“The Prospectors Trail” By:Cathy Jewison

In the short story “The Prospectors Trail” by Cathy Jewison, Norman meets an old man who was an experienced, content prospector named Roy. Norman came to Yellowknife with his demanding wife to make something of himself and Roy helped him do just that. Roy is a very wise, helpful and resourceful man and he took Norman under his wing and showed him how to survive in Yellowknife.

Roy is a very wise person, he was like a mentor to young, awkward Norman. He knew how to get by in Yellowknife and taught those skills to Norman who used them to his advantage. He knew where the money was at in prospecting, not mining for gold, but mining for useful junk at the dump. He saw how miserable Norman was with his demanding, rude wife and steered him down a path away from her. In the long run Norman is now a happy, content man after he purposely let his wife leave him.

 Roy saw the endless possibilities of the dump and how it was a “goldmine” in its own way. He wasn’t pulled toward the glamour of gold mining and even though dump prospecting isnt the best job in the world, he took it because he was good at it and could make a living. He is a very resourceful and that is a good quality when your searching for stuff in the dump and restoring it so it can be sold.

Roy helped Norman out imensely throughout the story, as he said when people come to Yellowknife “some make it, some don’t”. Even though Norman was no friend of his, Roy made sure Norman made it our here. Roy knew that “Yellowknife [was] the end of the road” for poor Norman so he took care of Norman and showed him all the ropes when Norman’s situation wasn’t his problem to solve.

Roy was the turning point in Norman’s life. Because of his helpful, wise and resourceful ways, Roy helped Norman prepare for his new life in Yellowknife. Now Norman “sleeps soundly” at night because he is content.