For 62 years I have been a follower of the Detroit Red Wings. When I was a child every young person around our street received a Toronto Maple Leaf or a Montreal Hockey jersey for Xmas. I always asked for a Detroit Red wing sweater and Santa sent me that red sweater with the wheel and wings as a crest.
Those early wings were not the power house of today but gathered strength when Howe, Delvechio , and Lindsay came along. Gordie Howe was a Flora, Sask. boy who at a tender age played jr. hockey in the west. He entered the NHL at a tender age and his career nearly ended the first season when he was crashed into the boards and received a head injury. He returned and his career is history. In his day he was a giant at over 6 ft. tall and 205 pounds. Today he would be average in size. He was a giant in other ways leading a team to numerous titles and establishing Detroit as hockey town USA.
I watched Gordie play and won one of his sticks after a pre-season hockey game. It was a Northland with a number 6 line. Gordie was right in shooting but his stick had no curve at that time as he could switch and shoot both ways. He worked for Eatons store and as a young adult I went to the store and lined up to receive an autographed picture of my hero. I kept the stick for years but one time I was pressed to give something for the auction for Sick Kids Hospital I gave it away. I wonder where it is now?
His voice and demeanour betrayed his stealth on the ice. His character was one that every parent could say to their hockey son or daughter, be like him. His partners were all successful as they played a system and as a team. One year the line came first, second , and third in scoring.
Last night I watched the first game of the playoffs and we saw a team, not individuals work magic with the puck. A system which has to have all players committed to the plan and they were.On the ice last evening five of the best hockey players in the world today showed their skill. The best player on the ice was also the oldest. Lindstrom was making magic all evening and was a source of power on both offence and defence. Mother luck was with the Wings and tonight we hope the old legs hold up.
At this time of every year we like to remember our dreams as a child. Most of us wished to play in the NHL. I had dreams too but my dreams were modified by my ability. I did manage to make it to Senior hockey with a team in Northern Quebec. The league was the northern Quebec senior league although two teams were from Ontario. I was a young fellow and our coach signed me on and told me I could play a limited time at first but maybe someone would get injured. I worked hard and played on the third line. We were a defensive line but managed to score on occasion. At the end of the year our centre was injured and we called in an ex NHL player named Abbie DeMarco.He was the best stick handler for the New York Rangers all time. Although he was in his late forties he could still move the puck. He made our line perk up and I personally scored a few because of him.
From the days we played road hockey to the NHL we participated in the greatest game in the world and exported it to all corners of the globe. We can be proud when our women's and men's teams go for the gold every year at the world championships and next year in Vancouver.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
The Circle
The circle is one of the most recognized symbols in the world. Nowhere is the circle more symbolic than in the Inuit culture. Their snow houses were circular. their tents were held down by tent rings made of rock , their drums were round and they sat in a circle when eating sharing food placed in the centre for all to reach. Elders sat in a circle when discussing matters of importance and people who were tried by the elders were placed in the centre of a circle for judgment.
Inuit watched the sun make its circle in the summer completing that journey visible for everyone to see every 24 hours. From all these examples it is easy to see how the Inuit believed in the circle of life. The birth of a person , animal or even a flower had its journey with a beginning followed by natural events which eventually led to death. This was not the end but the beginning of a new cycle. This simple thought of nature and its process is appealing to me as I see the relationship to our journey through life as natural as a caribou born on the tundra and living its brief life in harmony with nature and ending in a way which either sustains life or becomes part of the tundra.
While I was in Nunavut I realized the importance of the learning circle. The justice system was deeply indebted to the circle justice. Being a JP in Nunavut gave you a special tool - sentencing circles. For a social crime like abuse to a child or spouse the person once found guilty could be offered a alternate sentence by appearing before the elders of its community for sentencing.
The elders would be summoned and the person say in the middle of a circle. On one side of the circle the family of the accused sat, and on the other side, the family of the victim.
Both sides has a opportunity to tell their take of the situation. The accused also had a chance to speak and often apologized and tried to convince everyone he would do better.
After some time - and there was no time limit - the elders would pronounce a judgement. This judgement was always agreed upon by both parties. Following the sentence both parties came together to see how they could help the make the guilty a better person and the victim some sense of agreement with the result. There are many creative sentences. In one case where I was a participant a man was banned from the hamlet and his family for two months. He had to live on the land with only his basic tools and hunted and fished for his keep. He was looked in on once every two weeks. He returned to the hamlet 2 months later a clean and better person to be accepted back with his wife and 6 children.I was happy with the initial result but checked in at times with the family and they were happy with the result as well.
To make this type of justice you must have the whole community involved and committed.
All over the lands of Nunavut there are tent rings showing that people were there and camped or lived in that spot. Some of these tent rings were used for many years and became historic sights. The Thule age is documented only by these and other visible artifacts. They are protected by law.The circle of life and the circles man has used in his search for meaning and life are never portrayed better than in Nunavut.
Inuit watched the sun make its circle in the summer completing that journey visible for everyone to see every 24 hours. From all these examples it is easy to see how the Inuit believed in the circle of life. The birth of a person , animal or even a flower had its journey with a beginning followed by natural events which eventually led to death. This was not the end but the beginning of a new cycle. This simple thought of nature and its process is appealing to me as I see the relationship to our journey through life as natural as a caribou born on the tundra and living its brief life in harmony with nature and ending in a way which either sustains life or becomes part of the tundra.
While I was in Nunavut I realized the importance of the learning circle. The justice system was deeply indebted to the circle justice. Being a JP in Nunavut gave you a special tool - sentencing circles. For a social crime like abuse to a child or spouse the person once found guilty could be offered a alternate sentence by appearing before the elders of its community for sentencing.
