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| Stormsong by Brant Scott |
THE PLAY THAT NEVER MADE IT TO THE THEATRE STAGE
ONE AFTERNOON, ON A BORING THURSDAY AFTERNOON, BRANT SCOTT AND I THOUGHT, IN A MOMENT OF MOTIVATIONAL MISADVENTURE, WE HAD THE CAPABILITY TO WRITE A BOOK. NO, A PLAY! BETTER THAT IT BE A PLAY, BECAUSE WE KNEW A LOT ABOUT STAGED DRAMA. WE LIVED IT. THE NEWSROOM AT THE HERALD-GAZETTE, BACK IN THE EARLY 1980'S, COULD BECOME A TEMPEST, AND A TEAPOT, WITHIN MINUTES OF ONE ANOTHER. YOU MIGHT BE FACED WITH AN ANGRY READER, A TEARFUL VICTIM, AN ADVERTISER DOWN ON HIS, OR HER LUCK, LOOKING FOR A FREE ADVERTISEMENT, A PISSED-OFF SALES MANAGER, DARKROOM TECHNICIAN, AND THEN BE FORCED TO EXTINGUISH A GARBAGE CONTAINER FIRE, SET OFF BY BRANT'S CIGARETTE ASH. I DIDN'T SMOKE. I ALSO DIDN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH HIS WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS EITHER. TALK ABOUT DRAMA. SITTING AROUND, TALKING ABOUT THE NEWS OF THE DAY, BRANT AND I DECIDED TO PLOT OUT A PLAY TO CO-AUTHOR. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE "SEINFELD," BEING A SHOW ABOUT NOTHING. IN FACT, AFTER TWO HOURS OF MAKING NOTES ON BITS OF PAPER, THAT COULDN'T BE LINKED BY A COMMON THREAD, OR EVEN GRAPPLING HOOK, BRANT ROLLED HIS LEFT MOUSTACHE TIP, WITH HIS FINGERS, AND SAID, "WHY DON'T WE GO DOWN TO THE ALBION, AND SEE IF WE CAN FIND A STORY-LINE BETTER THAN WE'VE GOT SO FAR." I WAS GAME. THERE WAS NOTHING GOING ON AT THE PAPER, AND THERE WAS A LOT OF DRAMA AT THE HOTEL TO JUICE-UP OUR CREATIVITY. BUT, AS WAS OUR FOLLY, OUR MATES AT THE HOTEL BEFORE US, QUICKLY SET US UP WITH A JUG OF ICE-COLD FLAT ALE, AND THAT WAS THE END OF OUR FORAY INTO PLAYWRITING. A MOMENT OF MADNESS? ME THINKS THIS WAS SO! FOR ME AT LEAST, I NEVER THOUGHT OF BEING A PLAYWRIGHT EVER AGAIN. AT LEAST UNTIL NOW!
"STORMSONG," WRITTEN BT BRANT SCOTT; MUSIC IN WORDS, ABOUT THE RURAL ENVIRONS AND ITS INSPIRATIONS
IN THE SPRING OF 1982, MUSKOKA PHOTOGRAPHER, TIM DUVERNET AND I, WERE FINISHING UP OUR BOOK, "MEMORIES AND IMAGES," A LITTLE CREATIVE FORAY INTO THE PUBLISHING INDUSTRY. A SORT OF TRIAL BALLOON TO SEE IF WE COULD ENGAGE EVEN BIGGER PROJECTS IN THE FUTURE. HE WAS THE CREATIVE FORCE BEHIND THE CAMERA, AND WORKING ON THE BOOK'S DESIGN, AND I WAS WRITING STORIES TO COMPANION EACH OF HIS IMAGES. IT WAS KIND OF UNUSUAL THAT WAY, BECAUSE IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN BETTER THE OTHER WAY AROUND; TIM HAVING KNOWN WHAT I WAS WRITING ABOUT, AND THEN FINDING THE BEST SUBJECT LANDSCAPE TO MATCH THE EDITORIAL COPY. TIM DUVERNET WAS A BETTER PHOTOGRAPHER THAN I WAS A WRITER. I FELT CONFIDENT I COULD PROVIDE THE EDITORIAL WRAP, AND OVERALL, IT WORKED PRETTY WELL. EXCEPT WE HAD TWO OPEN PAGES WITHOUT COPY. WE WERE BOTH WORKING FOR MUSKOKA PUBLICATIONS AT THE TIME, TIM BEING WITH THE MUSKOKA SUN, AND I WAS EDITOR OF THE HERALD-GAZETTE, AS YOU MUST KNOW NOW, BY THE FACT I'VE SHAMEFULLY WRITTEN ABOUT THIS A THOUSAND TIMES. WHEN TIM AND I WOULD BE HUDDLED IN THE NEWSROOM, DISCUSSING THE BOOK'S COMPOSITION, MY COLLEAGUE, BRANT SCOTT, WOULD OCCASIONALLY INTERVENE, AND ASK TO LOOK OVER THE MATERIAL. IN FACT, I EVEN ASKED HIM IF HE WOULD MIND READING THE ENTIRE TEXT, BECAUSE HE WAS A DAMN GOOD WRITER, AND I WAS A WRITER. HE AGREED. HE MADE SOME SUGGESTIONS, AND WITHOUT COMING OUT AND ASKING, IF HE COULD TEAR OFF A SLICE FOR HIMSELF, TIM AND I OFFERED HIM TWO OPEN PAGES. TWELVE AND THIRTEEN. BRANT WASN'T SUPERSTITIOUS SO SUBMITTING SOMETHING FOR PAGE THIRTEEN WASN'T A PARTICULAR ISSUE. HE DIDN'T AGREE RIGHT AWAY, AND WASN'T SURE HE