Lögberg-Heimskringla - 11.12.1992, Side 22

22 • Lögberg-Heimskringla • Föstudagur 11. desember 1992
An lcelandic Créche in Foam Lake
ByJoan Eyolfson Cadham
The nativity scene, often called
the créche, is the oldest and
most authentic of Christmas
traditional decorations. The idea of
depicting Mary, Jospeph and the
Baby has been around since the
fourth century. However, when St.
Francis of Assisi arranged a living
manger scene in Greccio on
Christmas Eve, 1223, as the highlight
of the Christmas Eve mass, he estab-
lished the basis for our modern
nativity tradition.
And there is a specific tradition to
the building of a Christmas manger
scene. Rather than exactly depicting
the people and costumes of
Bethlehem 2000 years ago, créche
figures look like the people who cre-
ate them. People recreate the first
Christmas in a way that is most
meaningful for them, so that in St.
Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal, as part
of the finest collection of nativity
scenes in Canada. are African holy
families, Jesus in a maple sugar shack
aloftg the shores of a Quebec river,
South American nativities with
bright costumes and palm trees. and
a Japanese arrangement with angels
in typical traditional Japanese cos-
tume.
When Garth and Gaylene
McCucheon. who own the drug store
in Foam Lake. decided they wanted
something “a little different” for their
entry into the Foam Lake Moonlight
Madness parade. Garth remembered
his involvement with a Sask-
atchewan-based artist with a mis-
sion, Michael Gaudet.
Gaudet. who studied at the Nova
Scotia College of Art and Design and
who spent two years working at
Desmarais and Robitaille, Montreal’s
famous liturgical supply house, lives
in Verigin with his Saskatchewan-
born artist wife, Maureen Stefaniuk.
Gaudet and Stefaniuk have created
several authentic ethnic nativities.
Because they live
in the centre of
Doukhobor settlement
in Saskatchewan. their
first nativity was a
Doukhobor scene
wherein gold. frankin-
cense and myrrh were
replaced with the tradi-
tional Doukhobor gifts
of a loaf of bread (the
staff of life), a jug of
water (the spirit of life)
and salt (the essence of
life).
The couple have also
designed and built a
child’s nativity, celebrat-
ing their preschool
daughter Ilara who
wages an on-going
struggle with kidney dis-
ease, and Nativity
Canadiana, featuring an
Eskimo with a carved
soapstone whate. an
Indian chief offering a
peace pipe. a Ukrainian
woman with a kolach, a
lawyer with an attache
case, a farmer with fresh
produce and an artist
with a canvas. The scene
also includes wild and tame
Canadian animals and birds.
“The various culturally specific
nativity treatments speak of the uni-
versal ideal of the Christ spirit, born
at all times to all people in their own
indigeneous place and culture,”
Gaudet said. “This of course does
not imply denigration of the culture;
on the contrary. it means to uphold,
honour and celebrate the cultural
differences while simultaneously
rejoicing in our common humanity.”
The float Gaudet designed for
McCucheon’s pharmacy was
designed to honour one segment of
Foam Lake’s history. Mary and
Joseph are authentic Icelanders.
Working on short notice, Gaudet,
who says he would like to add other
ethnic Icelanders presenting tradi-
tional Icelandic gifts to the central
theme of the Holy Family, focused
on the theme of the Icelandic cos-
tumes.
The creche is rustic, symbolic of
the pioneers and symbolic
of a country where wood
Was sometimes in short
supply. The roof is shin-
gled and is surmounted by
the star of Bethlehem and
— another symbol of the
Foam Lake area — a pair
of ducks rather than
doves.
The holy parents are in
traditional costume.
However, the model from
which Gaudet worked
included rich and intricate
gold work on the mother’s
costume, and a magnificent
gold necklace. “This is not
traditional for Mary,” he
said. “I decided to keep
them humble, and I decid-
ed to let the gold in her
hair suffice.” Mary has
magnificent long golden
braids.
The Baby has dark eyes,
although his parents are
blue-eyed Icelanders. “All
babies are born with dark
eyes,” said Gaudet. “I
assume he will grow up to
have blue eyes.”
Following the Moonlight
Madness parade, the McCucheons
set up the nativity on their front
lawn, illuminated at night. They
have also ordered Christmas cards
with the Icelandic nativity which
will they will sell from their phar-
macy.
OMlbart
IFmteral Hmnejs 2Ci
J. Roy Gilbart, J. Wes. Gilbart, 482-3271
First St., Gimli and
_______309 Eveline St., Selkirk
MEMORIES
I just finished reading the
Föstudagar 20 issue of L-H and on
page 7 I found a delightful memory.
In June of 1991, in company of
Stanley Þorsteinsson of Kanduhar
and Margaret Hammerot, had the
privilege of coffee, cake and conver-
sation with the Jonsson “boys” Beggi
and Kiddi at their farm near
Wynyard.
Kiddi had baked 11 loaves of
bread that morning and the other
young lad, Beggi had just completed
his spring field work. The conversa-
tion was quite eclectic varying from
farm conditions, local politics to tales
of the early days in the area.
I was born in Wynyard but my
parents left there in 1925, my age
was 7.
The Jonssons were at an in
between age. Too old to have known
me and too young for my parents but
we discussed places and people and
had a truly delightful aftemoon.
Best Regards,
Larus
P.S. The astonishing thing is, the
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