Somehow 3 weeks have passed since I
attended an Oral History Workshop at the Gabriel Dumont Institute in
Saskatoon. Does this indicate how quickly time passes, that I was
absorbed in other things or I procrastinated? It is in fact a
statement of the times we live in. Maybe too busy but actually I
felt I needed time to think, to let it simmer, to stew about it.
Then I thought will future generations even know what those phrases
mean?
We live in a world of immediacy. We
have instant access to all kinds of information too often speculation
or rumour, but it doesn't seem to bother us. I worry often that
something is slipping away.
Oral history has been around since
humankind first began to communicate with each other, to pass on
knowledge. There was a period when it appeared to be dying out. For
some, especially First Nations it was the attempted destruction of
their culture by others. Fortunately a concerted effort is being made
to save and pass on what still exists.
For other people it may have
simply been changing times. I met a man from Cape Breton who said
when he was young the old folks told stories over and over, but that
has passed. We live on our computers / i phones / and tablets
chained to facebook or what ever other social media you prefer.
For the people who remember these
stories it's time to record them. Thanks to technology there are a
number of very reasonably priced and simple to use recording devices.
The Museum Association of Saskatchewan has a very compact kit that
they can loan out to member museums. So don't wait for someone else,
you can do it yourself while your parents or grandparents or
neighbours are still alive.
