Monday, July 22, 2019

50 Places in Eastern Canada to See Before You Die ~ Grand Pres, Nova Scotia

Grand Pre National Historic Site is in the heart of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Once a thriving Acadian settlement and now one of the most significant memorials to the upheaval and the resilience of the Acadian people, the museum and displays were very educational and well curated. 
















We wandered around the museum and then went to the theatre (decorated to look like the hold of a ship) to watch a movie about the Acadians and their expulsion from Nova Scotia. It was quite emotional and very educational.









Evangeline
 
A Tale of Acadie
 
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882)


THIS is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct in the twilight,
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic,
Stand like harpers hoar, with beards that rest on their bosoms.
Loud from its rocky caverns, the deep-voiced neighboring ocean        5
Speaks, and in accents disconsolate answers the wail of the forest.
 
  This is the forest primeval; but where are the hearts that beneath it
Leaped like the roe, when he hears in the woodland the voice of the huntsman?
Where is the thatch-roofed village, the home of Acadian farmers,—
Men whose lives glided on like rivers that water the woodlands,        10
Darkened by shadows of earth, but reflecting an image of heaven?
Waste are those pleasant farms, and the farmers forever departed!
Scattered like dust and leaves, when the mighty blasts of October
Seize them, and whirl them aloft, and sprinkle them far o’er the ocean.
Naught but tradition remains of the beautiful village of Grand-Pré.        15
 
  Ye who believe in affection that hopes, and endures, and is patient,
Ye who believe in the beauty and strength of woman’s devotion,
List to the mournful tradition, still sung by the pines of the forest;
List to a Tale of Love in Acadie, home of the happy.

To read the poem in its entirety click on this link https://www.bartleby.com/42/791.html








No comments:

Post a Comment