“Carpet Merchant of Cairo,” Jean-Leon Gerome, c. 1869, WikiArt.
Part 3: Symerya meets Dolius
“How did you come by this parchment?” shop
Merchant asked Symerya, his gaze returned to
Hand-drawn map, faded inscriptions. “Ancient
Wall collapsed in Antalya, my home. Debris on
Oxen cart, in broken urn. To my mind, it spoke,
‘Save me!’” [...]
Posts in category Arctic-Nunavut
845. Symerya, Desert Temple, Part 3
“Carpet Merchant of Cairo,” Jean-Leon Gerome, c. 1869, WikiArt.
Part 3: Symerya meets Dolius
“How did you come by this parchment?” shop
Merchant asked Symerya, his gaze returned to
Hand-drawn map, faded inscriptions. “Ancient
Wall collapsed in Antalya, my home. Debris on
Oxen cart, in broken urn. To my mind, it spoke,
‘Save me!’” [...]
811. Tulimaq, Maker of Time, Part 3
“Guests from Overseas,” painting by Nicholas Roerich, 1901, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
Part 3: Brithe Abandoned with Tulimaq
One amongst Norse explorers, Harvaldr, bold
Wayfarer, sword-warrior, rejected all Tulimaq
Vision-stated. “Old man, in spilled blood and
Steel-gods of Odin-hall I believe, wealth of
Walrus tusks, Greenlandic [...]
810. Tulimaq, Maker of Time, Part 2
“Stars and planets, curtained aurora withinarm’s reach…”
Part 2: Past and Future Revealed
Within underground crypt of Tulimaq, Arctic
Night sky appeared on bright summer day,
Stars and planets, curtained aurora within
Arm’s reach. Alas! Stone walls and ceiling had
Disappeared, giving way to visions all could
See, Brithe and [...]
809. Tulimaq, Maker of Time, Part 1
“Cambridge Bay Thule Site,” Ansgar Walk, 1998, Wikipedia.
Part 1: Viking Discovery
Circular stone-ring, shadow-revealed by
Afternoon sun, tomb collection of tumbled
Stones, lichen covered, undisturbed for ages,
Grass concealed entrance, mere crawl space,
Opening to underground domed crypt, stone
Slab floor, body resting caribou hi [...]
782. Kabyrah and Tal’May, Part 4
“Mother of Sisera…” Albert J. Moore, 1861, WikiArt.
Part 4: Ancestral Verse-Prayers
Sun eclipsed by sucdding cloud, wet snow
Fell upon summer mountain peaks, covering
Stone steps, Tal”May, Kabylah mist ascending
To messenger’s burial crypt. “Repeat verses
As prayers,” Tal’May advised, bare feet taking
First steps, following [...]
557. Thera, Greek Memories
“On the Pasture,” Charles Jacque, 1860, WikiArt photo.
Memories of early Greeks, would they be
Recognized today? Farms, pasturelands,
And seashores time-changed, few wooded
Glens or highlands resisted ravages of war.
Each culture redefined what was Hellas,
As did famine, disease, families violence-
Swept, years of hardship and tra [...]
531. Arctic Willows
“Arctic Willow,” GRID-Arendal image, Peter Prokosch, 2012.
Pink blooms of Greenland Arctic willows,
Wind-shivering in rocky clumps, cloud-
Streaked September sun, first skiff of
Blowing snow, brief flowered lives are
Done, frozen and snow-buried six dark
Months, promise of spring renewal, bitter
Cold oft lingers well into March. [...]
529. Brithe and Torngarsuk
Brithe’s Greenland.
Western coast of Greenland, to northern Viking
Settlements we sailed, rowing in narrow leads,
Amongst current-pushed ice-islands, water
Flowing from their flanks, wave-washed at sea-
Bases, warmth of summer sun lost to brisk
Winds, to desolate fiords we pushed, smoke of
Stone-house hearths, greeting hails of Norse
Tr [...]
528. Songs of Moon Sister, Part 2 of ...
Part 2: Traditions Joined
“Come to me,” Moon Sister said to my mind,
Her light glistening on towering ice. “I grow
Pallid and crescentic, unless I sing my songs.”
Upon arched aurora I climbed, at her moun-
Tains, I listened, accounts of earth eruptions,
Migrations of Arctic stone-tool peoples, Viking
Interlopers were failure-doomed at first s [...]
527. Songs of Moon Sister, Part 1 of ...
“Ingeborg,” Peter Nicolai Arbo, 1868, Wikimedia photo, for this poem Brithe.
Part 1: Sister and Brother
During Arctic winter nights, I ventured alone
On sea ice, Greenland fiords illuminated
By moonlight, cold and pale, harsh shadows
Creeping. Final glimpse of sun, rosy steaks
Below southern horizon, he preferred distant
Shores be [...]
474. Painted Dreams
“Chart of Smith Sound,” from Isaac I. Hayes’ “The Open Polar Sea,” 1867.
Arctic hammered shores I paint with pointed
Brush, perspective of the sky, through clouds
My visions pierces, as if on sunbeams high,
Mountains sweeping into Arctic seas, glaciers
Calving between Greenland and Ellesmere,
Such features I rend [...]
446. Living Stardust
“Shimmering auroral arch, spiritual realization on Arctic winter nights…”
Northern Labrador, stormy rock-cliff island
My sacred place calls, dreams that beckon,
Divine voices I know well, who recognize me,
Jacopee, obedient follower and shaman,
Separated, elevated from tumult of southern
Shores, my holy place, overlooking cr [...]
