If I'm adding to the noise...
If we're adding to the noise
turn off this song
If we're adding to the noise
turn off your stereo, radio, video
I'm prefacing this post with that song by Switchfoot to remind everyone that you don't have to read this. I get so bothered by all the articles on the internet about politics, and the things that the media deem important. To me it's all noise. However, there are some current events that are important to me. There are some things that have a personal effect on my life. I am just one voice in a crowd of many. I have ideas and opinions like everyone else. So, if i'm just adding the the noise stop here, but if those of us with the same beliefs found unity and strength; together we can change the world.
As you all may know, I am a Civil War Reenactor. Being that we lived so close to Gettysburg it was easy to find groups of people to do living history and battle events with. I started just after the 150th anniversary of most battles. At that time, a lot of people whom we met were talking about retiring and local groups were seeing a decrease in numbers. But I jumped in. I gathered the equipment, did the research, and went to as many events as I could. Why?
For the love of history.
Reenacting is our way of remembering the lives of those gone before us. We respect the heroes who fought for what they believed in (even if it's not what we believe in), we honor the young men who had no choice but to die for their country. We remember the struggles of the women and children who's lives were torn apart as our country was torn apart.
But here we are just a few short years after we started (and in another state) and it is no longer the decline of reenactors that is threatening the hobby. No, now there is a "Climate of unrest facing the history of the Civil War"(quote found here). It has been going on for a while, in fact it has been said that the war never truly ended. The focus is shifting from pieces of fabric to pieces of stone. As reenactors we have all been wondering when the focus would shift to us. We all watch the news stories and wonder when the protesters will be standing at our tent flaps.
Now we are starting to feel it shift, but not in the way I thought it would have. Instead of the media and protests focusing on us, our own leaders are taking extra "precautions". Some by advertising less, some by beefing up security, some by not allowing filming, and some by canceling the event all together. Much like what happened to the Brattonsville event we were supposed to attend next month. Its when I hear of an event being cancelled, that I feel we have truly failed our ancestors.
There is a fine line between being careful and being scared.
Fear is a weapon used to divide the strongest of people. Just like during the Civil War, our country is going through a time of division. We are letting little arguments about difference of opinion separate us. Instead of embracing everything that makes us who we are as individuals and as a nation, we focus on things that can't be changed. Our past is our past. You can rip out the pages in a book, but that doesn't mean the words weren't written.
I believe that every person has to find their own identity before they can make any valuable impact on the world around them. We all have good parts and bad parts of our personal history that make us who we are today, just like how our country has good parts and bad parts that make us who we are today. The question is:
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