SC - OT: Peers and their Belted Dependants (LONG+Apology)

[L Herr-Gelatt and J R Gelatt]

Hello folks! In a misguided effort to rush to the defense of folks who
probably didn't need defending from ME, I sent this missive to the list. Or
rather, I thought I did. Instead, I sent it to the Aethelmearc listserve,
and that was a bad, bad thing to do. I recognise that we are all entitled to
our opinions, and as well I recognise that mine are not neither necessarily
right nor singular. I hope Ras will forgive me for sending my missive to the
wrong list and opening another can of worms. If he doesn't, well, I guess I
deserve it. I have apologised there, which is no where near enough to make
up for it.

None the less, I still want to present my post to SCA-cooks. I think it is
important that we make an effort to present viewpoints rather than opinion,
and I think it is important to know that lots of people get into the "It
will never happen to me" rut. Ras's post was meant to be private and he,
too, had a slip of the fingers and sent it to the wrong place. I would have
found that out if I'd read the rest of the posts in the digest before
replying! I now read my own words with a rather heavy sense of irony. I
include them all, so you folks can cast stones as you see fit. Here is my
misguided post in response to his misguided post. Thanks for your patience!

Aoife
______    ________   ________    _________ 


Ras, even though you posted your missive "in error", it saddens me to hear
you extoll such opinions as if they were fact. You meant to tell only one
person these "facts". Instead you told hundreds. While there may be a small
nugget of truth in your post, in the interests of fairness I must emphasise
to the folks who read this list that the nugget is small. Your personal
experiences  have placed you in a position where your goals are hard to
reach. It is highly unbecoming of you to blame the establishment for failing
to make you a peer, when you belong to a household that publicly eschews
recognition. What ever happened to "Honor, not Honors", which is your
household motto?

Yes, it is difficult to become a peer. Why would it be worth attaining if it
were easy? In my opinion, a  Peerage is not a girl-scout badge, where you
need only do the required steps. A Peerage is also a state of mind, a regard
for the honor, artistry and advancement of an art. Thus in my mind, it is
not "having put in a minimum number of years" that is the issue here. It is
advancement of the collective knowledge of the art that delineates a Peer.
It is therefore unfair to equate peerages attained long ago with an
associate degree and those attained NOW as a Doctorate. Learning does not
stop once the magic hat has been put on someone's head. It continues. The
advancement of the art IS the advancement of the peerage: Each is at the
forefront of knowledge at his/her time. Yes it's damned hard to keep up.
That's the challenge, my dear. Anyone can re-create someone else's work. It
is discovering your OWN work that is the challenge. Not a single one of us
contains the sum of all knowledge. You should be proud of what you have
achieved and content with the excellent work you consistently produce, not
unhappy because you do not shine as brightly as another. I am reminded of a
joke we make about Seneschals here: only folks who don't want the office get
elected. This way we know there's no power trip going on, and the job will
be done for it's own sake!

You know perfectly well that I do not posess a peerage, nor am I an
apprentice, nor do I posess any significant little dangly bits or lengthy
alphabet after my name. Never the less I am outraged that you value the
peers who have so diligently guided you so very little that you insult them
in this manner, and in a public forum. Certainly questioning the honor and
integrity of a body of well qualified people in my artform effects me. If I
should never attain a peerage in any form, I gaurantee that I will not
perish for lack of recognition. I am comfortable with who I am, and that is
enough. I can live without peerage simply because I know my own value, and
do not place it a dime higher than anyone else would. 

You see, that Laurel or Pellican medallion is an OBLIGATION, not an
advantage or an atta-boy. It is not given to those who are unable to bear
the responsibilities consistently and gracefully. And the responsibilities
are key to the SCA as a whole: The peerage ideally define what the best of
us are trying to be. There is no room for sour grapes here. In the SCA as in
life there are two choices: strive hard for what you want, or learn to live
without it. Anything else is diminishes us as people. Neither I nor anyone
else should "expect" to be handed something unearned or undeserved. Maybe
that happens sometimes, but in almost every case it is neither the fault of
nor in the control of the recipient! You and You alone are responsible for
your own happiness. 

The fault lies not in our stars, dear Ras, but in ourselves. If you take the
hard route and prove your tact, skill, character,and patience, you will be a
better person for it, and worthy of our emulation, whether or not you get
your heart's desire. If, on the other hand, you don't want the work, just
the cookie, then perhaps your motives need to be re-adjusted. It's your
cake, buddy. Make it the way you want it. But don't forget we'll all be
watching and asking for the recipe when it's a success!


Aoife

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