Grace Butler Difalco
Biography
Grace Butler Difalco - Photo Courtesy of the Author
Grace Butler Difalco’s grandparents, Hubert and Sarah Abbott, were the longest serving lighthouse keepers of Cape Bonavista lighthouse. Newfoundland, especially Cape Bonavista, the sea, and the rugged shoreline have given birth to much of her poetry. The Abbotts were the inspiration for her poem “Keepers of the Light,” which was set to music and performed for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, and Prince Philip during their 1997 visit to Newfoundland. More of Difalco’s poems have been arranged for music: "One Fleeting Moment," in memory of Canadian choral conductor Elmer Iseler; and "Chrysalides," in remembrance of the women killed in the École Polytechnique massacre.
Difalco's poetry is about life, death, family and faith – born out of her own life experiences, her memories, and stories told to her. Her poem "Walking Into Death" honors Newfoundland veterans of the First World War, and is included in the Royal Newfoundland Regimental booklet, commemorating the 90th anniversary of their sacrifice at the Battle of Beaumont Hamel. Difalco is regularly invited to contribute work for the annual People of the Sea Service and Mothers Against Drunk Driving Avalon’s yearly candlelight vigil. Her third collection, The Winds of Time, is her debut international release through American publisher Balboa Press.
Difalco resides in Torbay, Newfoundland, with her husband Tom.
Difalco's poetry is about life, death, family and faith – born out of her own life experiences, her memories, and stories told to her. Her poem "Walking Into Death" honors Newfoundland veterans of the First World War, and is included in the Royal Newfoundland Regimental booklet, commemorating the 90th anniversary of their sacrifice at the Battle of Beaumont Hamel. Difalco is regularly invited to contribute work for the annual People of the Sea Service and Mothers Against Drunk Driving Avalon’s yearly candlelight vigil. Her third collection, The Winds of Time, is her debut international release through American publisher Balboa Press.
Difalco resides in Torbay, Newfoundland, with her husband Tom.
Additional Information:
Facebook Page
“Chrysalides”
“A Fitting Tribute”
“Keepers of the Light” performance
Facebook Page
“Chrysalides”
“A Fitting Tribute”
“Keepers of the Light” performance
Take my hand, Lord, I am waiting
Calm my soul and ease my pain
For I am hurting, Lord, and grieving
Children of a gender slain
Butterflies awaiting freedom
Never shall their wings take flight
Chrysalides like teardrops falling
Darkness rules and day is night
Hear our prayers, Lord, we are pleading
Be our guidance through the storm
Bring us peace, console our thinking
Strengthen loved ones, tired and worn
We will honour all who suffered
All who gave the pleading cry
When madness reigned and separated
Those to live and those to die.
Keep our deeds, Lord, ever faithful
Never to forget the day
Fourteen precious, gifted angels
Felt their young lives steal away
Standing strong, we are united
All for peace and peace for all
Seeking love to banish violence
"Engineering" hatred's fall.
December winds blow cold and lonely
Memories chill my anxious soul
Anger lingers in my living
O let Your healing waters flow
Calm my soul and ease my pain
For I am hurting, Lord, and grieving
Children of a gender slain
Butterflies awaiting freedom
Never shall their wings take flight
Chrysalides like teardrops falling
Darkness rules and day is night
Hear our prayers, Lord, we are pleading
Be our guidance through the storm
Bring us peace, console our thinking
Strengthen loved ones, tired and worn
We will honour all who suffered
All who gave the pleading cry
When madness reigned and separated
Those to live and those to die.
Keep our deeds, Lord, ever faithful
Never to forget the day
Fourteen precious, gifted angels
Felt their young lives steal away
Standing strong, we are united
All for peace and peace for all
Seeking love to banish violence
"Engineering" hatred's fall.
December winds blow cold and lonely
Memories chill my anxious soul
Anger lingers in my living
O let Your healing waters flow
Published here with the author’s permission.
