[NR] Thoughts on the past

[Angus Mac]

This is certanly 1 persons perceptions but not mine


Angus Macknochard
Living in the Past is a Privilege that comes with Age
----- Original Message -----
From: willow taylor <jonwillowpel at juno.com>
To: <northern at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2002 3:15 PM
Subject: Re: [NR] Thoughts on the past


>
> THE DREAM ....Ah there is the rub! In the past many Ansteorrans fought
> against our kingdom from becoming one of the Dream kingdom. We understood
> there is not one Dream but many little ones. We create the construct- THE
> KINGDOM OF ANSTEORRA- This construct had rules and norms and values. We
> based the kingdom on bits and parts of the medieval world. We then
> allowed people to fit their dreams into the system. Things had a reality
> to them. You asked a young girl for a favor because a gentleman of
> Ansteorra was courtly. Knights sang because It was the proper thing for
> an Ansteorran knight to do. The nobles did things because there was the
> Noble obligation. That what a good medieval noble would had done. This
> construct was based on a reality so we understood we had to work for it.
>
> Now we have THE DREAM. It was first pushed hard by kings who wanted
> Ansteorra to be broken into smaller kingdom. Then it was pushed by kings
> who did not want to live up to the Ansteorran ideal of King. The Dream
> allows whoever is in charge to define it. Think about a new person coming
> into the SCA. They are told that there is a Dream  and you should  live
> to it. Two things happen; first is related to  the term Dream,  Many of
> these newcomers to the SCA have spent their whole lifes playing role
> playing and video games and in these games things are done without
> effort. When you tell them "we are living the Dream " it makes it sound
> like they don't need to put in any effort into the SCA. The man who
> brought me into the SCA told me " it is a game but a very serious one. "
> Second problem our new people have is there is no clear definition of THE
> DREAM. They go to person after person and get different versions. and
> soon they give up. They start talking  about The dream in vague ways
> afraid to do anything because they are not sure what it is. THE DREAM
> also give people a great out. If there is something they don't want to do
> well it not in their DREAM.
>
> Lets talk about THE DREAM dividing people. When we were the kingdom of
> Ansterorra or the Barony of whats-it we were  working together to put on
> pre 17th century events. This meant that we all worked together to create
> something we could share. Sometimes we ran into problems because my dream
> of the Viking age didn't fit into your dream of the  War of the Roses.
> This resulted in different  kinds of events. and comprises between
> people. We knew there were things that we needed to talked out because we
> talked about our dreams and our difference. Now everyone uses THE DREAM
> and they think they are talking about the same thing but they are not.
>
> The Ansteorra of the past was not a DREAM kingdom. It was a place were we
> studied history and tried to bring to life the best  of the Medieval
> dream. We studied things like honor., chivalry and courtesy by doing
> them. Today we are a group of people in the SCA "living the Dream"
> When there was a combination of THE DREAM and the reality it was OK. THE
> DREAM people gave us lots of fluffy candy and Ansteorrans gave us the
> reality to work for. We are out of balance. We need to promote our IDEALS
> of honor, courtesy and duty. We need to work together to make Ansteorra
> come alive. Each one of us can work for this by believing in Ansteorra ..
> If you have to talk about THE DREAM do so but also talk about the things
> that make it come alive. Then go out and do them.
>
> Willow de Wisp
>
> > For all of you who have caught yourselves complaining that the SCA
> > isn't
> > what it used to be....
> > What have you done recently to encourage harmony and peace in the
> > dream.....
>
> > When was the last time you spoke with gentle speech to an elderly
> > grandmother
> > And watch the blush of youth come back into her cheeks.....
>
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