COULD MUSTER A LITTLE POETRY OR NOT; MAYBE THE WORDS OF A SONG HE HAD CLICKING AROUND IN HIS HEAD. WE LEFT IT OPEN FOR BRANT'S PARTICIPATION IN OUR PROJECT, BUT WE DID HAVE A DEADLINE QUICKLY APPROACHING. AT THE FINAL HOUR, JUST AS PRESSMAN, GARY CAMPBELL, WAS FIRING UP THE PRINTING MACHINERY AT THE BACK OF OUR BUILDING, A FOLDED PIECE OF TYPEWRITER PAPER WAS LEFT MYSTERIOUSLY, ON MY CLUTTERED DESK, WHEN I GOT BACK FROM COFFEE WITH THE SHOP FOREMAN. IT WAS A BRANT SCOTT ORIGINAL, AND HE HAD, WITHOUT SAYING A WORD, APPROVED JOINING OUR MODEST BOOK PROJECT. TIM WAS DELIGHTED TO HAVE THIS CONTRIBUTION, AND HE THOUGHT, BECAUSE OF CONTENT, WE WOULD RE-RUN THE COVER PHOTOGRAPH, OF A RAYMOND AREA FARMHOUSE, PLUS SEVERAL OTHER IMAGES, TO WRAP AROUND HIS WORK. YOU CAN SEE THIS PRINTED ABOVE. I WON'T REPRINT THE WORDS, BECAUSE WITH THE ENLARGEMENT, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO READ THE WORDS TO THE SONG. BRANT SCOTT DIED OVER A WEEK AGO, AND LAST NIGHT, AFTER WRITING A MEMORIAL TRIBUTE, I FOUND A COPY OF OUR BOOK, ASKEW ON MY ARCHIVE'S SHELF. I DON'T LIKE MY BOOKS AT HOME TO BE ASKEW, OR POORLY SHELVED, SO I HAD TO STOP AND STRAIGHTEN IT OUT. THEN I REALIZED WHAT IT WAS, AND THAT BRANT HAD COMPOSED A SECTION IN THE BOOK. IT WAS LIKE HE WAS DIRECTING ME TO THIS DOG EARRED COPY, SO THAT I WOULD REMEMBER OUR LAST MINUTE COLLABORATION. YOU KNOW, I HADN'T READ IT IN AT LEAST TWENTY YEARS, BUT I KNEW THE WORDS OF HIS CONCLUSION, AS IF I HAD JUST FINISHED RECITING THEM MYSELF. "REMEMBERING IS MAGIC NOW, NATURE'S GIVEN SIGN, IF GOD WAS HERE HE'D SING WITH ME, AND DRINK WITH ME MY WINE."
OURS WAS A RURAL-THEMED BOOK, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT! A CELEBRATION OF HOMESTEADERS, AND A TRIBUTE TO THEIR FARMSTEADS, ACROSS OUR REGION. IT'S EXACTLY WHAT I WAS RE-VISITING, LAST WEEK, WHEN I RETURNED TO THOSE EARLY FORAYS, INTO THE HINTERLAND, FOR WRITING INSPIRATION. I RE-DISCOVERED IT, MY PASSION FOR NATURAL RETREATS, STILL GLOWING IN MY FONDEST MEMORY, AND CHERISHED IT AS A SORT OF WRITER'S FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH; AND WHENEVER SINCE, I HAVE FOUND MYSELF FRUSTRATED BY THE URBAN SITUATION, IN ALL ITS POLITICAL, SPRAWLING NON-SPLENDOUR, I DELVE BACK INTO THE DAYS, WHEN TIM AND I WERE EXPLORING MUSKOKA, AND PROUDLY BRINGING THE NATURAL AND MAN-MADE HERITAGE TO PRINT. IT SEEMED A MORE APPROPRIATE PREOCCUPATION, ACTUALLY, THAN EDITING OUR WEEKLY PUBLICATIONS. THERE JUST WASN'T A LOT OF PROFIT WRITING THESE TYPE OF BOOKS, SO I HAD TO SUCK IT UP, AS THEY SAY, AND KEEP MY DAY-JOB. TODAY, I HAVE EVERY REASON, TO FEEL FINALLY LIBERATED, ABLE TO PURSUE WHAT I FIRST ENJOYED, AS A MUSKOKA WRITER, WITHOUT PORTFOLIO. EVEN BEFORE I HEARD ABOUT BRANT'S SUDDEN DEATH, I WAS THINKING THAT I SHOULD PULL OUT A COPY OF "MEMORIES AND IMAGES," AND SEE IF I COULD BORROW ANYTHING TO APPLY TO THIS LATEST SERIES OF BLOGS. IRONY IS BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL SOMETIMES, AND I WAS SO GLAD TO BE REMINDED AGAIN, OF BRANT'S "STORMSONG." I WILL FORGIVE HIM, FOR THE MANY JOKES HE MADE LATER, ABOUT THE NAME OF THE BOOK, WHICH HE HAD AT LEAST A DOZEN HUMOROUS ALTERNATIVES, AND THOSE OCCASIONS, WHEN HE'D LOOK OVER AT ME, AT THE NEWS DESK, AND ASK IF I COULD GET HIM TEN COPIES OF OUR BOOK. WHEN I'D ASK WHY, AND DID HE HAVE BUYERS I WAS UNAWARE, HE'D JUST SHOW ME HOW HIS DESK WOBBLED, POINTING TO A GAP BELOW A LEG. MEANING, HE THOUGHT OUR LEFTOVER COPIES WOULD BE PERFECT, FOR BALANCING HIS DESK. HE WAS ONLY KIDDING, AND IT BECAME HIS LEGACY OF GOOD HUMOR, ALL OF US WHO KNEW HIM, BENEFITTED FROM, IN OH SO MANY WAYS.