Critical Analysis: Bullets, Butterfly Wings: In Memoriam of the École Polytechnique Victims
Rowan Little (English 3103: Advanced Poetry Workshop)
On December 6, 2018, Queen’s University held a special memorial service to commemorate the 29th anniversary of the École Polytechnique massacre of 14 women, 12 of whom were engineering students (Craig, “A fitting tribute”). The memorial was open to the public, who were treated to a performance from the Queen’s University Engineering Choir. The choir debuted a unique choral piece, “Chrysalides,” co-written by David W. Roe and Grace Butler Difalco, who provided the music and lyrics, respectively.
Chrysalides are moth and butterfly pupa. The lines “Butterflies awaiting freedom / Never shall their wings take flight” represent the lives lost during the massacre (Difalco ll. 5-6). By framing the victims as pupa, Difalco draws attention to university life as a state of transition between adolescence and maturity. The pupa will never hatch, and the students will never graduate into adulthood, “like teardrops falling” (Difalco l. 7). However, stanza three refers to the victims as “Fourteen precious, gifted angels” (Difalco l. 19). Instead of butterflies, the pupa trade grown wings for gifted ones. This implies a different kind of maturation; rather than become the adults they should have been, these women instead become spirits and symbols.
It is important to note that Difalco identifies as a Christian, and her poetry is frequently religious in nature. On the back cover of her collection The Winds of Time, Difalco writes: “From my earliest memories, I have always felt God’s presence in my life… We all come from God, and we return to Him… It’s the colour of our hearts that matters, and there are only two colours – good choices and bad choices.” This applies to “Chrysalides” as well, with the first three stanzas opening with appeals to the Lord (ll. 1-17).
While this poem is about the École Polytechnique massacre, “Chrysalides” is written in tribute to the victims and not as a political poem to condemn the tragedy. Instead, this dirge honors the young lives stolen away (l. 20). Difalco does address the shooter (ll. 15-16), but he is not the focus of this poem. Instead the poem highlights the fact that the massacre was a misogynistic gender crime; line 4 refers to “Children of a gender slain” just before the central image of butterfly wings (ll. 4-6). The killer’s motives weren’t merely misogynistic, but specifically anti-feminist (Pelletier, “Gender Terror”); the killer singled out nine of these women specifically for being in the same engineering class, and there is an allusion to this in the line “‘Engineering’ hatred's fall” (l. 24).
The final stanza renders the circumstantial time of year into a poetic device: “December winds blow cold and lonely… / O let Your healing waters flow” ties these deaths into December as a mourning and ending period, seeking new life in the coming spring (Difalco ll. 25-27). In the aftermath of this tragedy, December 6 was christened National Day of Action to Prevent Violence Against Women. This date and memorial pieces like “Chrysalides” serve as reflection points on the years since the massacre. As Difalco writes, “Memories chill my anxious soul” (l. 26), a sentiment shared by the many who observe this time.
Works Cited (for analysis):
Craig, Anne. “A Fitting Tribute.” Queen’s Gazette, 5 Dec. 2018, queensu.ca/gazette/stories/fitting-tribute. Accessed 24 July 2020.
Difalco, Grace Butler. “Chrysalides.” Atlantic Canadian Poets’ Archive, stu-acpa.com/grace-butler-difalco.html, 4 Aug. 2020.
---. The Winds of Time. Balboa Press, 2013.
“The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women.” Status of Women Canada, 15 Nov. 2019, cfc-swc.gc.ca/
commemoration/vaw-vff/remembrance-commemoration-en.html. Accessed 24 July 2020.
Pelletier, Francine. “Gender Terror.” Canada’s History, 22 Nov. 2019, canadashistory.ca/explore/women/gender-terror. Accessed 24 July 2020.
On December 6, 2018, Queen’s University held a special memorial service to commemorate the 29th anniversary of the École Polytechnique massacre of 14 women, 12 of whom were engineering students (Craig, “A fitting tribute”). The memorial was open to the public, who were treated to a performance from the Queen’s University Engineering Choir. The choir debuted a unique choral piece, “Chrysalides,” co-written by David W. Roe and Grace Butler Difalco, who provided the music and lyrics, respectively.
