Derailed Train
It may seem unfair to suggest that Britain is trading on its heritage, but there certainly are plenty of clues on which to make such an inference. First, one needs to say that it is a heritage of extraordinary dimension, beauty, and wonder, unsurpassed in its scope by any memory of man anywhere on the planet. The grandeur of what has been restored complements the humbling spirit of its longevity, compelling obeisance to the fractional nature of our observer’s role. And it is this role of observer, rather than notion of participant, on which the British have found a heritage trade.
Second, what is said here, as complaint or praise, may well apply to France, the United States, or any other country. As every tourist knows. We can hardly expect that those who entertain the mass of visitors at Edinburgh Castle or the mounds at Old Sarum could possibly share the excitement of those arriving for the first time. And indeed, many of the docents who ply the halls and talk the talks provide much rich detail of the history — our history — that these structures framed centuries ago.
But there is something diminishing about the business of heritage. Certainly one understands that no nation is going to invest a few million here and few million there, preserving and restoring the legacy of our ancestors, not when they have to squander billions on nuclear missiles that could destroy even our memories in a blinding flash.
I suppose that we’re all too busy with today and tomorrow to spend much thought on the past. Which of course raises the old warning about those who ignore history are condemned to repeat it. Frankly, I think there are wonderful signposts to be found if we look back at from where we came.
I’m thinking of the great cathedrals, the Egyptian and Mayan Pyramids, Machu Piccu, the Great Wall — marvels of design and construction, by people we refer to as primitive. How did they do it? How did they approach social structure? What else have we to learn from them?
I retract most of my rant against the British not appreciating their heritage. I’m sure they do as much as the next country, maybe more. And what I’m suggesting of them and of us, the gawking tourists, that we pay new and more serious attention to where we’ve been. That we reach back for the wisdom of the earlier ages, and in the process regain some humility about our even being here.
We need to appreciate what has brought us to this point, and that there is a purpose to us following a path of thousands of years of accomplishment. And then we can think about where we are going.
And that’s SetonnoteS...I’m Tony Seton.
[Home]
SetonnoteS