Spring Songs and Dances Haivky Гаівки, Веснянки

 

stamfordadvocate.com

The cold, frosty breath of winter is fading. A glimmer of sunlight, a warming breeze, and soon the hand of time will rise, enticing spring over the horizon. The continuous walk of life, on the meditative prayer of song rises over sacred groves near the water, and we dance!

This is the Ukrainian sacred tradition from eons ago - the ancient tradition of Haivky, Vesnianky, the ritual group dances, songs, games, and dramatic scenes which chase the winter away!  It is the season of hope, a renewal of love, the gifts of nature return - and we are here - we are happy - we have survived to see the cycle of life return!

Вийди, вийди, сонечко,              Veydi, veydi, sonechko,        Come out Mr. Sun,
Ha дідове полечко.                       Na deedove polechko,          Shine on Grandpa's field,
На бабине зіллячко,                     Na babine, zeeliachko,          Shine on Baba's herbs,
Ha ваше подвір'ячко,                   Na vashe podveeryachko,     Shine on our farmstead,
Ha весняні квіточки,                    Na vesnianee kveetochki,     Shine on the spring flowers,
Ha вeceлi дiтoчки                         Na veselee deetochki,           Shine on the happy children,
Tам вони граються,                      Tam voni hrayout'sia,           They are playing together,
Tебе дожидаються.                       Tebe dozhidai-yout'sia.        They are waiting for you, Mr. Sun.

http://www.ukrainianpreschool.ca/

http://www.mamalisa.com/midi/showupsun.mid

Ukrainian folk songs of the spring tradition are part of the Ukrainian Scouts programs in Calgary, whether in PLAST or SUM.  Both these organizations foster a love of the Ukrainian idea, and what a great idea they have this year!

On the afternoon of Sunday, May 5, 2013, aftter Easter Morning Liturgy -Великдень- the PLAST Ukrainian Scouts of Calgary are celebrating Paska - a communal meal спільне свяченне of blessed foods from the Easter Basket.  Easter is a time to awaken the positive forces within us, join the ritual, the cycle of life, and connect together through the circle dance of time.  An event full of singing, dances, folk games, spring rituals and dramatic folk tales, they are Calgary's Ukrainian children, celebrating the Good News!

For more information about Ukrainian Scouts in Calgary and their programs, or more information about the event,  please contact these great organizations at http://www.plast.ca/calgary/  and http://cym.org/ca/calgary.

Be a Willow

ukraine.ui.ua

Не я б'ю, верба б'є,
Віднині за тиждень
Буде Великдень.
Будь великий, як верба,
А здоровий, як вода,
А багатий, як земля!

The Ukrainian folk calendar is opulently layered with sophisticated, elegant expressions of insight. Encountering the coded messages over the course of a long life gives one ample opportunity to plumb their depths, to meditate upon their ancient meaning.  What were the ancients trying to tell us?  And why? 

Ukrainian prehistory is a deep well of experience, but the wise ones say that "in the fulfillment of time", Ukrainians encountered Christ. Prepared by the ancients to see the cycle of life through nature, logic linked the season of spring to the Christian Easter message. It is a time of renewal, on so many levels.

Signs of hope are everywhere, the snow is melting, the days are longer, the smell of sap begins to run in the trees - these are nature's messages. Palm Sunday, or Pussy Willow Sunday before Christian Easter is an expression of the joyous Entrance of Christ in Jerusalem, festivity ensues! Happy times, cheering, waving of palm leaves (willow branches) - it is good news!

The traditional Ukrainian folk greeting on this day is cheerful, hopeful and happy! The classy simplicity of the words are simply a veil of mystical poetry over a momentous message. Really, prepare for the Day is coming!

Ritual petitions, incantations richly layered with symbolism, carry messages of hope, faith, wisdom and often wry humour in the face of the human condition. All of nature can act like a mirror to the human condition, the cycle of life is everywhere. 

Grow tall like a willow, as healthy as the water, and as rich as the earth!

Grow tall like a willow - doesn't that say something about being tall in character? Isn't the pussy willow the first flower of spring? Isn't the pussy willow the most hopeful blossom in nature? Doesn't the willow extend its reach further, and bend the most willingly? Isn't it the first food for eager bees seeking their first nectar? What does the first nectar of spring taste like to the bees?

