Readers Speak Out: May 1, 2022

First steps

Your March 22 editorial “Look to Rome” states your commitment to “reconciliation between Canada’s First Nations and its, shall we say, later arrivals.” Cheeky! But overlooking Indigenous beliefs that they always existed on the land, and that “settlers”  were not simply later arrivals but a deceiving, destructive, endless throng that led to extreme social dislocation and loss of life, land and culture? Read Thomas King, Bob Joseph or Jesse Wente for detail.

Exploratory steps are mere beginnings. After so much desolation and heartache, let’s avoid creating false expectations and further anxieties in victims and families. Let the healing rivers flow and naturally — but they don’t flow straight.

As we awaken, let’s not dictate terms or turn from our shame. We have much to learn from Indigenous patience and wisdom.

Eldred MacIntyre,

Georgina, Ont.

---

Sacred work

May Day is the feast of St. Joseph the Worker. He is the patron saint because he was a tekton, a respected carpenter, a skill he instilled in his son.

From apprenticeship what was transmitted was the culture and values that enabled the youngster to assume a rightful place in the adult world. Through development of craft, preferably of hand and head joined together by heart, an integrated self, committed to excellence and grounded in the virtues, was built.

With automation, what has been lost is the sacredness of work, especially physical labour. Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours of intensive practice to master a complex skill. Every hour of sweat and toil translates into refinement of character. A young person striving for genuine accomplishment can do no better than having St. Joseph as their patron.

Michael Dias,

Markham, Ont.