[Bards] bardic college

[Michael Silverhands]

On Nov 3, 2006, at 5:23 PM, Darius wrote:

>> I have one question:
>>
>> If there is a College will it give EQUAL suport to bards in ALL  
>> regions of Ansteorra?
>>
>> If it's going to give priority to ANY region over any other simply  
>> based on location it should not exist, because it won't survive. I  
>> haven't been here that long and I'm already picking up on the  
>> divisions between the different regions in the kingdom, some of  
>> them very ugly indeed.
>>
>> ~Svetlana Andreivna Volkova
>
> In short to answer your question. No a bardic College will not  
> support all bards in all regions equaly. If the college does not  
> know that people in a given area want help they can not help. so  
> the bards in each region must support the college for it to work,  
> not the other way around.
>
> Darius

Exactly.

It's vitally important to remember what a college (or, for that  
matter, any other group within the SCA) is.

It's not some vague group composed of "somebody else", like "the  
government".

It's *us*.

If the college has a problem, it won't be "somebody else's problem";  
it will be *our* problem to fix (or work around, or learn to live with).

So, as someone else pointed out, if you are a bard in an area and  
that area needs support, don't wait for the support to appear. Don't  
expect it to, and don't be disappointed if it doesn't. It will be up  
to *you* (yes, *you*) to see the need and mobilize whatever support  
there is (*other* bards just like you) to try and address the need.

Sorry if this comes across as redundant or beating a dead horse, but  
I think it's *critically* important that we all understand this "from  
the get go". The college/fraternity/whatever won't be "some  
organization up there"... it will be *us*, the bards of Ansteorra.

Michael

p.s. as an aside, I don't understand the comment about "divisions  
between the different regions in the kingdom, some of them very ugly  
indeed". Seriously. I don't understand that.

I've been playing a long time (not as long as Willow or Robin, but  
still...). I've been a territorial noble, a regional seneschal, the  
crown's herald, etc., and I am unaware of *any* divisions between the  
different regions in the kingdom. I'm not trying to be cute or coy.  
I'm being totally serious.

For one thing, the "regions" are a fiction, a convenient artificial  
administrative division in order to divide the work of the various  
deputy kingdom officers. The "regions" don't have separate heraldry,  
causes or traditions. They don't have champions or spokespersons. In  
short, there's no "identity" to any of the regions, other than the  
title on some deputy kingdom officer's report, which means about as  
much as the score on "Who's Line Is It Anyway?" -- i.e., it doesn't  
mean a thing. And they aren't now as they have always been. There  
have been anywhere from 3 to the current 5 regions... or none at  
all... but it was still always Ansteorra.

I *am* aware of differences between *people*. For example, I'm aware  
of some people who live north of the Red River who don't like each  
other, or who don't like some people who live near Austin, or San  
Antonio, or Houston. But you're going to see that in any group, from  
the smallest household (bickering within the household, bickering  
with other households) to the largest kingdom (ditto). I am aware of  
some households that don't "run and play well with others", but above  
the level of household -- i.e., group branches and on up -- I'm not  
aware of any groups that have "divisions" with other groups within  
this kingdom. Individual people within those groups (in the  
minority), absolutely. But not the groups as a whole, or even as a  
majority.

So... no offense, but what's your point? Seriously?