Moose Jaw-area poet Joshua Heath is thrilled that a book of poetry he wrote three years ago has been so popular that a second printing is necessary.
Heath, 19, wrote Shopping Cart Boy: Poems of My Life when he was 16 years old. The collection offers his thoughts of a childhood on a Saskatchewan reserve and then in Regina helping his mom search for bottles and cans while sitting in his shopping cart prison. At age 12, he found his mother dead one morning, which forced him into foster care and street life for several years.
“I feel pretty good about (the second printing),” he said recently. “I’m glad about it … . I’m excited.”
Heath originally went by the last name of Jordan but changed it after he reached age 18. He now lives west of Moose Jaw.
Tragedy inspires
The budding poet was moved to write the book after visiting the Humboldt Broncos’ bus crash site in 2018. With all the attention given to the team, he questioned whether some people were more valuable than others considering he experienced rough treatment while in foster care.
His “another mother,” Sheila Webster, helped him walk through the process of editing, designing and putting together the book; he used his past to develop the 20 poems.
“We hadn’t expected to do this run (of reprints),” Webster said, especially since they were working on a third book about stories behind the poems.
Heath wrote a second book in 2019 called Soul Rape, Soul Rage, about his experiences with sexual abuse. He is also working on books about being in a group home and spending time in jail.
Since he has a knack for oral storytelling, using poetry enabled Heath to express himself more than the rigid form of prose. He appreciates the cadence of poetry since it better depicts the rhythm in his head as he talks about his experiences on and off the reserve, in and out of the ’hood, and in and out of foster care.
Widespread popularity
The book’s popularity has taken it to the United Kingdom and used in the Yukon to help students remain in school. Closer to home, Alberta author Sigmund Brouwer bought several copies and gave them to graduates on a Saskatchewan reserve.
“I feel great that they’re doing that kind of stuff (with the book),” said Heath.
It was just this year that Webster and Heath decided to talk about his crime-related past and combine that with promoting the book, she said. They made this decision since Heath was confused about his book’s popularity or why he was being invited to speak so much.
The first run
The first books were photocopied at Staples and put together by hand, Webster explained. They sold some of the books at an Aboriginal gathering in June 2018 at the Western Development Museum in Moose Jaw.
A publisher in Calgary caught wind of the book and asked to print it professionally, she continued. The family initially said no, since money from sales was used to pay restitution for a crime Heath had committed. However, they eventually agreed to let the company publish it.
The family believes in supporting local businesses, which is why it had the book reprinted in Moose Jaw with the support of their Alberta publisher.
“I’m a writer as well, and I’m also a book coach. I have actually never seen a book take off like his,” said Webster. “I’ve never seen anyone, just out of the blue, get speaking engagements.”
Some of those engagements included speaking at the Moose Jaw Public Library last year during Aboriginal Storytelling Week and at the University of Regina several years ago.
Invitations to speak
Webster speaks with Heath during events since he has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), she explained. He does not always understand the questions he is asked, so she translates for him and uses simpler terms.
Heath’s first speaking event was at age 14 during an Aboriginal conference in Winnipeg. He received $100 for his story about his mother’s death and used the funds to buy coffee and make banana bread for homeless people.
Making a documentary
In 2018 Webster and Heath submitted a documentary about the experiences of Aboriginal foster children to the Regina International Film Festival and Awards (RIFFA). Their film beat out almost 600 other submissions and was shortlisted as a finalist.
“It was phenomenal because we did not know how to make a movie,” chuckled Webster, noting they used an iPhone to create it and still received praise from other filmmakers.
The next documentary they want to produce will focus on education, mental health and crime.
When asked what Heath wanted readers to take from his poetry book, he replied, “I hope they know they don’t have to give up in life and should stay strong. And just keep moving (forward).”
