Christmas in Gravenhurst; Where Are The Historians Of The Future?

Keep The Spirit of Christmas Glowing in Gravenhurst

Another beautifully lit tree appeared near the Centennial Apartments in Gravenhurst this week!    With the abundance of snow around town, the outdoor lighting displays give a warm glow of colour to the new fallen snow.  Fred Schulz Photo

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WHAT SHOULD HISTORY SERVE FUTURE GENERATIONS - OR IS EVERYTHING GOING TO BE "IN THE NOW," OR "THINGS YET TO BE?"

WILL HISTORIANS BE AS ANTIQUATED AS THE VILLAGE COBBLER, BLACKSMITH OR BOOKBINDER?

     I CONFESS TO NOW AND AGAIN, LOOKING IN THE MIRROR, BOTH TO ADMIRE MYSELF (YEAH RIGHT), AND I SUPPOSE, TO SEE FOR CERTAIN, IF I'M A GHOST YET!      WELL SIR, IF I DON'T SEE MYSELF LOOKING BACK, WITH THAT TRADEMARK TWINKLE OF THE EYE, AND EVIL SMIRK, I SHOULD GATHER THEN, I'VE EXPIRED; I ALWAYS COMPLAIN THAT I'M THE LAST TO KNOW ABOUT A LOT OF THINGS. I'D LIKE TO BE UP TO SPEED ON MORTALITY ISSUES, ESPECIALLY MY OWN. AS I HAVE BEEN A PRACTICAL JOKER ALL MY LIFE, I'M EXPECTING GOD MIGHT HAVE ONE OR TWO UP THE SLEEVE OF HIS HEAVENLY ROBE....WITH MY NAME WRITTEN ALL OVER IT. POINT IS, I'M STARTING TO THINK OF MY SUCCESSORS IN THIS HISTORY-RECORDING THING. I KEEP LOOKING BEHIND ME, TO SEE IF MY APPRENTICE HAS SHOWN UP YET. THEN I REALIZE I DON'T HAVE ONE. IN FACT, MOST OF THE HISTORIANS I KNOW IN THIS REGION, ARE IN ROUGHLY THE SAME SITUATION AS ME, GIVE OR TAKE A FEW YEARS. WHEN WE LOOK BACK TO FIND THOSE WHO WILL CARRY THE TORCH, AFTER WE'RE GONE, GOSH, THERE ARE JUST A FEW OLDTIMERS LIKE US, WOBBLING AND HOBBLING BEHIND. AND THESE ARE OUR REPLACEMENTS; THE ROOKIES? WE DON'T HAVE UNDERSTUDY BACK-UP. NO HISTORIANS RIDING THE PINE, LIKE PLAYERS ON A HOCKEY CLUB. IS THIS THE WORSE CASE SCENARIO? WHO REALLY CARES AMONGST THE YOUNGER GENERATION; FORMER STUDENTS WHO MAY EVEN ONE DAY, FORBID THE STUDY OF HISTORY IN SCHOOLS, WHEN THEY BECOME GOVERNMENT MOVERS AND SHAKERS. I NEVER LIKED HIGH SCHOOL HISTORY EITHER. I DO LIKE HISTORY TEACHERS, SO MUCH IN FACT, I MARRIED ONE. I JUST DON'T LIKE IT WHEN SHE GETS INTO TEACHER-MODE WHEN I'M WATCHING TELEVISION.....INTERRUPTING ME WITH INTERESTING HISTORICAL FACTS.

