A couple of weeks ago, with visiting family, I took a trip to a town not to far from where I live. We went to the historic town of Jefferson, Texas. There is some question as to when Jefferson was founded. Some say 1836, some say early 1840s, it for sure was on a map in 1844. It has both a steam train and gas-powered antique locomotive that it uses for reenactments and tours. It was recognized as a river port, so you can take boat tours of either the bayou systems that run through it, or tour nearby Caddo Lake. If you have your own adventurous streak you can also rent kayaks and canoes and delve out on your own. It is chock full of different kinds of restaurants, bed and breakfasts, boutiques, antique stores, general stores, nature areas, historical landmarks, history and other museums, and you can even take a carriage ride on different occasions. I am attaching a few pictures of our excursion to give you a small taste of its charm, and a link to its tourism website in case you get an inkling or desire to visit. http://visitjeffersontexas.com 
One of the things that caught my eye and mind in this quaint little town, was a statue or monument. As I stopped to read about its significance, I came along something in its inscription that is on many a monument or statue; the simple sentence “Lest we forget”. Those words and the significance of history have weighed heavy on my mind since – in all aspects; personal, country, and world.
Webster’s Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary defines history as “a tale or story, a chronological record of significant events usually including an explanation of their causes, a branch of knowledge that records and explains past events”. It says nothing of whether those stories, those records, or that knowledge is there to remind us of joyous wonderful things or really painful, hurtful things. History is simply put, the past. It is there to remind us of both good and bad, it is there to remind us of who we were and to show us how far we have come, or maybe it is there to remind us of who we want to be or do not want to be.
Without the Great Pyramids, the Colosseum, the Great Wall, the Taj Mahal, the records of the existence of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes (both destroyed by earthquakes), and many other world-wide castles, statues and monuments, how would we know where we came from, why we took the paths we took, or where we want to go? History is there to remind us. Now I may not like some things existence, or the reason it was created, or the purpose it served, the fact is, it is there to remind me. To remind me to not do something again, to remind me to be a better person, to remind me to be more inclusive, to remind me of all kinds of things. If I was to erase all or any of it, how will I keep myself from making the same mistakes, how will I know why I am who I am, and how will I know how to create a better way. To take it down to its base, our past, our history, makes each one of us who we are. To remove the things that caused us to endure great pains also will change who we are and where we are going. We do need to remember these things, we do not need to relive them.
“Lest We Forget” – three small words with great meaning and consequence. Let’s not change or erase history, it is there for a reason. You and I are here because of it. So, if you have a quaint historic town near you, take a casual stroll, choose to remember, if only for a little while. You might just find yourself altering course because of it. Have some history to share, a thought you want to add, whatever it may be, we are always here awaiting your input and awaiting to share your life because we haven’t forgotten.
Great Post! As each second passes I realize that we are creating our own history. What legacies do we want to be remembered for. For division, hatred, agression, self-servancy, destruction and extinction of our ecosystem. We all have the capability to change this.