Today I had the honor of spending a couple of hours at a cemetery in Hardin County that is rarely visited. The Fort McArthur cemetery has 16 graves belonging to soldiers from the War of 1812. These 16 men's names have been lost to history but that does not make their sacrifice less important. As I stood there today watching a group of reenactors fire off a volley in honor of these men and as tap began to play I began to think about why history is so important. What started out as an idea from a friend of mine has turned into a mission to continue to ensure that these men are recongnized. This 16 men along with many others helped to ensure that our county came into being. They left the comforts of their homes and families to venture into the wilderness to protect the newly formed United States. Without their sacrifice there would be no United States.
In terms of history, the United States is a relatively young country. While we have come a long way, we still have so far to go. We are currently living in a culture that is working to destory any history that does not fit the current narrative. People feel that by hiding the ugliness of the past, we can make a better future. That is far from the truth. We need to embrace the ugliness of our past, the dark and shady bits of our history because by doing so we can learn from our mistakes. In the past year I have written more letters to my congressmen than I ever have. Why? Because I can not sit back and idly watch as our history is torn apart. I refuse to allow our history to be erased. By doing so I am allowing those brave men and women who have come before us, who sacrificed their lives to build this country to die in vain and be forgotten. Do I think we should glorify those who caused pain and suffering to others? No. Do I think we need to use their mistakes to teach our children to think critically and to choose a better path? Damn straight!
For years, I've struggled with finding my path. I thought it was in a classroom, on the front lines of teaching our children about history but the more I see what is happening with today's cancel culture, my path is in the way of those who choose to destroy our history. I am determined to fight to preserve the lessons of the past, to teach the future to not make the same mistakes. The way I can do that is through my job as a museum director and continuing to hold events like today.
We owe so much to the men and women of this country who have died for our freedoms. While we may not know all of their names, we can continue to ensure that their sacrifice has not been forgotten. That starts with helping to preserve the cemeteries of the unnamed. Today was a reminder of why I love history and why I need to continue to fight to preserve it. This is just the beginning in terms of honoring those who have gone before. I've already started to plan for next year. May we never forget those who have laid down their lives for our freedoms.
PS. Thank you to Kathleen Aunspaugh for the pictures.
