history – The Great Kaysby

Election Eve Thoughts

Tomorrow is officially Election Day though many across the country have participated in early voting. Leading up to this election, we have all had a lot of thoughts. Some have been good; some have been bad; some have been conflicting. No matter your hope for the future, I think there are a couple of things that need to be reflected on by many.

First and foremost, what do you truly know about how the government works? I can’t speak for everyone, but based on the things appearing on my social media, A LOT of people don’t remember what they were taught in High School Civics about the structure and powers of the government or how much certain groups fought for rights like the one to vote. (Side note, I never had a High School Civics class which I think is one of many issues with our education system.) It is painfully obvious that A LOT of people have forgotten that there are three branches of government, and each branch is designed to provide a system of checks and balances to another branch. Along with this, it is painfully obvious that many people do not understand basic economic concepts like the impact supply and demand have on pricing. They also do not understand what little impact elected positions have on pricing. I told a group of teens long ago that if you want higher base wages then you have to expect price increases because top positions in corporations aren’t going to take pay cuts to increase base level employee pay. (I could have a whole separate conversation about this.) I say all this with the thought that no matter the outcome of the elections tomorrow, the best thing people can do is educate themselves on how government works and the part that each citizen plays.

Secondly, I have to say that I am impressed with how many families I saw at early voting. As a child, I loved going with my parents to the polls and learning about the entire election process! When I turned 18, I remember being super excited to register to vote and actually being sad that I couldn’t vote for president for another three years. I attribute this excitement to going with my parents for voting, so when I became a parent, it was important to me that our child see us voting. Now he’s excited to vote one day even though it is many years off for him! He also sees the importance of everyone being able to vote. As we were reading a book about Ancient Greece, he thought it was completely unfair that women and slaves didn’t get to vote. He was sure everyone needed their voices to be heard! I hope he always keeps this excitement for voting and equality!

See you after Election Day!

XOXO,

The Great Kaysby

Can’t Repeat the Past, But…

F Scott Fitzgerald famously had his character Jay Gatsby say, “Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can. Of course you can!” As anyone who has read The Great Gatsby knows, you can’t repeat the past, and if you live permanently trying to recreate the past, then it is never going to work out as planned. That said, you can’t repeat the past, but you can revisit things you used to enjoy immensely!

Many moons ago, I was involved in a little game called Amtgard. The easiest way to describe it to those not involved is Medieval Reenactment. I met my husband and a lot of my adulthood friends through this game (though some of us were teenagers when we met), and though I still chat with some of the friends, I don’t see them every week like I once did. There was a point in our lives when we were involved with this game multiple times a week, then it dwindled down to a handful of times a year, and eventually we stopped participating approximately seven years ago.

Enter this weekend.

A couple of our friends – one of the most wonderful couples you will ever encounter – were getting knighted which is the pinnacle of achievement in the game of Amtgard. These are friends that we have kept in contact with over the years and occasionally see, so when they told us they were going to be getting knighted, we wanted to be there for it. Leading up to the weekend, we were excited, but we had no idea what to expect. We had no idea if we would see people we know, if we would feel out of place, or if the game would be so different that we wouldn’t recognize because as we know, “You can’t repeat the past.”

Turns out you can’t repeat the past, but you can still revisit the things you have to do and discover that it is an enjoyable experience! Much to our surprise, as soon as we walked over to the event area, we saw people that we knew from seven plus years ago, and we were welcomed with hugs and “How are you? It’s been too long!” It felt heartwarming to be made to feel wanted and missed. As we caught up with friends, walked around the site, and chowed down on some delicious food truck selections, we fit right in with everything else happening. Imagine being just another piece of a puzzle that clicks right in with the whole and adds to the picture. It felt familiar, relaxing, and most importantly fun! Side note, I think a lot of adults need to remember how to have fun!!!