Chrysalides are moth and butterfly pupa. The lines “Butterflies awaiting freedom / Never shall their wings take flight” represent the lives lost during the massacre (Difalco ll. 5-6). By framing the victims as pupa, Difalco draws attention to university life as a state of transition between adolescence and maturity. The pupa will never hatch, and the students will never graduate into adulthood, “like teardrops falling” (Difalco l. 7). However, stanza three refers to the victims as “Fourteen precious, gifted angels” (Difalco l. 19). Instead of butterflies, the pupa trade grown wings for gifted ones. This implies a different kind of maturation; rather than become the adults they should have been, these women instead become spirits and symbols.
It is important to note that Difalco identifies as a Christian, and her poetry is frequently religious in nature. On the back cover of her collection The Winds of Time, Difalco writes: “From my earliest memories, I have always felt God’s presence in my life… We all come from God, and we return to Him… It’s the colour of our hearts that matters, and there are only two colours – good choices and bad choices.” This applies to “Chrysalides” as well, with the first three stanzas opening with appeals to the Lord (ll. 1-17).
While this poem is about the École Polytechnique massacre, “Chrysalides” is written in tribute to the victims and not as a political poem to condemn the tragedy. Instead, this dirge honors the young lives stolen away (l. 20). Difalco does address the shooter (ll. 15-16), but he is not the focus of this poem. Instead the poem highlights the fact that the massacre was a misogynistic gender crime; line 4 refers to “Children of a gender slain” just before the central image of butterfly wings (ll. 4-6). The killer’s motives weren’t merely misogynistic, but specifically anti-feminist (Pelletier, “Gender Terror”); the killer singled out nine of these women specifically for being in the same engineering class, and there is an allusion to this in the line “‘Engineering’ hatred's fall” (l. 24).
The final stanza renders the circumstantial time of year into a poetic device: “December winds blow cold and lonely… / O let Your healing waters flow” ties these deaths into December as a mourning and ending period, seeking new life in the coming spring (Difalco ll. 25-27). In the aftermath of this tragedy, December 6 was christened National Day of Action to Prevent Violence Against Women. This date and memorial pieces like “Chrysalides” serve as reflection points on the years since the massacre. As Difalco writes, “Memories chill my anxious soul” (l. 26), a sentiment shared by the many who observe this time.
Works Cited (for analysis):
Craig, Anne. “A Fitting Tribute.” Queen’s Gazette, 5 Dec. 2018, queensu.ca/gazette/stories/fitting-tribute. Accessed 24 July 2020.
Difalco, Grace Butler. “Chrysalides.” Atlantic Canadian Poets’ Archive, stu-acpa.com/grace-butler-difalco.html, 4 Aug. 2020.
---. The Winds of Time. Balboa Press, 2013.
“The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women.” Status of Women Canada, 15 Nov. 2019, cfc-swc.gc.ca/
commemoration/vaw-vff/remembrance-commemoration-en.html. Accessed 24 July 2020.
Pelletier, Francine. “Gender Terror.” Canada’s History, 22 Nov. 2019, canadashistory.ca/explore/women/gender-terror. Accessed 24 July 2020.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Difalco, Grace Butler. Echoes from the Heart: A Selection of Poems. St. John’s: Dicks and Company Ltd., 1995.
---. Waiting for Spring. St. John’s: Robinson-Blackmore Printing and Publishing, 1997.
---. The Winds of Time. Bloomington: Balboa Press, 2013.
Secondary Sources
Rev. of The Winds of Time by Grace Butler Difalco. Kirkus, kirkusreviews.com, 3 Apr 2014.
Difalco, Grace Butler. Echoes from the Heart: A Selection of Poems. St. John’s: Dicks and Company Ltd., 1995.
---. Waiting for Spring. St. John’s: Robinson-Blackmore Printing and Publishing, 1997.
---. The Winds of Time. Bloomington: Balboa Press, 2013.
Secondary Sources
Rev. of The Winds of Time by Grace Butler Difalco. Kirkus, kirkusreviews.com, 3 Apr 2014.