I CAME HOME LAST NIGHT FROM A BUSINESS OUTING, AND INSTEAD OF WATCHING "WEST WING" EPISODES, SON ROBERT LOANED US, I ASKED SUZANNE IF WE COULD INSTEAD, WATCH "THE QUARTET" ONE MORE TIME. I THINK LAST NIGHT MADE TEN TIMES, IN THREE MONTHS, I'VE WATCHED THAT MOVIE. I KNOW WHY NOW. YOU SEE, I ALWAYS THOUGHT BRANT SCOTT, JOHN BLACK (OF GRAVENHURST), JUDITH BROCKLEHURST, SCOTT MCLELLAN AND TIM DUVERNET, AND I, WOULD WIND-UP IN A RETIREMENT HOME, FOR NEWSPAPER CRONIES, PAST OUR BEST-BEFORE DATES; AND WHEN WE ACQUIRED THE MOVIE IN THE SPRING, I'VE THOUGHT OF MYSELF IN THAT SAME HOME, BUT INSTEAD OF MUSICIANS, WE'D BE AMALGAMATED WITH OLD NEWSPAPER COLLEAGUES, PLANNING OUR FINAL EDITORIAL EXTRAVAGANZA. A SORT OF REVISITATION OF "MEMORIES AND IMAGES." I TOLD SUZANNE THAT I WOULD PLAY THE PART, ACTOR / COMEDIAN, BILLY CONNELLY HAD, AND SHE IMMEDIATELY RETORTED, SORRY, BUT THAT PART COULD ONLY HAVE BEEN PLAYED BY BRANT SCOTT. SHE WAS RIGHT OF COURSE.
BELOW, IS WHAT I WAS WORKING ON YESTERDAY, AS PART FIVE OF MY SHORT SERIES OF BLOGS, "SEASONS OF THE LILAC," WHEN I HEARD ABOUT THE PASSING OF MY OLD FRIEND. I JUST COULDN'T CONTINUE, WORKING ON WHAT I HAD STARTED THAT MORNING. NOW IT SEEMS MORE PALATABLE, AND SOMETHING HE WOULD DEMAND I FINISH WITH THE PURPOSE I HAD ORIGINALLY INTENDED. I HAD ACTUALLY ENTERTAINED THE IDEA OF ERASING THE WHOLE THING. BUT BRANT HATED INCOMPLETE COPY. I NEVER SAW BRANT RIP PAPER OUT OF HIS BEAUTIFUL OLD UNDERWOOD TYPEWRITER, THAT WASN'T CONCLUDED WITH THE NUMBER "-30-". IT WAS A HARD-COPY JOURNALISM THING, TO SHOW THAT AN ARTICLE OR COLUMN WAS COMPLETED. TO THEN BE HANDED OFF FOR PROOF-READING AND TYPESETTING. BASICALLY, END OF STORY! WHEN HE ENDED AN ARTICLE, OR ONE OF HIS WEEKLY COLUMNS, I ALWAYS KNEW HE HAD DONE THE BEST JOB HE COULD. TO MY KNOWLEDGE, HE NEVER HAD COPY SENT BACK TO HIM FOR A RE-WRITE. SO HE WOULD THINK ME A COWARD, AND HALF-ASS, IF I DIDN'T PUSH ON WITH MY SERIES. SO HERE IT GOES.
PART FIVE
"SEASONS OF THE LILAC" - WHEN WE FRAME WHAT THE HOMESTEADERS SAW OUT THEIR WINDOWS - WOULD WE BE INSPIRED, OR SCARED HALF TO DEATH?
PLACING OURSELVES OUTSIDE THE COMFORT ZONE ON PURPOSE - TO WHAT IT WAS REALLY LIKE ON THE OLD HOMESTEAD
I HAD BEEN HOOKED AT A YOUNG AGE, ON THE ROMANTIC FICTIONS OF HISTORY. GOOD GUYS WORE WHITE STETSONS, AND THE BAD GUYS WORE BLACK. THUS, I THOUGHT EVERYONE WHO WORE BLACK, HAD DONE SOMETHING BAD. I STILL GET A LITTLE WEIRDED-OUT WHEN I MEET FRIENDS DRESSED HEAD TO TOE IN BLACK. IT WAS GREAT FUN, THAT RAY GREEN AND I HAD, BEING COWBOYS ON A WILD FRONTIER, SHOOTING AT THE BAD GUYS, WITH UNHOLSTERED CAP GUNS, THAT USUALLY MISFIRED. I HELD ONTO THAT SENTIMENTAL YEARNING, FOR THOSE FRONTIER DAYS, ALMOST THROUGH PUBLIC SCHOOL. EVEN TRIPS TO AREA MUSEUMS, TO SEE FRONTIER-LIVING DISPLAYS, DIDN'T SHAKE LOOSE THE ERRORS OF MIXED EDUCATION. I WANTED THE PIONEERING HISTORY, I WAS BEING EXPOSED TO IN CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION, TO BE AS IT WAS PORTRAYED ON TELEVISION, THE SILVER SCREEN, AND IN MY STORY-BOOK COLLECTION. I WASN'T BY ANY MEANS, THE MOST NAIVE OF THE BUNCH EITHER. MOST OF MY CONTEMPORARIES BELIEVED THE SAME EMBELLISHED AND ROMANTICIZED STORIES. IF HOLLYWOOD WAS A REAL PLACE, THEN WHY WOULD THEY BE PRODUCING UNTRUE STORIES ABOUT GUNSLINGERS, AND THE FAMILIES OF THE GREAT PIONEERING WAGON-TRAINS? MAVERICK WASN'T A REAL WESTERN HERO? I TOLD YOU, I WAS RAISED ON TELEVISION. YOU CAN IMAGINE THEN, HOW MUCH BACKTRACKING I HAD TO DO, IN ORDER TO GET A UNIVERSITY DEGREE IN HISTORY.