443. Third and Final Attempt
I. Conflicting Path
Inupiat Family from Noatak, Alaska, 1929, Edward S. Curtis, Wikipedia photo.
My holy place is up on Labrador, far from
Madding crowds, disputes between aborig-
Inal and indigenous peoples, lacerating our
Culture and souls, ways of qallunaat we have
Adopted well, peoples on two conflicting
Paths, those of our ancestors and [...]
440. Jacopee’s Understanding
Before: Caribou River Swimming.
As a people, we are caught between two
Cultures: traditional and modern ways of
Qallunaat. Conflict rides within me, two
Halves disagreeing, strong and mercurial,
Each uniquely walking this land, yet as
Shaman-elder, I, Jacopee, have defined
Them as my path to greater understanding.
As life-force, Koksoak River [...]
439. Jacopee’s Realization
Gravesite on desolate Nunatsiavut ridge.
As with travelers decades past, I landed by
Boat at Okak, Labrador, Historical Morovian
Mission Station, site of 1919 influenza deaths,
When many died along the Labrador coast,
Bodies buried in winter mass graves, towns
Burned, survivors moved to points south,
Pandemic brought by returning WWI troops.
[...]
438. Jacopee’s Greenlandic Guid...
Jacopee’s divine guidance: ocean, cloud, ice, and mountain.
As elder and shaman, where does guidance
Originate? For decades, I only knew voices,
Wisdom of ages. I took to Kayak, sewn skin
And feather-light, to Greenlandic icy fiord
Waters, white-crested mountains bright
Glistening, Holy Breather of Life, winds
Descending, dancing upon r [...]
437. Noona’s Sacrifice
View of Ungava Bay, Nunavik, Northern Quebec.
When I gaze upon dark-crested waters of
Ungava Bay and this cairn cemetery of my
People, I realize sacrifices we have made:
Starvation, disease, and death. My words
Are not exaggerations, but undeniable
Histories, life-pages of dead buried under
Stones, tragedies of heart and soul.
Of all graves r [...]
423. Jacopee’s Auroral Vision
“Aurora Borealis,” Frederic Edwin Church, 1865, Wikipedia photo.
Why do I wander alone on ice floes at night?
Solitude and spiritual renewal. Whilst I love
My family and the people, at times they
Become burdensome beyond being father,
Uncle, elder. As shaman, I require time
Upon the ice, to commune with Creators,
Wisdom of their h [...]
422. Teaching by Knife-Point
Inupiat Family from Noatak, Alaska, 1929, Edward S. Curtis, Wikipedia photo.
For too long the people asked, “Why do we
Live in troubled times?” My answer, “Such
Times are like polar bear, wandering into our
Camps, when we are not diligent, standing
Ready to kill, trouble attacks.” Polar bear
Worries visited my tent today: Seepa and
Her fevere [...]
420. Jacopee’s Prayer
Stark beauty of Koksoak River near Ungava Bay in Nunavik, Arctic Quebec.
Holy Father, sustainer of life, I seek your
Wisdom on banks of Koksoak River, to
Raise my concerns, as our language and
Culture gradually diminish, I cling to our
Old ways, to your guiding force.
In days before my eye sight dimmed, you
Guided us to animals for the hunt. [...]
419. Ancient Wisdom Shared
Inupiat in Kayak, Noatak, Alaska, 1929, by Edward S. Curtis, Wikipedia photo.
Our land had remained the same, before
Archaic peoples, prior to Nunavummiut,
Earth and sea were providers, we lived and
Prospered as a people before Qallunaat out-
Siders arrived, who often disregarded our
Ways, our need for prayer, to talk amongst
Ourselves, auton [...]
418. Sisters of the Snow
Sacred pilgrimage to our ancestral Inuit ceme-
Tery, my twin sister’s gravesite, cairns in stag-
Gered rows overlooking Ungava Bay, motoring
North on Koksoak River, “Great River,” ancient
Life-provider of Nunavik Quebec. Effects of old
Age and cold, I fear this boat trip will be my
Last to visit Seepa’s coffined bones.
Huddled next to Jacopee [...]
413. Brithe and Ilannaq
Summer exploration of Helluland, Brithe and
Her clan sailed icy fiord shores, water rippling
Clear at rocky edge, lichen-covered boulders,
Barren-land caribou grazing beyond arrow
Flight. In silence they acknowledged ancient
Majesty ruling over these age-old lands, Arctic
Gods of Odin-equal, Brithe felt their knowing
Eyes, swift-winged Peregr [...]
404. Greenlandic Summer Night
Fictitious Cecily Leconte, daughter of Dr. J. L. Leconte of Baltimore and New Bedford.
Our approach across Greenlandic seas, we
Took to ice drifting off the bow, our course
Made good on Panther, Newfoundland screw
Steamer, to “Land of Desolation,” seagulls
Circling off Julianashaab, tortuous frith or
Fiord, by barren rock islands flanked, sum [...]
330. Beringia Migrations
Inupiat Family from Noatak, Alaska, 1929, Edward S. Curtis, Wikimedia photo.
Remembering Inuit origins, flesh and bone,
Paleo-Siberians struggled to find their way,
Fathers of their forefathers, migrations over
Beringia, hunters of wooly mammoth, crossed
Waving grasslands, open Arctic steppe.
Tribes in vast numbers, women carried their
Infant [...]
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