Be as healthy as the water - doesn't that sound like a gushing wellspring from which thirsty travellers could benefit? Are we not made mostly of water? Is the gushing wellspring of health nurturing our healthy journey? Clean, pure, healthy water?

Be as rich as the earth - fed by the sun and the rain, bear a plentiful crop, harvest it in the course of a good life, be fruitful and multiply, lead a bountiful existance, prepare for the Day!


 

Awards, Rewards, Recognition - April 19, 2013

Some people have personal ambition, on the other hand, some people live their lives in service of others, and a greater cause.  So just how does one award, reward or recognize people for their generosity of spirit? We take example from leaders around us.

 

As Canada's Governor General is the representative of the Queen of England on North Amerian soil, the influence of the Queen's 60th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee Award is among the most celebrated awards among Canadian citizens.  Without Royal patronage, Canada may have potentially taken another course through history.  Whether actively, or through her network of agents, the influence of the Monarch with a wholistic vision of the world has indeed shaped our experience here.  Through the effects of a democratic, civil society, we are called to take part, take responsibility, and create a place that is bigger, better and more enriching than ourselves. Some consider Canada among the most respected nations for precise these reasons, for its serious committment to becoming the best "homeland" possible - I among them.  

 

Over Canada's rather short nationhood, Canadian communities have grown, and been shaped the efforts of her citizens.  But "community" doesn't just happen.  Through the contributions of many, we have evolved into a generous, forward thinking, inclusive society that embraces the best parts of its individual components.  Of course that involves grassroots community builders, and community leadership, vision and dogged perseverance in the face of doubters.  Big vision people take pleasure in meeting challenges, making seemingly small gains that accumulate drop by drop, for every droplet eventually meets with others, creating a wave of possibilities.  The individuals being honored at the Diamond Jubilee Awards ceremony to be held in Calgary on April 19, 2013 are examples of just that kind of leadership.  .   

I met Mike Hantzch through my experiece at St. Vladimir's Sadochok, when our children were little and our ambitions for them involved a Ukrainian linguistic enrichment.  A group formed around this idea - Calgary Parents for Ukrainian Education - and we coaslesced around an idea of promoting Ukrainian bilingual schools to our public school boards.  Public schooling took some complicated turns at the time - our proposals were not welcomed.  So Mike threw his considerable passion for youth programming into high gear - through PLAST Ukrainian Scouts here in Calgary.  And of course there are many more accolades for this already recognized UCC Alberta Hetman Award recipient.   

Halia Wilson is another equally committed, soft spoken but stalward community builder.  A communicator, she has developed strong ties in SUM Ukrainian Youth across Canada and in the Ukrainian community abroad.  She is an includer, a communicator, a promoter and widely embraces diversity.  For the entire time I have known her, she has quietly but effectively promoted the Ukrainian idea, graciously welcoming everyone she meets. Her generosity of spirit is felt here among her professional peers, and in Calgary's Ukrainian community.  From promotions for youth programs to bandura, music, film and the arts, Halia's impressive vitae has already gained her the UCC Alberta Hetman Award too.   

Congratulations to these wonderful people on the recognition presented to them this April 19, 2013 through Canada's Diamond Jubilee Award.  From the hand of Queen Elizabth II, through the hands of Canada's Governor General, through the hands of Ukrainian Canadian Congress National President Paul Grod to Calgary, not only are they being recognized individually, but as members of their respective communities here in Calgary as well.  Leadership, community builders, peacemakers, kindlers of the fire at the ancestral hearth, their promotion of and contribution to the culture of our great city, and the Ukrainian idea,  we thank you!! 

The Ukrainian Canadian Professional and Business Association of Canada (Calgary Branch)graciously invites you to a ceremony and wine and cheese reception in honor of these recipients of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Award on  Friday, April 19, at 7 PM at the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary church hall.  For further information, tickets and to RSVP contact 403-670-5477  or to admin@ucpbacalgary.org. 

 

 

Taxing Ukrainian Folk Songs

Interesting news from Ukraine lately about their need to fill the government treasury is puzzling and perhaps troubling - not sure yet.  It seems that with the rising popularity of Ukrainian folk songs, their government is eyeing opportunities to cash in.