MY POINT IS, MANY OF US HAVE A SIMILAR OVERVIEW OF THOSE HOMESTEAD YEARS OF CANADIAN HISTORY. FROM MANY DIFFERENT SOURCES, WE UNDERSTAND THAT LIFE WAS HARD, WITH MANY DEPRIVATIONS FROM WHAT WE HAVE AS COMMONPLACE TODAY. BUT BECAUSE WE HAVE NEVER REALLY HAD TO LIVE THROUGH IT, EVEN IN RE-ENACTMENTS, (OUTSIDE OF OCCASIONAL CAMPING TRIPS), WE RELY ON INFILLING; AND THAT HAS TO BE SOUGHT-OUT AS A RESULT OF PERSONAL INTEREST. UNLESS YOU PLAN ON BECOMING AN HISTORIAN, OR A TEACHER OF HISTORY, MOST FOLKS TODAY, WOULD ARGUE, ABOUT THE RELEVANCE OF THIS ASPECT OF HISTORY-NOT-TO-BE-REPEATED. OF COURSE WE DON'T KNOW THIS, DO WE? IT'S JUST THAT THERE IS NO REAL INCENTIVE TO LEARN ABOUT HOMESTEAD LIFE, AS IT WAS IN OUR DISTRICT, BECAUSE IT DOESN'T BUMP INTO CONTEMPORARY LIVING ALL THAT OFTEN. UNLESS YOU FIND THE GRAVE OF A PIONEER, IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR EXCAVATION FOR A BACKYARD SWIMMING POOL. HERE LIES THE PROBLEM. IT IS IMPORTANT. I WOULDN'T HAVE SPEND MOST OF MY LIFE RESEARCHING IT, AND HARPING ON IT IN LECTURES AND WRITING ABOUT IT FREQUENTLY, IF IT WAS BEST LEFT ALONE. SOME OF THE PROBLEMS TODAY, BETWEEN RURAL AND URBAN CONSTITUENTS, IS ROOTED IN THE FACT, LOCAL ELECTED OFFICIALS, SEEM DISINTERESTED IN THE SOCIAL / CULTURAL HERITAGE THAT EVOLVED IN THE HINTERLAND NEIGHBORHOODS. THERE HAS LONG BEEN MISTRUST BETWEEN THOSE WHO DWELL IN THE COUNRY, AND THOSE LIVING IN THE TOWNS AND VILLAGES. IT MIGHT NEVER BE CORRECTED, BUT IT DOES NEED TO BE ADDRESSED. OTHERWISE, LIKE THE JONI MITCHELL SONG, "THEY'LL PAVE OVER PARADISE AND PUT UP A PARKING LOT."
MOST OF US HAVE GROWN UP WITH A HOLLYWOOD VERSION, OF WHAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE, HOMESTEADING THE VAST FRONTIER ZONES OF NORTH AMERICA, CIRCA THE MID TO LATE 1800'S. OF COURSE, IT WAS AN AMERICAN WRITE R'S, AND FILM DIRECTOR'S PERSPECTIVE, OF WHAT BEING A PIONEER MEANT. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY HISTORIANS WORKED IN COLLABORATION WITH SHOWS LIKE "BONANZA," AND "LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE," OR "GUNSMOKE," TO NAME A FEW OF MY FAVORITES. AS A TELEVISION FANATIC, FROM SHORTLY AFTER BIRTH, I DID FALL PREY, TO THE LIBERAL INTERPRETATIONS OF HISTORY, TAKEN BY HOLLYWOOD FILM MAKERS, IN ORDER TO TURN A PROFIT FOR THEIR EFFORTS TO ENTERTAIN A GROWING TELEVISION AUDIENCE. I KNEW A LOT ABOUT DANIEL BOONE, AND DAVEY CROCKETT, AND I MAY HAVE OWNED THE MERCHANDISE THEY WERE FLOGGING TO VULNERABLE TELEVISION ADDICTS LIKE ME. I WATCHED EVERY MAJOR MOVIE THAT DEALT WITH THE OLD WEST, AND THE PIONEER HOMESTEAD. MY FAVORITE ALL TIME WESTERN, (WITH A HEAVY EMPHASIS ON HOMESTEADING), WAS THE MOVIE "SHANE," WITH ALAN LADD, AND JACK PALANCE; CLASSIC GOOD GUY, BAD GUY, SHOOT-'EM-UP COWBOY FLICK, WITH THE PIONEERS WINNING THE BATTLE FOR THEIR FARMSTEADS. MAYBE IT WAS ALL THIS TELEVISION THAT WARPED MY SENSE OF PERSPECTIVE. POSSIBLY I'VE COME TO VIEW MUSKOKA'S FREE LAND GRANT PERIOD, IN HISTORY, AS A "SHANE-LIKE" ACTUALITY, WHERE THERE WAS GUNSLINGING AND BARE KNUCKLE BRAWLING IN EVERY SALOON, FROM GRAVENHURST TO DOWNTOWN UFFORD; WHERE MY WIFE'S FAMILY WERE HOMESTEADERS. WELL, YOU'D BE WRONG TO THINK THIS, BECAUSE I'VE WORKED HARD TO REMOVE THE HOLLYWOOD FILM HANGOVER, AND MISTRUTHS, FROM MY OWN INTERPRETATION OF LOCAL HISTORY. OF COURSE, WE KNOW THAT THE HOMESTEADING PERIOD IN MUSKOKA, WAS NOT THE SAME AS IN KANSAS, OR KENTUCKY, OR ARIZONA. AND MUCH LATER THAN THESE AMERICAN COUNTERPARTS. WE DIDN'T HAVE COWBOYS, FOR ONE THING, IN MUSKOKA, AND THERE WERE NO WAGON TRAINS, OR INDIAN WARS TO CONTEND WITH, IN THE LATE 1850'S TO 1870'S. I HAVE NEVER READ ABOUT EVEN ONE SHOOT-OUT BETWEEN GUN FIGHTERS, OR ANY KIND OF ARMED AMBUSH "AT THE PASS," TO HEADLINE IN THE LOCAL NEWS RAG. IT DOESN'T MEAN THERE WASN'T VIOLENCE AMONGST THE HOMESTEADERS, AND SOME OF THE VILLAGERS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE LOGGERS WERE SPENDING THEIR CAMP PAY IN THE LOCAL TAVERNS; AND WELL, YOU KNOW THE REST.
