try to fit the pieces together but perfection is my enemy.
on my own i'm so clumsy but on your shoulders i can see.
Street art: using branches, twigs and debris from the hurricane, we decorated the paths along Gower Street.
As you may recall, the end of September saw some pretty crazy weather out here on the Rock. Much of coastal Newfoundland was ravaged by Hurricane Igor, a severe weather system that shocked the entire province with its magnitude. We were not expecting much more than a tropical storm, and the damage that resulted was more than we could ever have anticipated.
For the days following the hurricane, many residents of St. John's and surrounding rural areas were left without power: no heat, no running water and no electricity. Stores were closed so getting basic supplies was next to impossible. Many areas declared a state of emergency as the conditions of their region were hazardous and in a state of desperation. Driving through the streets, I could see the damage first hand: massive trees completely uprooted, pulling up sidewalks, sheds and decks in their path; shingles and debris everywhere; washed out streets and curbside garbage from flooded homes.
The damage: an uprooted tree along Military Road by Bannerman Park.
Watching the news only served to make me more thankful for getting through the storm unscathed. A man was swept into the ocean when his driveway washed away, with his body being recovered a few days later, entire barns were being blown apart and then floating over the edge of cliffs, buses bobbing down the roads and many people being left homeless when their apartment building blew apart.
In the midst of the chaos and confusion caused by Igor, I was just beginning my volunteer placement in St. John's at an inner city art studio drop-in centre for resilient youth. The centre, known as "Love of Learning" to the teens in the area is a safe haven for many of the at-risk youth in the area. We embrace all people to come as they are. If you are homeless, a prostitute, a drug addict, in a gang, HIV positive, all labels are left at the door and the second you walk in, you become a friend. Besides teaching the youth basic life skills to help them get on their feet such as creating resumes and applying for jobs, we teach classes that encourage teens to express themselves in creative and constructive ways such as through art, music, dance and theatre. Whether it involved serving a hot meal, teaching a young man to sew a patch to his pants or just listening to someone who needs a shoulder to cry on, I have never been surrounded by so much hope.
An archway that we created over an bench on Duckworth Street.
The most amazing time that I spent with them was on the Friday following the hurricane. As we walked through Bannerman with a group of teens, we saw the destruction right before our eyes. The ground was strewn with fallen branches, the path was obstructed by uprooted trees and littered with clothing that was blown of neighbouring clotheslines. Our intentions were to create artwork out of the debris and nature, using the work of Andy Goldsworthy (www.morning-earth.org/artistnaturalists/an_goldsworthy.html), creating artwork out of nature and leaving it for the world to appreciate without taking from the natural environment.
As we walked along the streets, we created archways out of fallen trees, trellaces out of broken branches and designs on the sidewalks made from twigs and leaves. As we walked to Bannerman Park, we began to collect random debris that had been blown into the streets by the storm, picking up stray a sippy cup, a clothesline pulley and a Rubix Cube.
Using our mish mash of objects, we used caution take that we took down the caution tape that had been used to mark off an area with a fallen tree and a piece of stray wire to create a lovely work of art. Standing in a circle, the youth held the wire in a round shape and we began to weave the caution tape into the circle, affixing our random objects to the creation.
After about half an hour, we had made a 15 foot dream catcher, weaving our hopes, dreams and prayers into the dream catcher. As we made this work of art, preparing to leave it in the park for other people to appreciate, I couldn't help but think that this kind of artwork, using what one would consider trash to make something beautiful, very much mirrored the volunteer position that I had been given. The people that came into the drop-in often arrived hopeless and desperate, seeking a place to belong. Throughout their lives, people told them they were worthless, useless and made them feel like outcasts, shoving them aside like garbage and leaving them at the curb like there meant nothing. But it does not have to be like this. Who are we to decide another person's worth? Who are we to decide what is garbage and what is a treasure? With a little time, compassion, creativity and love, every person, no matter how worthless they may feel can be transformed into something beautiful. It might be just a needle and thread to mend some ripped jeans or a hug and an encouraging word to mend a broken heart, there is nothing, no one that is beyond repair.
........
"The moment we choose to love we begin to move against domination, against oppression. The moment we choose to love we begin to move towards freedom, to act in ways that liberate ourselves and others. That action is the testimony of love as the practice of freedom." - Bell Hooks
"But you, God, shield me on all sides; you ground my feet and you lift my head high." -- Psalm 3.3
Welcome to St. John's: standing on the coast by Signal Hill.
