"Three centuries thereafter, I take passage overland
In the footsteps of brave Kelsey, where his Sea of Flowers began
Watching cities rise before me, then behind me sink again
This tardiest explorer, driving hard across the plain...
And through the night, behind the wheel, the mileage clicking west
I think upon Mackenzie, David Thompson and the rest
Who cracked the mountain ramparts and did show a path for me
To race the roaring Fraser to the sea...
How then am I so different from the first men through this way?
Like them, I left a settled life, I threw it all away
To seek a Northwest Passage at the call of many men
To find there but the road back home again..."
"Northwest Passage" by Canadian folk singer Stan Rogers embodies the
Faustian and Canadian spirit, which is the urge to explore and gain knowledge and mastery in the face of danger and mystery, and the conflict between that spirit and our tamed and civilized modern world.
The spirits of Leif Eriksson, John Cabot, Samuel de Champlain, Sir John Franklin, Alexander Mackenzie, Henry Kelsey, Pierre Gaultier de Varennes and his four sons, Pierre-Esprit Radisson, Vilhjalmur Stefansson and many other great European and Canadian explorers who travelled and explored our land live in our ranks.
Active Club Canada will continue to cultivate the Faustian Spirit in challenge against the modern world.
Join this physical-spiritual struggle by clicking on the pinned message in our channel to get vetted and get active!