     MY PREFERENCE IN THE FIELD OF HISTORY, HAS FOR LONG AND LONG, BEEN THE STUDY OF FOLK HISTORY. I THINK YOU MUST KNOW THIS BY NOW. YOU CAN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND FOLK HISTORY ON ITS OWN, SO WE NEED THE PURISTS AND REALISTS, TO SET DOWN THE FRAME WORK OF WHAT OCCURRED HERE, DAY BY DAY, YEAR BY YEAR, FROM THE BEGINNING OF OUR TIME IN THIS REGION. I'VE DONE A FAIR AMOUNT OF THIS HISTORICAL SLEUTHING AS WELL, BUT I'M NOT NEARLY AS INTERESTED IN ADDING TO THE CHRONICLE OF FACT, WHEN I CAN FIND MY ALCOVE OF FOLK HISTORY, FULL TO OVERFLOWING WITH UNTAPPED RESOURCES. EVEN AS A KID, I USED TO LISTEN-IN ON CONVERSATIONS AROUND ME, AND THEY WERE OFTEN VERY REVEALING, AND A FAR CRY FROM ACCEPTED HISTORICAL RECORD. I THINK IT'S WHAT I LIKED MOST ABOUT FOLK OR INFORMAL, WORD OF MOUTH HISTORY; THAT IT OFTEN DISPROVED MORE FORMAL, KNOWN RECORDS, COPIOUSLY NOTED BY THE LEADING HISTORIANS OF THE DAY. THIS SHOULDN'T BE A STARTLING REVELATION, BUT A LOT OF US IN THE "HISTORIANS' CLUB," MADE ERRORS IN THOSE ORIGINAL INTERPRETATIONS, AND RE-RECORDED FACTS THAT WERE NOTHING MORE THAN CHEAP, DIME STORE FICTIONS. HISTORIANS ALWAYS FOOTNOTE, IF NOT IN PRINT, AT LEAST IN THEIR MINDS, THAT "WE'RE OPEN TO NEW INFORMATION ON OLD OCCURRENCES." I BELIEVE THIS TO BE TRUE. I HAVE RUN INTO A FEW HISTORIANS WHO HATED MY PRYING, AND REVELATIONS, WHEN I'D STOMP ON THEIR LONG-HELD ASSERTIONS, BY PRESENTING NEW INFORMATION I HAD DUG UP. I COULD TELL BY THE LOOK IN THEIR GLAZED-OVER EYES, THAT THEY WANTED TO SURPRESS THE NEW INFORMATION, REFUTE IT AS BEST THEY COULD, AND BURY ME AS WELL. YOU CAN ONLY SURPRESS THE TRUTH FOR SO LONG.

     I'M NOT WRITING THIS TO ANTAGONIZE LOCAL HISTORIANS. MORE THAN THIS, I'M SERIOUSLY WONDERING THESE DAYS, WHAT USE HISTORICAL RECORD WILL BE FIFTY YEARS FROM NOW. EVEN TODAY, I FEEL THE YOUNGER GENERATION OF THIS TOWN HAS NO USE WHATSOEVER, FOR WHAT WE HISTORIANS DO, IN AN ATTEMPT TO KEEP OUR CHRONICLE RELEVANT TO EVERYDAY LIFE. UNFORTUNATELY, I'M STARTING TO FEEL THE SOLID GROUND BENEATH MY FEET, ERODING AWAY, AND TO ME, IT'S BECOMING A NEW-AGE INSECURITY, THAT HISTORY JUST ISN'T IN VOGUE THE WAY IT USED TO BE TWENTY YEARS AGO. IF IT WAS AS IMPORTANT AS I WANT IT TO BE, I WOULD BE HITTING ELBOWS, AT THIS MOMENT, WITH AT LEAST TWO UNDERSTUDY HISTORIANS, GNASHING TO TAKE MY POSITION, AS NEBULOUS AS THAT IS! MAYBE, BECAUSE IT IS ABOUT THE LOWEST PAYING JOB ON EARTH, NO ONE CAN AFFORD TO SPEND THE TIME I HAVE, GATHERING UP SOMEONE ELSE'S HERITAGE. WHAT I GET EXCITED ABOUT, MAKING DISCOVERIES, ISN'T GOING TO BE THE SAME EXPERIENCE TO OTHERS, NECESSARILY, AND IT'S OBVIOUS YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO, THAN SETTLE DOWN FOR A LONG DAY IN A COMMUNITY ARCHIVES. THERE'S NOTHING PARTICULARLY SEXY ABOUT BEING AN ARCHIVEST OR AN HISTORIAN. UNLESS A MOVIE OR BOOK COMES OUT SOON, WITH SOME BIG HOLLYWOOD NAMES, MAKING US HISTORIANS LOOK LIKE "INDIANA JONES," TYPES, SUFFERING THROUGH ALL KINDS OF INCREDIBLE ADVENTURES, BARELY DRESSED, I FEAR THERE IS LITTLE REPRIEVE FOR A PROFESSION, THAT BY ITS NATURE, REQUIRES ONES NOSE TO BE PRESSED INTO THE CREASE OF BOOKS AND JOURNALS ALL THE LIVE LONG DAY.