I DON'T BELIEVE THERE WAS EVER A RECORDED DUEL FOR ANYONE'S HONOR. FISTICUFFS? LOTS OF THOSE, AND SUZANNE'S FAMILY WAS FAMOUS FOR THEIR PROWESS IN THIS REGARD. (THE SHEAS OF UFFORD WERE KNOWN AS THE THREE MILE LAKE WOLVES). BUT FROM WHAT I'VE RESEARCHED FOR THE PAST THREE DECADES, IT WOULDN'T MAKE A VERY EXCITING MOVIE, UNLESS THE WRITERS AND FILM DIRECTORS INFILLED A LOT OF FICTION-PADDING. I LOVE THE HISTORY WE HAVE, AND THERE ISN'T A REASON TO PAD WHAT IS GENUINE AND INSPIRATIONAL ON ITS OWN. THERE ARE SOME INTIMATE, PERSONAL STORIES, THAT WOULD MAKE INTERESTING DOCUMENTARIES, AND EVEN UNIQUE BIOGRAPHIES, BUT NOT MUCH TO CREATE "BONANZA-LIKE" EPISODES FOR THE MASSES. IT'S THE PROBLEM OF FICTION, WEARING HISTORICAL ATTIRE, THAT GIVES US SO MANY FALSE IMPRESSIONS, ABOUT THE WHOLE HOMESTEAD, PIONEERING PERIOD IN OUR COUNTRY. OF COURSE WE HAVE AN AMERICANIZED PERSPECTIVE. UNLESS YOU HAVE COUNTERED WHAT YOU'VE SEEN ON TELEVISION, OR ON THE SILVER SCREEN, SINCE CHILDHOOD, ABOUT THE MORE GLAMOROUS, WILD AND WOOLY ASPECTS OF THE HOMESTEAD EXPERIENCE, YOU ARE FORGIVEN THOSE INFLUENCES OF ENTERTAINMENT. I DO BELIEVE, HOWEVER, MANY PREFER TO LEAVE WELL ENOUGH ALONE, AND ACCEPT THE HOLLYWOOD VERSION OF EVENTS. IF YOU DON'T EXPLORE OUR PIONEER HERITAGE, WITHOUT THE WRAPPINGS OF FICTION-FOR-PROFIT, YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PROPORTIONALLY FRAME WHAT REALLY HAPPENED BACK THEN, IN THE INFANCY OF OUR REGION. IT WILL ASKEW EVERYTHING ELSE IN OUR CHRONICLE. IT WILL DESENSITIZE THE RELEVANCE OF OUR ENTIRE PIONEER PERIOD, AS RELATES TO CONTEMPORARY TIMES, AND THIS MEANS, WE'RE BUILDING MASSIVE STRUCTURES ON A LARGELY UNKNOWN FOUNDATION. IT'S WHY, IN THE ARCHITECTURAL, ENGINEERING SENSE, AND LOGIC, THE STRENGTH AND DURABILITY OF THE FOUNDATION CAN'T BE IGNORED. EVERYTHING ELSE WILL TOPPLE AND CRUMBLE OFF A FOUNDATION THAT IS MISUNDERSTOOD FOR ITS STRENGTHS AND POTENTIAL WEAKNESSES, AHEAD OF IT BEING USED AS A LOAD-BEARING PLATFORM.
SO HOW DOES THIS ALL RELATE TO CONTEMPORARY MUSKOKA, THE DEMANDS TO SPRAWL INTO THE HINTERLAND, FUTURE PROGRESS ANTICIPATED, AND OUR MUNICIPAL GOVERNANCE?
AS A RULE, HISTORIANS AREN'T CONSULTED ABOUT URBAN PLANNING. MAYBE IN TERMS OF ARCHEALOGICAL POTENTIALS, HERITAGE GROUPS MAY BE CONSULTED IN ADVANCE, BUT MORE LIKELY, BURIAL GROUNDS ARE DISTURBED BY THE EARTH MOVERS, AND THEN THE HISTORIANS ARE CALLED-IN TO INVESTIGATE. I CAN'T RECALL ANY OF MY HERITAGE CRONIES, IN THIS REGION, BEING ASKED TO PARTICIPATE IN A ROUND TABLE, ABOUT THE PLANNING PROCESS, AND WHAT SHOULD BE RESPECTED AS OUR INHERENT HERITAGE RESOURCES. I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT ARCHITECTURE HERE, OR NATURAL RESOURCES, ALREADY PROTECTED BY THE WORK OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVANCY GROUPS. IT GETS EVEN MORE AMBIGUOUS, WHEN I SUGGEST, THAT THERE IS A CULTURAL HERITAGE OUT THERE, THAT ALSO NEEDS TO RECEIVE SOME LONG OVERDUE STEWARDSHIP, BEFORE IT IS DEVOURED BY NEW AGE, AND OUT OF THE AREA, LAND SPECULATION, AT OUR GREAT EXPENSE; AND ALL ITS CORRESPONDING DEVELOPMENT.
THIS IS INTENDED TO BE A SERIES OF ARTICLES ABOUT THE HOMESTEAD PERIOD, NOT WRITTEN TO INCITE PROTEST, INITIATE SIT-INS, WALK-OUTS, MARCHES, OR HUNGER STRIKES. IT'S NOT TO ENCOURAGE MUSKOKA CITIZENS TO CHAIN THEMSELVES TO THEIR FAVORITE TREES, OR SHRUBS, AND THERE REALLY ISN'T ANY REASON TO INITIATE A PHONE-IN CAMPAIGN, TO PROTEST THE SENSELESS DESTRUCTION OF OUR SOCIAL / CULTURAL HERITAGE. NATURE YOU SEE, IS THE ROOT OF THIS HERITAGE. A BIG, STRONG, EXPANSIVE ROOT. GETTING BACK TO THE OPENING PARAGRAPH, THE UPHILL BATTLE, TO EVEN GET BACK TO A SO-CALLED "SQUARE ONE" WITH SUCH STEWARDSHIP, IS TO ACCEPT THE REALITY, MOST OF OUR CITIZENRY, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO HAVE ARRIVED HERE AFTER 1980, HAVE NO INTEREST IN PRESERVING WHAT THEY DIDN'T HAVE AN INHERENT STAKE, IN THE FIRST PLACE! WHAT HOLLYWOOD HAS BEEN DEPICTING FOR MOST OF A CENTURY, WORKS FOR THE MASSES. ESPECIALLY FOR ALL THOSE WHO HATED HISTORY CLASSES, BUT LIKED TO BE ENTERTAINED, POPCORN IN HAND. YOU KNOW, USING HISTORY, TO THEIR BEST ADVANTAGE, MOVIE MOGULS MAKING US PAY FOR OUR LESSONS LEARNED. BELIEVE IT OR NOT, SOME VIEWERS DON'T ALWAYS MAKE THE STARK DISTINCTION BETWEEN WHAT IS FACT, AND FICTION, ON THE SILVER SCREEN. IN ORDER TO DEFEND THE INTEGRITY OF THE HOMESTEAD PERIOD IN MUSKOKA, WE HAVE TO PROVE THAT IT IS WORTH SAVING IN THE FIRST PLACE. OUTSIDE OF MAKING AN INTERESTING DISPLAY AT A LOCAL MUSEUM, WHAT EARTHLY GOOD IS IT, TO KEEP BRINGING PIONEERS TO THE FOREFRONT, IN THIS DAY AND AGE? THERE ARE TIMES, WHEN EVEN THE HISTORIANS, GET BEFUDDLED, TRYING TO EXPLAIN WHY FOUNDATION HERITAGE IS A SECURE, RELIABLE PLATFORM ON WHICH TO BUILD THE FUTURE. BUT IT'S A HARD, ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE SELL TO A CONTEMPORARY AUDIENCE, BECAUSE WE'RE NOT DEALING WITH MASSIVE, HAND HEWN PINE TIMBERS HERE, OR THOUSANDS OF MUSKOKA ROCK SLABS, TO DEMONSTRATE WHAT WE MEAN BY "FOUNDATION," AND "PLATFORM!" IT'S SHORTFALL, OF COURSE, IS THAT WHAT WE ARE TALKING, WRITING, AND LECTURING ABOUT, IS ACTUALLY A PLATFORM OF FACTS, WORDS, INK, AND THE PAPER THAT IS PRINTED, BOUND, AND SOLD AS A BOOK (OR BOOKS ON THE SUBJECT OF MUSKOKA HISTORY).
