Lögberg-Heimskringla - 15.10.2018, Blaðsíða 15

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Lögberg-Heimskringla • 15. október 2018 • 15
Although there is some difference
of opinion, I believe that
John Ramsay was a member
of the Swampy Cree Nation. All of
the information we have comes from
government papers and the stories
written by the first Icelandic immigrants
to what is now Manitoba. The area was
the Icelandic Reserve in the Interlake,
just above Manitoba in 1875. The words
inside the square brackets are the Swampy
Cree words for the preceding English
word or expression. I used the Ochékiwi
Sípí Cree Dictionary: Swampy Cree
Dialect and the Cree Everyday Phrases
& Words books given to me at Fisher
River Cree Nation. Thank you [ékosani],
Fred Crate.
Hello [Tansi]
John Ramsay (1837-1894) is a
legend in the Manitoba Interlake. A Cree
thought to have been born on an island in
Lake Winnipeg, he taught the Icelandic
newcomers to fish on Lake Winnipeg
(they were ocean fishers) all year round,
to cut timber and build log homes, to
build lake-worthy boats, to hunt with a
gun or a bow and arrow, and many other
things about their new homeland. They
showed helpfulness [wíchíhiwéwin] and
kindness [kiséwatisíwin]. The Canadian
Government of the time granted
homesteads to the Icelanders – but would
not let John and his people claim any of
the land they had lived on forever. John
continued to ask for the establishment
of a reserve or compensation for many
years but the government gave him
nothing. Olafur Olafsson received a
patent and occupied John’s land, which
Olafur called “Ós.” Olafur told John
he could cultivate a garden and camp
on the land as he always had, which he
did. Then, so disastrously for all, one of
the newcomers brought smallpox. The
horrible disease devastated everyone,
and John lost his beloved wife, Betsey,
and his sons. His only remaining child, a
daughter, was seriously disfigured by the
disease. In spite of all that, John Ramsay
became a friend to the Icelanders.
The New Iceland Heritage Museum
(NIHM) has had a plaque and a recorded
message honouring John for many years.
Thankfully [I am happy – niminwénitén],
they decided to do more in celebration of
Canada 150. Money was collected for a
half-hour film, a song, and a new exhibit.
The major donors were the Westshore
Foundation, Thomas Sill Foundation,
Canada 150 Fund, and the Province of
Manitoba. The John Ramsay Exhibit,
titled John Ramsay – Life and Legacy,
opened at NIHM on October 21st, 2017.
This is a poignant story; boxes of facial
tissues were supplied.
The film, A Song for John Ramsay,
was shot and produced in Manitoba’s
Interlake by Andy Blicq and Huw Eirug
of 4th Avenue Productions Inc. in Gimli.
It depends heavily on the song, The
Ballad of John Ramsay, written by
William Prince (who is originally from
Peguis First Nation) and Scott Nolan;
the sound engineer was Jamie Sitar.
William sings and plays the song using
his Indigenous sensibilities to portray
the heartbreak in John’s life when he
lost Betsey, his boys and his land as
well. He travelled on foot to the Stone
Fort (presumably Lower Fort Garry) to
purchase a stone for Betsey’s grave and
hauled it all the way back. She had loved
the sound of the water, so he placed the
grave close to Lake Winnipeg [by the
shore - chikask] and built a fence around
it. The story of the Trausti Vigfusson’s
connection is also told. Sometime in the
early 1900s, John came to Trausti in a
dream and requested that he repair the
fence. Trausti was a carpenter, but he
was very poor. It took some time before
he did as he had promised. On his trip
to Betsey’s grave, he wanted to buy fish
[kinosewak] and was told there were
none. But when the fence was fixed, the
owner of the property checked his nets
one more time – this time there were fish.
Gestur Gudmundsson, the owner of the
land where Betsey’s grave lay, said it was
from Ramsay.
There are no pictures of John and
nothing written by him. It was a very
challenging assignment to put together
an entertaining and informative film.
Andy and Huw did it successfully by
concentrating on the song, historical
comments, interviews, and the beautiful
scenery around Sandy Bar and the
Icelandic River (in the early days called
the White Mud River, then Icelander’s
River). They enlisted a respected
Interlake historian, Ryan Eyford, who
wrote a book containing some of the John
Ramsay story (White Settler Reserve:
New Iceland and the Colonization of the
Canadian West, 2016). They found Ruth
Christie, a descendant of John Ramsay,
who is passionate about the story. David
Gislason of Arborg, another noted
historian, gave information especially on
the Vigfusson connection.
Andy Blicq had been looking for a
storm over the lake to use for a mood
piece in the film. He went for a drive
out to Sandy Bar and when he got to the
vicinity, a thunder and lightning storm
broke out. When William Prince walked
to Betsey’s grave with a handful of wild
flowers, a bunch of bees came to gather
nectar from them after he lay them down.
