The "Your Elders And The History They Exude" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Straightening my desk (does anyone say that anymore) when I came across a small old Bible that my brother bought at an auction and gave to me.  I found it was autographed and captioned throughout by the printer of the Bible, Francis Bailey, who ran the print shop in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in the late 1700s.  It is a piece of history that can never be duplicated.  It is unbelievable that I actually have a piece of history that was passed along through the ages and landed in my lap because someone had no idea how valuable history might be.  Made me think of the sub-head in a story in my latest Saturday Evening Post: The secret to a rich and meaningful life lies in passing along what you have learned to the next generation.  Made me think back to when I was a young boy in the St. James Episcopal Church choir and would sit and watch my choirmaster and organist, Mr. Frank McConnell, write music.  

Cover of the cassette tape that
featured music from Mr. McConnell.

He had duplicated blank musical pages on an old mimeograph machine and would use his pencil to compose pieces which he would play from time to time as a prelude or postlude.  As an adult in his choir, I remember singing a few anthems that he reproduced on a copy machine which he had composed.  I still have the cassette tape that he produced which  featured some of the greatest organ music ever written, and one or two of his own works.  How I would love to have one of his original manuscripts of his musical work.  When Mr. McConnell (I could never call him Frank) died it reminded me of the African proverb: "When an elder dies, it's like a library has burned down."  So it was for me when Mr. McConnell died.  I find as I age I enjoy more and more visiting museums to view history in a different perspective: Real Life!  Reading about history and watching shows on the History Channel are interesting, but not as interesting as seeing it first hand.  

Inside President James Buchanan's home,
"Wheatland,"  You could read all you want,
but never be able to see his hats hanging
inside the front door of his home in Lancaster.

Looking at former President James Buchanan's favorite bottle of wine on the desk where he sat to sign Presidential documents at Wheatland is so different than reading about it.  Visiting Rockford and seeing General Edward Hand's uniform certainly tops reading about it any day.  Wouldn't you had rather take a field trip while a student in school than reading about some event in a book.  Most cities and towns in the United States, as well as other countries you may visit, have museums and historical places to visit.  The artifacts and physical items you will see are more meaningful then viewing them in a book. I guess for me it all goes back to when I was a young choirboy and seeing Mr. McConnell's musical scores spread over the top of the piano during choir practice.  Whatever happened to them?  Did someone brush them aside and eventually sell them at auction like the old Bible sitting in front of me at present.  History really is fun and the older I get the more I enjoy it.  Maybe someday someone will be sitting in their office reminiscing about the stained glass piece they have in their office window that I had made a hundred years before.  But, I will never know, will I?  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.