     I WOULD LOVE AN IMAGE CHANGE BUT THERE'S NOT TO MUCH I CAN DO ABOUT IT, UNLESS I DECIDE TO WRITE ONE OF THESE MOVIE SCRIPTS. I'D REALLY LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PASS ON MY TRADE SECRETS TO AN APPRENTICE. BOTH OUR SONS ARE INTERESTED IN HISTORY, BUT THEIR MUSIC BUSINESS TAKES ALL THEIR TIME. THEY DIDN'T LIKE HISTORY CLASS EITHER, AND THE TEACHER WAS THEIR MOTHER. THEY'RE LIKE MILLIONS OF OTHER FORMER HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, WHO WOULDN'T SIT IN ANOTHER HISTORY CLASS EVEN ON A DARE. I WAS ONE OF VERY FEW STUDENTS WHO GRADUATED WITH A DESIRE TO CARRY ON IN THE FIELD OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH. EVEN MY GRADE THIRTEEN TEACHER, MR. PETERSON, NEARLY CHOKED HIMSELF WITH LAUGHTER, WHEN I TOLD HIM OF MY ASPIRATIONS. OF COURSE, THE REASON HE LAUGHED, WAS THAT I HAD BEEN A TERRIBLE STUDENT, AND TURNED IN CRAPPY ESSAYS. SO I DID CATCH HIM OFF GUARD. THE STUDENTS AT THE TOP OF THE CLASS, HAD NO INTEREST IN ADDING "HISTORIAN" TO THEIR FUTURE CREDENTIALS. THEY WANTED TO MAKE MONEY INSTEAD. AN HISTORIAN PRETTY MUCH TAKES A VOW OF POVERTY, ENTERING THE PROFESSION, AND FOR ME, ADDING "WRITER" ONTO THE LIST, WASN'T GOING TO DESTINE ME TO GREAT WEALTH EITHER. BUT BY GOLLY, I'VE HAD A HELL OF A LIFE. AS A FOLK HISTORIAN, I'VE HAD MOST FUN. I KNOW A SIDE OF MUSKOKA HISTORY YOU DON'T. A LOT OF IT, OF COURSE, I CAN'T SHARE BECAUSE OF ITS SENSITIVITY. I WILL INEVITABLY TAKE SOME OF THIS TO MY GRAVE, AND ONLY A SMALL PART WILL BE SHARED WITH MY FAMILY. IT'S BECAUSE MUCH OF THIS INFORMATION STILL FALLS UNDER THE CATEGORY OF "UNFOUNDED," AND "HEARSAY." THERE'S A LOT I DON'T WANT TO BELIEVE MYSELF; AND SORT OF UNDERSTAND WHY IT HAS BEEN CONCEALED FOR REASONS OF SENSITIVITY TO SUBJECT FAMILIES, STILL ALIVE AND LIVING IN OUR REGION. IT'S ALSO THE PART OF BEING AN HISTORIAN, I DO VERY MUCH WANT TO PASS ON.....NOT THE SENSITIVE MATERIAL, BUT THE WAY A PROFESSIONAL MUST DEAL WITH HURTFUL INFORMATION, THAT IS UNCOVERED IN NORMAL COURSE, BUT COULD BE DAMAGING IF UNLEASHED ON AN UNSUSPECTING PUBLIC. IT TAKES YEARS OF STUDY AND PRACTICAL APPLICATION TO FIGURE THIS OUT. BEING STEWARD OF HIGHLY PERSONAL INFORMATION IS QUITE A RESPONSIBILITY, AND A SIMPLE MISTAKE, ASSOCIATED WITH A NAIVE APPROACH, COULD CAUSE MAJOR LEGAL WOES.

