Sarah Gibbard Cook
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Singing a Bear

1/11/2021

6 Comments

 
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The reindeer-herding Sami of far northern Scandinavia sing a joik* to express and connect with someone or something. The joik belongs not to the composer or the singer but to its object. Descended from shamanistic practice, a joik doesn’t so much describe as conjure up.

A lonely man, missing his late parents, might joik them for comfort. A woman might joik a blizzard in all its power, using few lyrics or none. The Sami do not sing about a bear. They sing a bear.

In our language and culture, we may paint or sculpt a bear, or perhaps act or dance one. Why, then, can we only write or sing about it? It’s as though visuals and impersonations recreate their subject, while words hold it at a distance. As a writer, I yearn to bring my subject into being, like the Sami. I’d love to be able to write a bear.

​* Rhymes with toy, but starts with a Y sound and ends with a K. Also spelled yoik.
6 Comments
Christine DeSmet link
1/11/2021 07:43:58 am

Wow, is that beautiful. Just what we need to hear right now. Intelligent perspective from reindeer land. I'll bring this into the book I'm currently writing.

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Sarah Cook link
1/12/2021 09:13:51 am

Christine, I'm honored. Looking forward to see how this fits into your next book. Is it a fudge shop mystery?

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Anne Keller
1/11/2021 09:10:58 am

Sarah, thank you for this beautiful reflection. I’ll be pondering this for sometime. You’ve inspired me.

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Sarah Cook link
1/12/2021 09:11:13 am

Thank you, Anne. I will be interested to learn anything you choose to share about where your ponderings take you.

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Rebecca link
1/11/2021 01:28:36 pm

Naming in the ancient sense through song to conjure up nature, I love it! Good observations about us remaining on the outside rather than the song and the bear are one. Idea to ponder.

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Sarah Cook link
1/12/2021 09:09:56 am

Shamanism has much to teach us. And many cultural traditions (including Judeo-Christian) attribute magical powers to the giving or speaking of names, which does seem related. That may be why missionaries long tried to suppress joiking among the Sami.

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    I'm a historian who writes novels and literary nonfiction. My home base is Madison, Wisconsin. 


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