YOU CAN INSPECT A FOUNDATION BUILT FROM ACTUAL BUILDING MATERIALS. AS FOR FOUNDATIONS CREATED BY HISTORY, ONE CAN EITHER ACCEPT THE PRESENTATIONS OF REGIONAL HISTORIANS, WHO AREN'T CONSULTED OFTEN, OR ON THE ACUMMULATED KNOWLEDGE, GARNERED BY READING DOZENS OF LOCALLY WRITTEN BOOKS, ON THIS OPENING-UP OF THE ONTARIO FRONTIER, FOR THE PURPOSES OF SETTLEMENT. THE FOUNDATION OF PRECEDENTS, IS PULLED TOGETHER WITH KNOWLEDGE, AND HOW DURABLE IT IS, AND PROPORTIONAL TO EVERYTHING ELSE, DEPENDS ON THE COMPETENCE OF THE HISTORIANS, WHO HAVE FASTENED TOGETHER, THE PERTINENT DETAILS OF HOW MUSKOKA WAS FOUNDED. I DON'T EXPECT THAT LOCAL POLITICIANS WILL EVER WANT TO HAVE A HEART TO HEART WITH LOCAL HISTORIANS, ABOUT THE WELL BEING OF THIS FOUNDATION, BUT IT'S NOT LIKE WE DON'T APPRECIATE JUST HOW IRRELEVANT WE'VE BECOME, DESPITE OUR BEST EFFORTS TO CONSERVE THE HARD REALITIES OF LOCAL HERITAGE; PRINT, PHOTOGRAPHIC AND ARCHITECTURAL. IT'S THE GREAT DANGER, FOR THE FUTURE, I BELIEVE, BECAUSE EVEN NOW, I FEEL MUSKOKA IS QUICKLY EVOLVING AWAY FROM ITS SOCIAL / CULTURAL LEGACY, AS MUCH MORE FOCUS ON INVESTMENT, HAS BEEN DIRECTED TO THE URBAN CENTRES OF THIS RURAL, STILL LARGELY REGION OF ONTARIO. IT HAS CREATED A NOTICEABLE CONFUSION, AMONGST THE RURAL POPULATION, ABOUT WHAT IS NEXT TO COME DOWN THE PIKE FOR THEM; DESPITE WHAT CAN BE SEEN, ON A MOTOR TRIP ALONG THE BACK ROADS, AS A SUBSTANTIAL SHIFT OF RESIDENTIAL INTEREST AWAY FROM THE URBAN AREAS. IT SEEMS THAT THERE HAS BEEN SOME RE-DISCOVERY GOING ON, THAT THE HINTERLAND IS A PRETTY GOOD PLACE TO RAISE A FAMILY. YUP, JUST LIKE THE OLD DAYS. THE MINDSET OF COMMUNITY LEADERS HOWEVER, HASN'T YET SHOWN ANY INTEREST, IN KNOWING MORE ABOUT THE SOCIAL / CULTURAL CHARACTER, OF HOW MUSKOKA HAS DEVELOPED AS A REGION SINCE THE LATE 1850'S; ALL PROPORTIONAL TO WHAT HAS EVOLVED UP TO, AND INCLUDING, THIS YEAR IN OUR HISTORY OCCUPYING MUSKOKA. SOME WOULD SAY, THE RURAL CITIZENS ARE BEING SHORTCHANGED RE-INVESTMENT OF THEIR TAX DOLLARS, AS MORE GOES TO THE URBAN AREAS INSTEAD. SOME REFER TO IT AS A BETRAYAL OF PROPERTY RIGHTS, AND MANY URBANITES COULDN'T CARE LESS ABOUT ANYTHING MORE RURAL THAN A FOREST AT THE EDGE OF TOWN, OR A BEACH ON LAKE MUSKOKA. THERE'S A BIGGER CONFLICT GROWING OUT THERE, STRANGELY GROWING FROM THE LEFTOVER ANGER, AND UNRESOLVED ISSUES, FROM THE DISTRICT AMALGAMATION BACK IN 1969. THE RURAL RESIDENTS FELT SCREWED THEN, AND I'M PRETTY CONFIDENT, THERE IS ENOUGH RESENTMENT EVEN YET, TO FUEL A TAX REBELLION IN THE FUTURE. BUT IT GOES BACK FURTHER THAN THIS, AND SO MUCH HAS TO DO WITH HOW THE HABITATION OF MUSKOKA BEGAN, DURING THE FREE LAND GRANT PERIOD. WHEN ALL OF MUSKOKA WAS RURAL. EVERYONE, IN SOME REGARD, WAS A PIONEER INVESTOR. SOME ATTAINED DIVIDENDS SOONER THAN OTHERS. MANY FELL FLAT ON HARD TIMES, AND NEVER IMPROVED THEIR LOT. OTHERS FLED THE DISTRICT WHEN THE GOING GOT TOO TOUGH, AND THEIR FARMS FAILED. THE RURAL, SOCIAL / CULTURAL CIRCUMSTANCE OF MUSKOKA LIVING, CAME FIRST.