The elders would be summoned and the person say in the middle of a circle. On one side of the circle the family of the accused sat, and on the other side, the family of the victim.
Both sides has a opportunity to tell their take of the situation. The accused also had a chance to speak and often apologized and tried to convince everyone he would do better.
After some time - and there was no time limit - the elders would pronounce a judgement. This judgement was always agreed upon by both parties. Following the sentence both parties came together to see how they could help the make the guilty a better person and the victim some sense of agreement with the result. There are many creative sentences. In one case where I was a participant a man was banned from the hamlet and his family for two months. He had to live on the land with only his basic tools and hunted and fished for his keep. He was looked in on once every two weeks. He returned to the hamlet 2 months later a clean and better person to be accepted back with his wife and 6 children.I was happy with the initial result but checked in at times with the family and they were happy with the result as well.
To make this type of justice you must have the whole community involved and committed.
All over the lands of Nunavut there are tent rings showing that people were there and camped or lived in that spot. Some of these tent rings were used for many years and became historic sights. The Thule age is documented only by these and other visible artifacts. They are protected by law.The circle of life and the circles man has used in his search for meaning and life are never portrayed better than in Nunavut.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Seal Liver
The Governor General made history this week as she travelled through to new Territory of Nunavut. The act of accepting the Inuit cultural heritage was one of sheer courage and Brilliance. With all this fuss over seal hunting and animal rights in the press the timing could not be more appropriate. I worked and lived in Nunavut for the best part of five years. These were the years leading up to the 1999 signing of the documents establishing of a new Canadian Territory Called Nunavut. The name is perfect because translated it means Our Land. The Inuit who are over 80 percent of the total population of the territory consider the land to be owned by all and no one has the right to own the land for themselves. This may change but the concept is there.
Inuit believe everyone who walks the land have a definite and clear obligation to look after the environment and the creatures that habitat it. For 10,000 years the people lived the free life on their land in harmony with nature and without contact with outside people other than we now know the Vikings.
Their way of life , their culture, their religion and ways were directly derived from their environment. One reality was the custom of sharing food with visitors. Eating raw food was a must in many cases as heating and heating materials were not readily available. Seal oil and blubber oil gave some relief providing some light and heat in the igloo but on the land eating the food uncooked was the norm. When I first went to the north in those exciting days before the territory was formally introduced I was able to experience first hand some of the traditions.
The first experience was with dried caribou which I personally loved and formulated my own recipe during the years I was there. It was offered a few days after I arrived. Shortly after the fishing for char gave me the opportunity to have fresh raw char sliced thin and dipped in a sauce was delicious. I immediately adjusted to this mode of eating fish when on the land.
In early spring I was out on the shores of the North West Passage where a small settlement of Inuit from Cambridge Bay summered. They built small cabins of plywood and stayed there to catch Char to dry and have for winter. Large numbers were caught in nets and hung to dry for a few days. This dry fish would keep for a long time and provide nourishment for the family. As I was driving my ATV across the beach I was hailed by no other than the commissioner of the NWT. Mary was the first lady commissioner of the territory and the first Inuit. She and John her husband had just shot a seal trying to steal fish from their net. It was a small seal - but fresh - and John was cutting it up. I was invited to join and approached it as a an experiment. John suggested I try the liver and cut a small piece for my testing. I ate it with some fear that I would not pass the test but I did. It was not to my liking but I took a second piece to thank my host.
Tea was boiled in a kettle that was always filled and the pilot biscuits and jam provided the insulation I needed to offset the strong taste of the seal liver. That small gesture gave me more credibility with the Inuit than any other act or deed. Ikey, my assistant, gave me a certificate pronouncing me the fastest white man to become an Inuit. It was all in good fun but on many more occasions I was able to join in with the People of the land and socialize with them.
Inuit believe everyone who walks the land have a definite and clear obligation to look after the environment and the creatures that habitat it. For 10,000 years the people lived the free life on their land in harmony with nature and without contact with outside people other than we now know the Vikings.
Their way of life , their culture, their religion and ways were directly derived from their environment. One reality was the custom of sharing food with visitors. Eating raw food was a must in many cases as heating and heating materials were not readily available. Seal oil and blubber oil gave some relief providing some light and heat in the igloo but on the land eating the food uncooked was the norm. When I first went to the north in those exciting days before the territory was formally introduced I was able to experience first hand some of the traditions.
The first experience was with dried caribou which I personally loved and formulated my own recipe during the years I was there. It was offered a few days after I arrived. Shortly after the fishing for char gave me the opportunity to have fresh raw char sliced thin and dipped in a sauce was delicious. I immediately adjusted to this mode of eating fish when on the land.
In early spring I was out on the shores of the North West Passage where a small settlement of Inuit from Cambridge Bay summered. They built small cabins of plywood and stayed there to catch Char to dry and have for winter. Large numbers were caught in nets and hung to dry for a few days. This dry fish would keep for a long time and provide nourishment for the family. As I was driving my ATV across the beach I was hailed by no other than the commissioner of the NWT. Mary was the first lady commissioner of the territory and the first Inuit. She and John her husband had just shot a seal trying to steal fish from their net. It was a small seal - but fresh - and John was cutting it up. I was invited to join and approached it as a an experiment. John suggested I try the liver and cut a small piece for my testing. I ate it with some fear that I would not pass the test but I did. It was not to my liking but I took a second piece to thank my host.
Tea was boiled in a kettle that was always filled and the pilot biscuits and jam provided the insulation I needed to offset the strong taste of the seal liver. That small gesture gave me more credibility with the Inuit than any other act or deed. Ikey, my assistant, gave me a certificate pronouncing me the fastest white man to become an Inuit. It was all in good fun but on many more occasions I was able to join in with the People of the land and socialize with them.
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