So was the game different? Yes, it was. However, from what we observed in our short time there, it seemed as though the changes were for the good. Like why was I never given a Reeve Stick when I was Reeving all the time? The answer is probably because I would have smacked someone with it if they got too close to me! Also, I remember we used to always not enjoy Court, but this time it was so much fun and so much thought went into the creation of the awards. Seeing the progress was great!

That said, I want to write all this down because I think it is important for me to remember this feeling. While you can’t repeat the past, you can still find joy in the things your previously loved, and you can consider doing them more frequently than every seven years!

XOXO,

The Great Kaysby

The Impact of One

Since attending Mass last night, I’ve been thinking about part of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans: “just as through one transgression condemnation came upon all, so, through one righteous act, acquittal and life came to all” (Romans 5:18). In the context of Christianity, this is an allusion to how one man’s negative action changed the world for the worse while one man’s positive action changed the world for the better. At first I reflected on how true this is per my beliefs and how in other religions one person has also had a massive impact on all of humanity. When thinking about this today, I started thinking about how frequently in history one person has made either a negative or positive impact on a portion of humanity.

Of course it was easy to think of singular people who have negatively impacted humanity. I immediately thought of Hitler who was directly linked to the start of World War II and the deaths of 6 million Jewish people. Negativity has stemmed from the impact of this one person for the last 90 years (the first Holocaust victims lost their lives in 1933). My next thought was of David Koresh, a cult leader, who did a number of unimaginable things to his followers and ultimately led many of them to their deaths in a fire in 1993. The losses were nowhere close to the scale of the Holocaust, but at age 9, this was the first time I remember seeing the news and thinking, “How can one person influence so many people? Why would people follow them?” Be they politicians, cult leaders, terrorists, criminals, etc there are many instances – more numerous than I can even fathom – where singular people have had a negative impact on humanity. In some respects, this can be downright discouraging.

However there is a light in the darkness! There are single people who have had major positive impacts on people around the world. My first thought was of Civil Rights leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Both of these men had major positive impacts on the Civil Rights movement. Then, I thought of Marie Curie. Her work with radium has been game changing in the medical field for over 100 years. Though her work ultimately cost her own life, it has saved millions of people. There are also people like Dolly Parton who are constantly positively impacting people by supporting literacy, medical research, and many other causes. When thinking of the positive impact of one person, we also have people like Henry Ford who developed the assembly line, and we have authors like Maya Angelou who impacted Civil Rights and Literature. Looking at the arts, there have been positive impacts by people like Lin Manuel Miranda. The list could go on and on!

My biggest takeaway from this reflection is simple. It can be easy to dwell on the negative impact of one person, but when you start to think about it, the positive impacts of one person occur frequently. What will your impact be?

XOXO,

The Great Kaysby

Future History

Since I was a child, I have always been fascinated by living history. I remember being little (the 90s) and thinking it was so cool how people got to dress up as characters from the past and bring history to life. I remember going to Civil War era and turn of the 20th century living histories the most. One of my all time favorites was to a Civil War village where they told my (still) favorite ghost story: the hitchhiking ghost girl. Now as an adult who has been exploring living history the last few days, I got to thinking about living history in 80 years or so. How will they represent the late 1900s and early 2000s?

The first thing I imagine in “Future History” is museums dedicated to the evolution of portable technology. I can see it now! Welcome to the Apple Oasis: A Salute to Tablets and Phones! Another thing I imagine is the costumes of the living history characters. They won’t be in fancy dress like our current living history folks; they will be in Converse, mom jeans, and crop tops! And their hair will be all the colors of the rainbow instead of hidden under a bonnet! Additionally, in “Future History” they will talk about “when cars used fuel and had to be driven by a person”. In fact, people might pay to drive a car themselves! Finally, I imagine a lot of “Future History” being virtual reality as opposed to actually visiting places. While I enjoy going and viewing history in person, I’m sure there are just as many who like to view it on a screen from their own home! No matter what happens, I’m sure “Future History” will be interesting!

Do you enjoy living history? What do you think about “Future History”?

XOXO,

The Great Kaysby