Mckenzie Strath : on Inconsistent Cemeteries

 

 

 

I vividly remember scraping away at the dirt, covered in sweat from the beating sun, when someone popped up beside me and asked, “Have you gotten the chance to excavate the vampire grave yet?”

It was such a strange question, especially considering we didn't have any vampires (supposedly) to excavate, but all I could think about was what an intriguing poem that would be.

In the summer of 2023, I had the opportunity to do a field excavation through the University of New Brunswick in Sydney, Nova Scotia, at the Fortress of Louisbourg. There, I spent a month helping a wonderful team excavate burials off Rochefort Point due to coastal erosion. When I came home from that trip, I had a field book of notes and new experiences and a ton of poetry material.

Inconsistent Cemeteries started as a Direct Reading I did with my professor, Stephen Collis, to explore how poetry and science can meld together. I often like poems with multiple meanings depending on how the reader interprets them. Therefore, while writing about Louisbourg, I took a more analytical approach to how I wanted to interpret my experience digging in a cemetery with the understanding that I am mixing the past and the present together.

Archaeology is the study of past human experiences, yet often, it is where people go to understand their cultural heritage and experiences. I will never forget the feeling of having people come and tell me stories of their ancestors who fought in the Louisbourg Sieges and were buried within the very cemetery I was excavating. Knowing that what I was doing had a significant impact on the public was essential to me, and it was important that both the dead and the living were respected through these poems. Of course, some poems strictly represent my experience only. For example, “Bring Back the Wolves of Cape Breton” has nothing to do with the fortress but reflects my day trip through the Cabot Trail and the moose-prohibited areas along the hiking trails. Overall, I would say that this chapbook is about experiences, whether from the past or present. It holds the frustration and wonder of what I was feeling excavating burials, as well as the observation and thoughts of the people around me, who showed me what it truly means to be an archaeologist.

 

 

 

Mckenzie Strath is an (almost graduated) undergraduate at Simon Fraser University studying Archaeology, English and Creative Writing.