A Dream of Sulphur

By Aurian Haller

It doesn't matter which lake, let's say it was the Shuswap,
we gathered up the sunflower-yellow mineral because we heard
sulphur is used on match-tips and were keen to set
the whole box alight in a matchgirl dream of voices
rustling red tongues.

We melted the contents of our pockets in an old can of beans
over the barbecue; first the Libby's label, then the metal turned black,
the sulphur melting like crayons into dull grey. When it hardened,
we shucked it out of the can, as warm and unassuming
as a new meteor in the hand.

--from A Dream of Sulphur

From childhood scenes in Deep Creek to the restless migrations across Canada, A Dream of Sulphur explores the relationship between memory, language, and geography. As a grandmother battles memory loss, a Hungarian is exiled to Canada, the Tofino fishing industry collapses, or August fire in the Shuswap prompts the largest evacuation in B.C. history, the crucible image of a Libby's bean can captures the central theme of flux and the inevitable recasting of home.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0773519084
• ISBN13: 9780773519084
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Length: 80 Pages
• Weight: 0.24 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.0" x 7.3"