[Ansteorra] Original Scrolls

[Catrin ferch Maelgwn]

I think it is very important to remember that a scribe's work is unique (a
few other activities in the Society also come to mind) in that it is both an
art AND a service.  This puts the scribe in the rather unenviable position
of being vulnerable to artistic criticism for doing something altruistic.

Take time to consider the fact that someone, somewhere, spent many long,
painstaking hours lovingly crafting each scroll that is handed out in
court--completely original or otherwise.  Consider that they spent that time
laboring over their project knowing that they were going to give it away for
the sake of someone they may not even know, and then start the process
anew--all out of love for their art and their kingdom.

Like everyone else who donates their time in service to the Society, they
don't *have* to do this.  It's not their job.  For every one I've known,
it's been a passion and a point of pride, but nobody is paying them to do
it.  And yet I look at the scrolls on my wall and can plainly see that the
work that went into each one was as careful as if it were a paid commission.

I hear a lot of people saying "they could do it *this* way if they *really*
wanted to."  What that actually translates to is, "if they were willing to
sacrifice even more of their time and effort."  The bottom line, though, is
that no one has the right to insist that someone else should be willing to
take on more work and responsibility--not when they're volunteering in the
first place, and not when we are all supposed to be here to enjoy ourselves
and have fun.

It would be a little bit like saying that the cooks who prepare our feasts
are simply not cooking up to the standards of other kingdoms, and that we
should require them all to redact their recipes from primary sources and
cook using strictly period ingredients and equipment.  Someone is giving up
their entire event to feed you.  The food is tasty and edible and prepared
with all the skill the cook possesses.  If you want to march into the
kitchen and demand better than that without offering to help, then I don't
want to be in that kitchen to see the response.  If your scroll is neat and
pretty and presentable enough to hang on your wall, then the scribe has done
her job and if you want more than that, you'll need to find yourself an
artist to commission.

There is nothing wrong, of course, with being a scribe yourself and saying
that you personally would like to make more original scrolls, and that you
would like to help others who are interested in doing the same.  This is a
worthy and wonderful undertaking.  Pushing yourself and encouraging others
to excel is always a wonderful thing.  But whether it's intended or not, to
say that it would be better if everyone got an original scroll is to
minimize the efforts of the people who have labored, out of the kindness of
their hearts, to give their gifts to the kingdom in the form of innumerable,
beautifully painted charters.

-Catrin ferch Maelgwn