WHEN THE FIRST SETTLERS ARRIVED HERE, THERE WAS NOTHING MORE TO COMMUNITIES, THAN PIONEER ENCAMPMENTS IN CENTRAL LOCATIONS. THEY WERE AT THAT POINT, MINOR-HAMLETS, WHILE HOMESTEADS WERE BEING ESTABLISHED FURTHER AFIELD, IN THE FREE LAND GRANT REGION. THE EVENTUAL HAMLETS AND VILLAGES, AND OF COURSE FUTURE TOWNS, WERE ONLY AS SUCCESSFUL, AS THEIR RURAL NEIGHBORS WERE PROSPEROUS. WHEN THE HOMESTEADS FALTERED, THE CENTRAL COMMUNITIES FELT THE ECONOMIC WOES. WHEN THE HOMESTEADS WERE THRIVING, WHICH AT TIMES WAS THE CASE, THE URBAN SETTLEMENTS EXPERIENCED THE PROSPERITY OF INCREASED DEMAND. FUNNY THING, THAT TODAY, MOST URBAN MUSKOKANS, COULDN'T CARE LESS ABOUT THE SO CALLED OUT-BACK, UNLESS THEY HAVE SOME VESTED INTEREST; SUCH AS OWNING A BUSH LOT, A VACANT ACREAGE THEY WANT TO DEVELOP, OR A COTTAGE ON A MUSKOKA LAKE. WHEN A RURAL CROSSROADS COMMUNITY, ASKS THE MUNICIPALITY FOR EXTRA MONEY, FOR SOMETHING THEY BELIEVE WILL HELP THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD, IT SEEMS GENERALLY, THAT THE WHOLE HISTORY OF SETTLEMENT HAS BEEN RECALLED FOR CLARIFICATION. HOW DARE THE RURAL DWELLERS ASK FOR FAVORS. HAVEN'T WE DONE ENOUGH FOR THEM ALREADY? DON'T THEY KNOW THEIR PLACE? AH, NOW THIS IS THE REASON, MUNICIPALITIES NEED TO TALK TO THEIR AREA HISTORIANS, FOR ONE THING, TO SEE IF THOSE RURAL FOLKS HAVE A CASE TO ASK FOR A RAISE. THE ISSUE OF RURAL VERSUS URBAN NEEDS TO BE RE-FRAMED, AND IT'S HOW I LEARNED WAY, WAY BACK, HOW TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE WHOLE FOUNDATION-OF-HISTORY SITUATION. THE LEADERSHIP OF MUSKOKA HAS CLEARLY FORGOTTEN THE IMPORTANCE OF FAIR PLAY, AS RELATES TO RURAL INVESTMENT. THE LARGER CENTRES CONTINUE TO GET THE BULK OF INVESTMENT, AND WHILE IT SEEMS LOGICAL, IN THE ECONOMIC SENSE, IT DOESN'T FIT THE PUZZLE, IN THE HISTORICAL OVERVIEW.
WE HAVE LARGER CENTRES, TODAY, BECAUSE WE HAD STRONG RURAL NEIGHBORHOODS FROM THE BEGINNING. THE RURAL POPULATION KNIT TOGETHER PRETTY WELL, LOOKING OUT FOR ONE ANOTHER. OF COURSE, THIS IS WHAT THE GOVERNMENT PLAN HAD BEEN ALL ALONG. THEY WANTED SETTLERS, TO FORM INDUSTRIOUS UNIONS, (ACROSS THE ENTIRE COUNTRY) AND EVEN LOOKED AT CULTURAL ADVANTAGES THIS WAY. THE PRIME EXAMPLE, WAS THE RECRUITMENT OF ICELANDERS, WHO THEY KNEW, BY RESEARCH, WOULD COME TO CANADA AND RESIDE IN CLUSTERS. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED, FIRST IN THE HAMLET OF HEKKLA, NEAR THE VILLAGE OF ROSSEAU. THERE ARE OTHER EXAMPLES, OF CULTURAL GATHERINGS, IN THE FREE LAND GRANT ALLOCATIONS. WHILE THE TOWNS AND VILLAGES GET A LITTLE COCKY ABOUT THEIR HERITAGE, THEY DO FORGET, HOW STRONG THE RURAL ECONOMY HAD TO BE, FOR THEIR OWN NEIGHBORHOODS TO GROW STRONGER, WITH ECONOMIC DIVERSITY AND INVESTMENT. AFTER THE INSTITUTION OF REGIONAL GOVERNMENT, MANY HAMLETS, THAT HAD THEIR OWN WARD GOVERNANCE, DISAPPEARED AS SIGNIFICANT SETTLEMENTS, TO THE POINT NOW, OF JUST BEING NAMES ON SIGN-BOARDS TO PACIFY LOCAL HOBBY HISTORIANS. BUT IF YOU TAKE THE TIME TO ASK THE FOLKS WHO STILL LIVE IN THESE AREAS, WHO HAVE A FAMILY CONNECTION BACK TO THE PIONEER PERIOD, THEY WILL SPIN SOME INTERESTING TALES ABOUT THE SOCIAL / CULTURAL FORGETFULNESS OF THE URAB DWELLING MODERNISTS.
