“ The Seagull ’ s Treasure ” Mason Deja
To the Reader , March 12 , 1997
Cynthia Belmont
Why write ? Why paint ? Why take photographs of aster or ice formations that are disappearing even as they are being photographed ? It is not the self-serving desire to make a lasting impression that motivates a true artist ’ s work , nor is it the misguided wish to capture the ephemeral . It is not necessarily the urge to share their vision with others that prompts artists to spend much of their lives in darkrooms , studios , or in front of computer screens . Beginning as a telltale sign like a cramp , a sudden tightness in the chest--a buzzing inside--art often happens simply because it has to . Why , having gone through it , do we show people what we have made ? Because art , our own and others ’, brings us joy . Desire . Vague wistful sadness . It remakes us , over and over , into ourselves . Writing or reading quietly in a quiet room , we are bathed in our own light .
Studying , teaching , working at an environmental college , we are reminded constantly of both the magnificence and vileness of the world . To love the earth , to want to protect it from what destroys it every minute , we have to maintain a balance between joy and grief . Sometimes the grief we feel , recognizing the horrors of which humans are capable , can be overwhelming . Art helps us heal . It is fair to say that among the few things that may both repair and redeem us in the face of our egregious original sin , abusing nature , is our art--our gorgeous , melancholy , humorous , shimmering art .
In an interview with Derrick Jensen , Terry Tempest Williams speaks of “ throwing flowers against evil .” Discussing the importance of rising to the occasion when faced with tragedy , she recalls a time when she and a group of children sprinkled basketfuls of flowers onto contaminated ground at the Nevada Test Site . She had learned of the concept of throwing flowers against evil , a part of the Yaqui Easter ceremony , from an anthropologist who told her that this ritual and the story it represents exist for all people as a way of understanding how to act in the world . She recounts how , preparing the flowers , she and her nieces told stories of their family and discussed the possibilities offered by the idea that one can in fact throw flowers against evil , that such a small act can make a real difference . They discussed the “ power of gesture ,” the
4 fact that , while gestures like this may not appear to make a direct impact on the world , they convey the energy and passion of hope . This is also a function of art , of story , which is our link to each other and to memory . Enjoying art is perhaps the most familiar means through which we discover the power of gesture : art does not affect the world in an obvious way , but it helps us to see , remember , commune with ourselves , each other , and the world .
In one of Shakespeare ’ s great comedies , As You Like
It , the character Duke Senior , banished from court by his corrupt brother and biding his time in the forest of Arden , remarks that the cold winter winds are “ counsellors / That feelingly persuade me what I am .” “ Sweet are the uses of adversity ,” he adds , “ And this our life exempt from public haunt / Finds tongues in trees , books in the running brooks , / Sermons in stones and good in every thing .” We may not often find “ good in every thing ,” but through art , through the rapt focus or our senses , we may find hope and wisdom in wind , trees , water , and stones , in each other . We must listen .
“ The Seagull ’ s Treasure ” Mason Deja