife," not knowing that only minutes before, in order to simplify things when introducing herself, Judie had said, "I'm Judie Crosfield, Ted's wife." We got a good chuckle out of that later on, when we were all eating the funeral borsch downstairs. 

Which segues nicely back to lunch at the Our Way Home reunion as prepared by the ladies, after which we went upstairs and listened to a panel, "Social Activist Leaders Responding In a Time of Crisis," moderated by Seth Klein, BC Director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, with panelists Tom Hayden, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Brewster Kneen, and his articulate wife, Kathleen. Svend Robinson had to cancel at the last moment. 

 

Here are some pictures from the weekend. 

People like Tom Hayden came. Here he is, talking to the media, while Kyle Snyder and his lady look on. Kyle is one of the new wave of resisters. He's been to Iraq. He was not impressed. He'd like to stay in Canada and I hope we let him. On the back wall you can see a very wide black and white photograph. It is a picture of a large group of Doukhabors, taken in the early part of the twentieth century in Ootischenia where I now live. Then you have Hayden, one of the Chicago Seven in the sixties, and Kyle who represents what's happening now.

 

Meet one of my favourite war resisters, Ernest Hekkanen: writer, artist, publisher of The New Orphic Review, and self-described heretic, who will display, in his yard, at his home, the infamous bronze statue that caused such a furor. Nelson and Castlegar both decided they couldn't deal with the potential...what? bad press? boycott by tourists?...and declined to have the statue on any official site in their respective municipalities. The Doukhabor Village Museum across from the airport in Castlegar agreed to take it, but Castlegar City Council decided they couldn't. I'm simplifying the course of events here, but this is a 25-words-or-less blog, so deal with it! (That's Holly Near in the background, over his left (where else?) shoulder.) 

What statue? This one, being unveiled, depicts a man and a woman coming from the States and a Canadian welcoming them. Artists Naomi Lewis and Denis Kleine created the sculpture, called "The Welcoming". What I loved at the unveiling was the fellow in the front right who kept jumping up and taking pictures. He was wearing a shirt with a picture of John Lennon on the back. Gave me shivers when I saw it. Imagine... Many of the participants of the conference got their picture taken with the statue. 

Keith Mather, of Veterans for Peace, who was a facilitator in a writing workshop, Tom Little, a peace worker and a friend of mine, and me. 

Arun Ghandi introduced Saturday's keynote speaker, George McGovern. George is 83 now. One wonders what the world might be like had he won the presidential election when he ran against Nixon in 1972. Americans don't like switching presidents when a war is going on. Seems like a good reason to have one, if you're a president. You get to stay at the helm longer. 

McGovern's campaign slogan was "COME HOME, AMERICA". He was referring to the soldiers in Vietnam, a war he vehemently opposed. Look at the T-shirt the fellow in the lower right of the picture is wearing. Look, and remember. 

  

Listening to Rabbi Michael Lerner: Ernest Hekkanen, —writer, artist, publisher; Myler Wilkinson, writer, professor; Ted Crosfield, wood turner; Arun Gandhi, peace advocate; Jules Delaney, —sculptor of ice and stone. 

 

Arun Gandhi

George McGovern

Phan Thi Kim Phuc, "the girl in the picture". You know the one. She was nine, she'd been burnt by napalm, and she was running down a road, her mouth open in what looks like Edvard Munch's "The Scream". She survived, in itself a miracle. And eventually she wound up in Canada, attracted by the possibility of freedom. She's flanked by two Doukhobor ladies who are wearing traditional outfits because they were singing in the choir.

For more information on the reunion:

 Article in The Tyee by Nelson's Bill Metcalfe "As Iraq Burns, Haunted by Vietnam"

It was an amazing weekend and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to be there.

§