In memoriam Claude

Claude, February 2020

A MAN MUST FACE HIMSELF
 
I hung two sealskins on my wall....
 
Some people say
'Oh! the poor dear things!'
with pity in their hearts,
while chewing bloody steak
and cuddling in fur coats.
 
And I think of **
Jonahsie
magnificently himself: a Man,
hunter by destiny
spearing the seals,
with no guilt in his soul,
no pity in his heart,
but beaming pride
that his day-work was done:
the best for his kin---
and that's all he could do...
 
And I think of
Kakee, his wife,
cleaning, stretching, smoothing, sewing the skins
with a skill
as old as the Woman called Eve,
and bringing me the gift
with beaming pride:
the best for a friend---
and that's all she could give...
 
And I wonder why
we worry about who eats whom
when Life is a cycle?
We all prey, and we grow
feeding on each other.
 
A seal
a breathing tomato
an egg that could be born
a drink of pure water
a flower for a vase
some grass to walk upon
the warmth of the sun, of a smile, of a body
a poem for a soul
and stars to fill a dream.
 
I hung two sealskins on my wall...
 
A Man must face himself
and accept it!
 
Claude Prévost Gamble
 (June 1970)


** And I think of Claude who died today two years ago.
Thanks for all. De tout coeur!

Claude during a storm on Moose River,
whilst working as a nurse
at an Indian hospital;
James Bay, Winter 1955