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The Colours of Saskatchewan VI

  

Saskatchewan

Spring on the Prairies

We enjoyed the beginning of spring last week in Chicago having left the last gasp of a long winter here in Edmonton. After being away only six days we found that most of the snow in Alberta had melted and we were finally finished with icy streets and cold temperatures.

Today, April 10, is warm (12 degrees C/54 degrees F for my American friends) and families are walking and playing with their children in the park area at the end of our street. Blue sky and a warm sun after a long, long winter.

  

Finding Beauty Where You Are

It's a cold January day in Edmonton, but even the relatively low resolution of this iPhone photograph is enough to show that winter landscapes can be just as beautiful as those of the other seasons.

I made this photograph in the Faculty Club at the University of Alberta.

Winter

Ice On The North Saskatchewan River

I took the Edmonton Light Rapid Transit (LRT) from downtown to the University of Alberta this afternoon. The LRT stopped briefly on the bridge over the North Saskatchewan River. I watched the river flow around the large pieces of ice, while small ice pans whirled and danced as they were swept downstream.

These photographs were made with my iPhone.

Autumn in Alberta

It's the last day of November, 2008. Usually at this time of year we have several inches of snow, but this year we've enjoyed above average temperatures, with almost every day being significantly above freezing.

I live on the edge of what my sister referred to, when she was very young, as the bewilderness. It's a great area for walking, photographing, and viewing wildlife.

The temperature today is five degrees C and the sun is warm.

The Colours of Saskatchewan IV

On the Road

I'm leaving Eastend and the Wallace Stegner House after a delightful and productive two weeks.

Eastend has attracted writers, painters, sculptors and other artists from Canada and many other countries during the last several years. This is a very creative community nestled at the edge of the Cypress Hills. I'll miss Eastend and The Hills: but I'll be back soon.

My thanks to the Eastend Arts Council and all the other people who have made my stay so pleasant.

The Colours of Saskatchewan III

Cross-Border Learning on the Great Plains

I was privileged today to be part of a session with the participants of The Great Plains from Texas to Saskatchewan: Place, Memory, Identity, an NEH (National Endowment for the Humanities) Summer Seminar for School Teachers which was convened at North Dakota State University in late June and is now in Eastend and surrounding area for a three day period. Fifteen outstanding scholar-teachers are studying the the works of Webb, Cather, Stegner, and Momaday under the leadership of Tom Isern, Professor of History & University Distinguished Professor.

Sharon Butala and I welcomed the group to the Stegner House. I gave a short summary of the work I am doing here, and Sharon read from her latest book The Girl in Saskatoon. Questions, discussions, and a tour of the house followed.

The participants in this seminar have come from across the USA, from New Orleans to Oregon. This is the fifth time this seminar has been offered, and I hope it continues for many more years. These scholar-teachers excited me with their interest in this country and this area.

As I prepare to leave the Stegner House tomorrow I wish I could stay just a bit longer and meet with this group again. They are fine people and great ambassadors for their country.

We need more seminars like this one: and our school system in Canada needs scholar-teachers like the ones I met today.

Literature

Murraydale's 100th Stampede and Family Picnic

I attended the 100th Murraydale Stampede and Family Picnic today. It's held in a natural amphitheatre in the Cypress Hills and is attended mostly by local families and rodeo enthusiasts, although it also attracts people from elsewhere in Saskatchewan and from other provinces. Murraydale features local cowboys and cowgirls, some very young, competing in traditional rodeo events. This year approximately 1,000 people attended.

The weather was ideal, and people enjoyed watching and participating.