[Bards] bardic college
Michael Silverhands
silverhands at sbcglobal.net
Fri Nov 3 15:49:01 PST 2006
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?
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