The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, October 9, 1996 - 81 TERRACE STANDARD INSIDE SECTION B | COMMUNITY CRIS LEYKAUF . EVENTS B2 ) 638-7283 iz ' LESLIE DICKSON It ain’t so bad after all F THERE’S one thing I’ve real- ized from growing up in Ter- race, it’s that a place is what you make it. Living in a big city can suck just as much as a small town if you have the wrong attitude. On the other hand, you can have just as ‘auch fun in a small town, as in a big city, if you see more into a city than the number of people living in it. **There’s nothing to do.’” “I can’t wait to get out of this hole!’ How often have you said this if you’re my age, or heard this if you’re my parents’ age? You picture Terrace as a wasteland gulp- ing up all the talent and energy. And Van- couver — or any other city — shining in the distance, full of cool people, bars that don’t play techno and tons of stuff to do. This is where the big misconception sur- faces. Sure, there are lots of places to go in a city, but how many more things are there to do? O K,. there’s CYBERTAG, maybe, an amusement park... There are a lot of things you can list off, but be realistic, How often — if at all — would you do the things you say that small towns don’t have? I guess you could just wander around and “soak up the atmosphere’’ of the city but that would get boring after what? ...a day? The fact is, you can tell yourself that you’re going io do all this stuff when you move to a big city, but you will end up doing exactly what you did when you lived in a small town and, most likely, hanging out with people from the town you came from who wanted to get out of the small town, too. If you’re tired of having everyone know what you’ve done since you were two and you long for the hustle and bustle of a city, then go nuts, Let’s face it, if you're a harsh skid in a small town, drinking Bud while you cruise main in your low-riding, funky graphic pick-up, moving to a big city will not purge this fault from you character. I guess there are trade-offs, and you have to choose what you can live without, If you're tired of having everyone know what you’ve done since you were two and you long for the hustle and bustle of a city, then go nuts, But you will miss going downtown and always seeing someone you know, being within walking or biking distance of everything, not being surrounded by stylers and always being close to a forest. There is also the safety issue. If you live in a small town, or at least somewhere with which you’re familiar, you know where not _ te go. Also you know who everyone is, and who’s a little creepy. And although you probably shouldn’t, you can still walk home at night without being scared. ‘Some people use the promise of a dif- ferent place as an excuse for not doing any- thing with their lives. As long as they’re in a comfortable, little town, they relax, take it easy, sitin neutral, and dream of the future. When I go here, I'm going to do this, This . is the same attitude of people who don’t read anything worthwhile, expecting to put their time in at universily, and learn all they’ll need to know for the rest of their lives. It doesn’t occur to these people to do something now. It’s as if their lives are on hold in expectation of the BIG MOVE. . Lately, I’ve noticed that when someone complains about some aspect of small town life, people respond with ‘‘Every place is the same. If you can’t heck it here, you won't be able tc hack it anywhere.’’ ~ What they are getting at, is that you can’t change the place, but you can change your- _ Self. So make the most of where you are, - Fight now, have fun, and do what you want todo, Teacher, poet and writer By CRIS LEYKAUF HE’S PUBLISHED over 30 books, received writing awards around the world and had his works translated in several languages, His writings have been the sub- ject of PhD and Master of Philosophy theses. He’s man you might ex- pect to find living in Toronto or London — Van- couver at the least. But for the last 21 years Ravinder Ravi Gill has called New Aiyansh home, “Pm the only Punjabi there,” says Gill. Punjabi people talk too much, he ad- mits with a wry expression on his face. The quiet and acceptance he’s found in the Nass allow him time for thought and to pursue his love of literature. That’s at least when he’s not busy teaching, or in his moré recent role as head of the teacher’s union in the Nass. But just because he lives ‘in the Nass, doesn’t mean Gill is a recluse, During summer months be travels, “Travelling gives you © new visions,’’ be explains. ‘When you read and travel a lot you develop your own philosophy.’’ Gill began his teaching career in India in 1956. He worked there while he fin- ished his schooling, picking up bachelor degrees in English and teaching and a Master's degree in Punjabi literature and language. While in India, Gill began writing short stories, then decided he found poctry a more suitable medium. **You can write anywhere you want to, about love, romance, frustrations of life, ambition... It’s more’ spontaneous, whereas when you’re writing fiction or drama you necd more orga- nization,”’ says Gill. ‘‘I’ve written poems in planes and bars and, on the backs of bills.”