Photo ops for sure, but did John Ramsay
have anything to do with it? Maybe
these occurrences will add to the legend
[achanokéwin] of John Ramsay.
Andy said, “I’ve learned a lot about
what reconciliation truly means.” John
Ramsay and his people had a relationship
with the Icelandic settlers that didn’t
need reconciliation. They were good
friends and neighbours on the land then.
We can only hope to get back to that.
Shortly before his recent death, Gord
Downie told one of his brothers, “There
is no higher power than helping people.”
John Ramsay would have agreed.
A Song for John Ramsay is on Bell
MTS video on demand television.
William Prince’s The Ballad of John
Ramsay will be released on iTunes. They
are well worth seeing and hearing. Visit
the New Iceland Heritage Museum, 108-
94 1st Avenue in Gimli MB. See Trausti
Vigfusson’s homestead house at Arborg
and District Multicultural Heritage
Village, off Highway 68 just east of the
Arborg cutoff. And google our websites
and face book pages.
Goodbye [Kawapamitin].
Reprinted with permission
from Icelandic Connection magazine.
While Lögberg-Heimskringla does
not normally publish items that also
appear in Icelandic Connection, this is
an especially important story about the
relationship between the first Icelandic
settlers in New Iceland and the land’s
original inhabitants, so it is fitting to
share it as widely as possible.
A Song for John Ramsay – the film
Gail Halldorson
Sandy Hook, MB
THREE SONNETS
Kevin Jon Johnson
Sakai, Japan
Dream Real Big
Dream real big, and after fortify your soul,
But Michelangelo had this to say:
Most people put low ceilings on their goals,
And win them easy, calling quits in May.
But if you wish good Shakespeare to surpass,
And make each mortise smooth as iron ice
So that the tenon (also strong to last)
Will take its pressure, perfectly and nice,
Then pause, and first, recall the Gaelic saw:
That poets are like men who sit in trees,
Believing they are birds and singing songs,
Insane with pain and busy as a bee.
Shakespeare was great, and he as deep as Hell,
But deeper you must go to better tell!
(I dedicate this sonnet to Urania, muse of astronomy.)
Chiasmus
In Viking times we took an eye for eye,
With fierce, ferocious berserks in the prow,
And as we murdered so the women cried:
We killed the cubs and also killed the sows.
But soto voce came the word or God,
And pagan idols fell into the falls.
The Jews are like a soubrette to our cause,
And sostenuto now with Luther all.
Revenging blood with blood will lead to Hell
But let us hear again the words of Christ:
To suffer evil, good – though not too swell.
Leave vengeance to our God. It will suffice.
The cross is a chiasmus we should heed:
Or good turns into evil, burning seeds.
(I dedicate this sonnet to Euterpe, muse of flute playing.)
Timocracy
Just follow honour, and shun all shame your whole
Life long, and let no timorous timbre
Like tinea hold you back at all,
But keep this plan in any bitter battle.
With that in mind just follow your heart’s bliss
And seek what you love most and conquer bens
However high and mighty be the cliffs.
Use pitons to best peg your swift ascent
And fight to win even if pitiless
Pitchstones and lakhs of pitfalls block your path;
For only those with courage will witness
Success in any agon now or in the past.
With virtue like a timocrat pursue
Your fondest wish and work to make it true.
This is a celebratory year for the Icelandic National
League of North America, since 2019 marks the
100th anniversary of our organization. That’s quite
an achievement for a small ethnic organization, beginning
with a membership from across Canada and later extending
that membership to our cousins across the United States. In
anticipation of achieving this milestone, it seems like a
perfect time to reflect on who we are, where we come from,
and what is the path forward for the INLNA.
Here is what we are working on as we consider these
things:
We are working on mission, vision and activity statements
that reflect who we are and that will move us forward into the
next century, honouring our past and embracing the future.
We are looking for creative ways to raise money so that
we can continue with initiatives that support our mission,
vision and activity statements. This will include application
the Canada Revenue Agency for charitable status. Our goal
is to submit the initial application in November 2018.
We are working on communication, ways to increase
awareness of who we are and what we do, both with our
member chapters and the community at large.
We are looking for interesting and inventive ways to
commemorate the 100th anniversary of the INLNA in 2019
including, among other things, a commemorative logo that
could be used for pins, stickers, and promotional material.
We have an exciting year ahead of us!
Store Hours: Mon. - Sat. 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Fri. 9 a.m. - 8 p.m. Sun. noon - 6 p.m.
Pharmacist: V. T. Eyolfson
Box 640, Arborg, MB R0C 0A0
Ph: 204-376-5153
ARBORG PHARMACY
SHARED WISDOM • SHARED COMMITMENT • SHARED VALUES
INLNA busy as 100th
anniversary approaches
Marlene Linneberg
1st Vice President, INLNA