I just don’t seem to be taking any of it too seriously lately. History, science, math, astronomy, any of the things I usually write about. I’m not entirely sure what the cause is, but the thought occurred to me this morning, as I was reading through my normal repertoire of resources. I’m reading it all with a flippant eye.
The first entry that sent me on a personal bend happened back in 1306. It was then, on this date, that the Earl of Pembroke’s army defeated Robert the Bruce’s Scottish army at the Battle of Methven. I didn’t care about this one way or the other. I had to look up Methven, to find that it is located in Scotland. The Scots don’t use enough vowels if you ask me when they name their places, like Methven. Or perhaps the vowels are okay, but there are too many consonants. Dunfermline. Kirkcaldy. Anyway.
That’s not what hit me. It was William the Bruce. I’ve heard his name before. And along those same lines, the names of many others. Pliny the Younger. Or Erik the Red. I think we all should have “The” names. I grew up on Bruce Avenue for instance, so I could be Polly the Bruce. Like William. Or, my favorite number is seven. Polly the Seven, which I use on Twitter. We could pick them however we like. I’ve seen a lot of “The Greats” in history. Frederick the Great. Edward the Great.
Then there is Vlad the Impaler. We must be careful when choosing our names.
The next historical item that nudged me happened because of a portrait. The event took place in 1741, when the Russian mathematician Leonhard Euler left St. Petersburg for a position at the Berlin Academy. The position had been offered to him by Frederick the Great of Prussia. First, I can’t imagine the circumstances.
Did Frederick the Great (notice his name) contact Leonhard, and say “Hey, look Leon. Things just don’t seem to be adding up here in Prussia. Could you swing by and give it a go? Bring your chalk.” Or was Frederick the Great like, “Hello Leon. Listen. My kid is in the sixth grade now, and this new math is killing me. I have no idea what they are trying to do. Do you think you could help?” I mean, why do you suppose the leader of Prussia would suddenly need the rescuing of a mathematician?
But that isn’t what struck me. It was the thing on Leonhard’s head. What on earth was he wearing? Do all smart guys wear wet towels on their heads? Does it help to keep the numbers lined up? At any rate, that’s the look I’m going for around the house today.
Another entry for this date in 1953. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed. They were put to death for treason and conspiracy to commit espionage. This, relating to passing information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union.
I still don’t think they did it. Or if they were involved in the slimmest way, they were not the primaries. But on the sad date of their death by electric chair, Julius died on the first shock. Then it was Ethel’s turn. They gave her three jolts and unstrapped her to confirm she was dead. She was not. They put her back in the chair and hit her again two more times until smoke rose from her head. This one is so sad to me because I get a “feeling” every time I see the Rosenberg’s photos, telling me they didn’t do it.
So as you can see, the historical scale can have quite a range, from highs to lows. And all of these may take me in one direction on a Tuesday, but by Thursday, I’m seeing things in an entirely different light. I suppose this is true because of where we are standing on that day, surrounded by our own experiences, and the way the world is spinning at that moment. All of them, influencers.
There is no one way to view the world. We’ve seen this to be true. If humanity has proven anything it has shown us that our perspectives are complicated and intricate. Most of all, our perspectives, our “truths” are infinitely diverse. Yes, we all have our own. We view the world around us, as we make little histories unto ourselves. And the best we can do in those is to love who we are, love what we have, and what we are doing. And share that love with others.
And if it means wearing a towel on our heads, or being Polly the Glib, so be it.
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“Humans see what they want to see.” ― Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief
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“There are no facts, only interpretations.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche
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“One moment the world is as it is. The next, it is something entirely different. Something it has never been before.” ― Anne Rice, Pandora
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