? In 1967 Gill decided to move to Kenya, and had just 30 rupees in his pocket when his boat landed on the shores of Africa. f PASE He taught there in a. temote town until £974, during what he considers some of the best years of his life. Then Gill applied to move to Canada, and was ac- cepted on the basis of his teaching and writing skills. It took him a year to find a job, and in the meantime he worked for Pohle Lumber in Terrace, and was Gred from a construction job. “Tt’s the only 37 days ’ve manual labour I’ve ever done,”’ he said. But the ex- perience gave him material for a number of stories and Short poems. In 1976 Gill was offered a teaching © job in New Alyansh at the Nisga’a Elementary-Secondary school, and became the senior English teacher. Gill enjoyed the process of _ opening the doors to new worlds for his Nisga’a stu- dents through the study of literature, “It opens an entire new universe and this in turn af- fects your creative pro- ‘cess,’” he says, That creative process was ‘evident through contribu- ‘tions to a magazine called Wind Song, which Gill Started for his writing stu- dents. From that magazine he culled poems written by. his students for two _ anthologies, one published in 1978 and the other in . 1984, They were the first _literary books ever pub- lished in the Nass, and some of the poetry was even translated into’ the Nisga’a language. **There was some brilliant poetry in there,’’ he says. Gill sent copies of the books to politicians and leaders across the country. Pierre Trudeau, prime Minister at the time, heads the list of accolades. “The thoughtful senti- ments expressed in verse by the students of Nisgha Elementary Secondary School are a wonderful testimony to their talents and also to the skill and dedication of their teachers,’’ wrote Trudeau, In 1986 Gill gradually E EIGHT STUDENTS Jennifer Braam and Serena Flavel spent part of last RAVI GILL Is one of the secret treasures of the Nass valley. The renowned poet, fiction and drama writer has lived there for the past 21 years, spending much of that time helping Nisga’a students explore literature, and make their own contribu- tions to the world of print. fh. started taking over the job of reorganizing the Nass school district’s library, teaching only part time. And now he’s the head of the teachers union. Gill admits the career change is not creative work, but he feels he can make a positive contribution, if just by. resolving disputes. Now 58, Gill is nearing retirement and would like to take more time to travel and visit his native country. In India, Gill is regarded as a controversial writer since his values conflict week packing shoes for the Salvation Army. The duo were part of a small army of students from Centannial Christian school who swe doing community service. pt through the city last weak, with many traditlonal Indian describes as oneness. But he values, - “If God has any sig- nificance for me it’s a sym- bolic significance —- perfec- tion incarnate, what Hfe_ should be,”’ says Gill, ex- plaining why he doesn’t hold = faith with any organized religion. “If I am hot.my own God, my own creator, nothing less is ac- ceptable to me,”’ Writing, to Gill, Is an ef- fort to achieve that perfec- says religion for the most part hasn’t brought sbout oneness. Instead, it’s brought divisions. It’s a perspective he says he’s gained through travell- ing and reading, And one that’s earned him criticism at home. But at the same time he’s encouraged by news that his writings, and the discussions they’ve prompted in schools and universities, are part of tion. the process of change going He doesn’t object to the on in India right now. concept of God, which he otudents pitch in STUDENTS FROM Centenaial Christian School were very active around the community last week, as each class learned about the community, and volunteered their time for a good cause. Some students from grade four and five were in- spired by the experience and wrote articles describing their experience and what they learned. Making a difference By Joe-Joe Okiml, Jeffrey Hull, Justin Stiksma and Scott Fawdrey This week the grade five class from Centennial Christian School helped the community and the en- vironment by cleaning up garbage in the forest around the hospital. They have also been collecting newspapers for a recycling group in Kitimat and food for the food bank, transition house and the Salvation Army. The grade five class collected newspapers, food and picked up garbage because they want this world to be a better place to live. Grade five also had their laughs such as: Scott Faw- drey unexpectedly slammed into a telephone wire, and Jeffrey Hull tripped over a mushroom and fell into an ant’s nest. Special thanks to everyone who gave what they could -— politeness included. ‘You can make a difference so try! Special emphasis week By Kyle Wiebe -Grade 4 On Monday, Sept. 30, Centennial Christian School had Special Emphasis Week. They got into groups and played games and activities. The CCS liked skiing on grass and playing the elec- lric fence. And then on Thursday they made mobile about community and on Friday the prade four class went on a field trip to the airport and picked up garbage. The grade seven class went on a filed trip and cleaned out a creek and then put potatoes in potato sacks, es ee a