SURE, IT'S A FOUNDATION BASED ON WORDS AND INK, AND SOME SIGNIFICANT DOCUMENTATION. BUT AS MY POLITICAL ADVERSARIES WOULD ARGUE, STUFF CHANGES. THEY DON'T LIKE BEING CHALLENGED ON ISSUES THEY HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE, SO THEREFORE, WE DON'T HAVE DEBATES ON THE TOPIC. THEY JUST AVOID SCRUMS, AND WON'T EVER READ BLOGS LIKE THIS.
MUSKOKA THEN, FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES, IS THE MUSKOKA WE KNOW TODAY, WITH ALL ITS NATURAL ATTRIBUTES WE BRAG ABOUT; IT BEING ONE OF THE FINEST TOURIST REGIONS IN CANADA, FOR EXAMPLE. AS A MATTER OF ONGOING IRONY, THE COTTAGE COMMUNITY IS PART OF THE RURAL EXPERIENCE. BECAUSE OF THE DETERMINATION OF THE RURAL SETTLERS, FROM THE BEGINNING, TO RISE ABOVE HARDSHIP, AND MAKE THEIR HOMESTEAD STAKES WORK, WE HAVE THE CONTEMPORARY REALITIES OF THE DISTRICT OF MUSKOKA. THERE WERE MANY FAILURES, BUT JUST AS MANY SUCCESSES. IF ONE WAS TO TRAVEL AROUND MUSKOKA, WITH A LIST OF EARLY HOMESTEADERS, WHO STAKED THESE LAND CLAIMS, I THINK IT WOULD BE EYE OPENING, FOR THE VOYEUR TO FIND, THAT MANY DESCENDANTS OF THOSE HARDY PIONEERS, ARE STILL REPRESENTED IN THE RURAL CLIMES OF THE DISTRICT. CHECK THE MAIL BOXES. FAMILY NAMES THAT GO BACK AS FAR AS THE 1860'S, ARE STILL IN EVIDENCE, IN 2014; DWELLING IN RURAL NEIGHBORHOODS, AND IN THE URBAN COMMUNITIES. HISTORY IS WORTH SOMETHING AFTERALL. IF IT WAS TO BE REFRAMED, AS AN INITIATIVE OF THE FUTURE, TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE TRUE OBLIGATION AND STEWARDSHIP OF HERITAGE IN MUSKOKA, I'D WANT TO BE A PART OF THIS PROCESS OF ENLIGHTENMENT.
LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW OF AN OLD CABIN IN JERUSALEM
On about the fourth visit (circa 1980), hiking into the homestead settlement, we knew then as Jerusalem, near Bracebridge, that once belonged to the Peacock family, (some of those kin-folk being buried at the Union Cemetery, in Falkenburg), I decided to spend a few hours making notes; instead of looking for garbage sites, and treasure deposits, where I might have uncovered buried medicine and soda bottles. This would have been my normal fare. Instead, I opted to sit on a chair in the cabin, looking out through the several glassless windows, affording a few of the hilly and rocky terrain, beneath what the settlers had called their Hill of Judea. It was an amazing solitude, and although there were lots of animal sounds, from around and below the surviving log cabin, such as mice and chipmunks, and the wind washing over the hillside, the intrusion was a joyful music to my ears.
I felt I should see the landscape from this portal, nestled in the valley between the substantial hillsides, and frame it all, as a resident of the cabin, would have also, in their time; the view of the surrounding landscape, giving every appearance, of being hundreds of miles from the rest of the civilized world. In those days, I can imagine it feeling this isolated, and the family members, sensing with trepidation, just how seriously cut-off they were, in that location, from their fellow homesteaders. I remember the trip being at around this time of year. There were still leaves on the trees, and even the beautiful colors of the hardwoods against the vivid green of the pines, didn't ease my feelings of desolation, at being alone and isolated. Yet I could leave whenever I wanted. It didn't matter. I felt it was an oppressive place to lodge, even for a short time; even when the day was warm, sunny, and painted with autumn colors. I had to force myself to stay in this place; look out these windows, onto the rock cliff, and pine clusters, dotted on the grassy slope. Here I was, a lover of the hinterland, and well versed in pioneer heritage, feeling as if I was having a wide-awake nightmare. There was nothing I witnessed, or experienced, even in the prevailing mood of the sun-drenched environs, that made me want to stay more than the alotted time to make my notes. In many ways, it was the first real personal conflict I had, with my own hinterland appreciation. I learned on that sojourn, in the cabin, that it was one thing to drive through the countryside, and think, "gosh this is beautiful," to a scenario, where you actually take up residence, in the same cabin that served the emigrant pioneer.
I couldn't imagine the settlers, fresh from the urban areas of Britain, winding-up in a place as isolated as this was, and carrying on for decades, trying to farm what was impossible, but characteristic Muskoka terrain. My notes were hurried, and less than honest, as I really wanted to leave before I had originally planned. You see, my framing of what the homesteaders themselves, saw from their windows, allowed me the opportunity, to see just how ominous and forbidding it could be; especially over the bleak late autumn, winter, and early spring seasons. I was seeing it at the best time of the year. At forty below zero, with a snowstorm etching down over the topography, well, I can't imagine what thoughts would be going on in my head. It was the homestead chronicle, to survive with what they had been allocated. While the landscapes weren't all as confining, and oppressive, the way I was framing the scene, was pretty much the same for every pioneer, looking for the positives of the homestead, amidst the prevailing adversity, and hardships. I have arrived at this late stage in life, and work as a regional historian, convinced, the homesteading period of our heritage, is a durable, time-tested platform, on which we can rest our future. What would me a milestone achievement, is for our regional governance, to feel the same, and develop a new approach, to the representation of rural values, and participation in what they intend, to be progressive development for all constituents. Today, it is urban thinking, that dominates, and I'm sorry about this; because it's a mistaken policy, to build away, and distant, from the known, secure, enduring founding-platform, of all that we know of our contemporary Muskoka. Believe me, it isn't a romantic overview, because once you've seen through that framing, of the pioneer window, you don't underestimate the view again; that it wasn't the pretty picture we might have previously believed.
When Henry David Thoreau isolated himself to enjoy the natural solitude of Walden Pond, he was still close enough to the family, to occasionally receive fresh baking to tide him over. Not so in Jerusalem, in the Muskoka out-back.
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