Ukrainian folk songs express the accumulated wisdom of a people.  The rhythms of folksongs accurately represent syllabic stress in the language, subtle inflections in phrase, and the syntax is clearly expressed.  Over the years, the melodies of Ukrainian folksongs have evolved from a small range, with many repeated simple motifs, to a grander use of diatonic and altered scales.  The more "native" the melody, the more authentic it may be.  And authentic folk songs travel through the generations with ease, taking on the transitions of language, and subtle melodic influences in its vicinity. When you "straighten out" a folk song, you are messing with antiquity. 

Ukraine's young people are beginning to recognize the powerful truths jam packed into the folk songs of their ancestral memory, and enjoying their ancestral identity.  With available technology for recording, manipulation and marketing of their native folk music, Ukrainian folk songs are taking their place in the modern culture.  Their government has recently opined their desire to cash in on this national treasure chest - and I am a bit concerned, if not bewildered. 

There are international laws protecting authorship, composers, performers, etc.  Music over 50 years old is generally considered "in the public domain".  Copywrited music requires licensing, and the list goes on.   Even composed songs with authored lyrics can fall into the public domain but this is more touchy, again I am not an expert.  But Ukrainian folk songs are way older than that!  They belong to the people, shared from generation to generation,  primarily through an oral tradition.  So very much of the Ukrainian language, spirit and lifestyle is revealed in its folksongs - there is a song for every moment of one's life. 

Conceptually, the Ukrainian government taxing Ukrainian folk songs concerns me.  In conversation with a person far more versed than I, the question was - is this an attempt to limit permission or to censor the folk culture of Ukraine?   One can only wonder whether this is a truly benevolent attempt to honor and protect the cultural identity and ancestral treasury wantonly usurped by manipulators of history! On the other hand, is this another way of preventing wide consumption and access to tradition, culture and the place where authentic language has evolved as a descriptor of the people and her dreams?  Or, on the other hand is this a way to validate and champion, bringing recognition, legal support, and financial recompense to the keepers of the hearth, the keepers of ancestral culture?  The ancestral babas and didos who continue to live close to the land, authentically engaged in lifestyle practices foreign to city dwellers may be both a target and recipients of attention - gotta watch out for the tax man.

This is a bizarre attempt to fill the government treasury with the lifeblood of a nation in my eyes.  Can you imagine the government trying to license a community choir performance of Taras Shevchenko's The Last Testament?, and where do you draw the line between folk songs and communal singing at a liturgy?  Really?! Wouldn't it be better for Ukraine to tax real estate? or use some muscle to collect income tax first, especially from those who have hidden their billions in off shore banks? 

 

Ukrainian Community Convention 2013

Back before the Soviet adventure in Ukraine, two generations of Ukrainian immigrants had already settled into the Canadian rhythms of life.  These people were here to build a life in this land of political freedom, relishing economic opportunity. By 1918 Canada was home to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, registered under Canadian law and thankful of its abiding security.  So that meant a церква українського народу existed under Canadian Charter.  War struck, and Canadians of Ukrainian ancestry were themselves often awestruck at their fierce pride and attachment for their new homeland.  Many were detained in Canada's first War internment operations, it is true, however a huge contingent of them voluntarily enlisted in Canada's wartime services!  According to statistics 10,000 newly minted Canadians of Ukrainian descent served in the Canadian Armed Forces in WWI.

The times were very Canadian, but also truly, and resiliently Ukrainian. Momentum grew in a "self reliance movement" here.  Independent of governmental decree, religious oppression, and fear of political reprisals, Canadians of Ukrainian descent agreed their children's interests were not best served when forced into assimilation.  Rather, they felt cultural, linguistic and religious impoverishment.  With thousands of years in the making, Ukrainian culture was a way of life, but in Canada the living culture was "other".

The problem was, how to live in one world of economic freedom and democracy, yet convey ancestral wisdom to future generations who would not be able to visit the homeland for....til the end of Sovet times? It was a really avant-garde thinking to be "of two cultures", to be equally faithful to both at the same time.

Supercharged with purpose, the unique structures of The Ukrainian Self Reliance League of Canada gathered steam, and the Ukrainian diaspora changed forever.  No longer "renamed", no longer ache-ing for sights, sounds and smells of home, it is now easy to find a -chuk, -ski, or an -enko, in Canadian institutions of power and influence.  Many of them got their starts in public service through the example of groups like The Ukrainian Self Reliance League of Canada, who are inviting participants to their 87th Anniversary 2013 Summer Convention in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on August 21 to 25, 2013 for "Embracing Change". 

For complete information contact http://www.usrl-cyc.org/2013convention.htm