     WHEN I WRITE ABOUT LOCAL HISTORY, I DO IN REALITY, USE MY KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT I CAN ONLY REFER TO AS SENSITIVE MATERIAL; IT DOES INFLUENCE THE EDITORIAL OUTCOME, AND THIS IS HOW I'VE BEEN ABLE TO BE TRUE TO MY PROFESSION; AND PARTICULARLY CAREFUL ABOUT HOW IT IS APPLIED AND PRESENTED AT THE SAME TIME. THERE ARE QUITE FEW SUBJECTS I STAY AWAY FROM, FOR ETHICAL REASONS....AND I DO FEEL LIKE A COWARD IN MANY WAYS; BUT I'M SIMPLY NOT WILLING TO TAKE A CHANCE OF BEING SUED, HARDILY SO, BECAUSE OF MY UNFALTERING COMMITMENT TO BE A TRUTH-TELLER AT ALL COST. THERE'S A LOT OF POWER IN HIGH PLACES, WISHING TO HAVE CERTAIN INFORMATION SURPRESSED, AND I UNDERSTAND THIS. BUT I ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO INCORPORATE THE INFORMATION INTO THE WEAVE OF ANY STORY. I WON'T SURPRESS THE ESSENCE OF SENSITIVE ISSUES; I JUST WON'T NAME NAMES, AND REVEAL THE TOTALITY OF MISADVENTURES, BECAUSE OF THE COLLATERAL DAMAGE IT COULD CAUSE. YOU PROBABLY CAN THINK OF A FEW THINGS YOURSELF, THAT WERE HISTORICAL IN CONTENT, AND BIG ENOUGH TO MAKE THE HISTORY BOOKS, BUT WOULD SMASH THE WELL BEING OF COMMONPLACE.....AND SERVE NO GREATER PURPOSE BEYOND BEING JUST A SCANDALOUS REVELATION. I FEEL THAT AS LONG AS I OPERATE WITH THIS KNOWLEDGE KICKING ME IN THE CONSCIENCE NOW AND AGAIN, I'M NOT AVOIDING THE TRUTH.....BUT JUST INFUSING THESE REALITIES SUBTLY, TO AVOID MAJOR CHASMS OPENING AND SWALLOWING US WHOLE. STUFF HAPPENS. SOME STUFF ISN'T FOR PUBLIC CONSUMPTION. WITH MY BACKGROUND IN THE PRINT MEDIA, IT WORKS THE SAME WAY. THERE ARE HUGELY VOLATILE ISSUES WE ALWAYS HAD TO EXCLUDE.......FIRST BECAUSE WE COULDN'T AFFORD TO BE SUED, AND SECONDLY BECAUSE WE FEARED "RELEASING THE HOUNDS," AS THEY SAY, COULD HAVE ACTUALLY LED TO SUICIDES. WE WEREN'T WILLING TO TAKE CHANCES, BUT IT DID FLY IN THE FACE OF "FREEDOM OF THE PRESS," AND HERE WE WERE, THE ONES ACTUALLY SURPRESSING THE TRUTH. IN HISTORICAL RESEARCH, MOST OFTEN BY HAPPENSTANCE, WE COME UPON HIDDEN REALITIES, THAT IF DIVULGED, COULD CAUSE UNNECESSSARY HARDSHIP FOR SURVIVING FAMILY. THIS COULD INVOLVE A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION, OR DETAILS OF A LONG-AGO ACCIDENT THAT RESULTED IN MULTIPLE DEATHS. IT MIGHT BE REVEALED, THROUGH MOUNTAINS OF OLD RECORDS, THAT THERE WAS MORE TO THE STORY THAN THE COURT EVER HEARD, AT THE TIME OF A TRIAL, OR BEFORE A CONVICTION. IF WE CAME UPON SOMETHING THAT WAS RELEVANT TO A MODERN DAY CRIMINAL PROSECUTION, SUCH AS IN THE CASE OF SOMEONE WRONGLY PUNISHED, FOR A CRIME THEY DIDN'T COMMIT, THEN WE WOULD BE IMMEDIATELY FORTHCOMING TO THE POLICE. HISTORIANS DO OCCASIONALLY WORK AS CRIME FIGHTERS TOO.

    IT'S NO SECRET, THAT I WAS A REGULAR AT LOCAL WATERING HOLES. ALL OVER MUSKOKA IN FACT. I WAS THERE TO UNWIND AND FOR A LITTLE ENTERTAINMENT, BUT HERE'S WHAT USED TO HAPPEN. SURE ENOUGH, THOSE KNOWING I WAS WITH A LOCAL NEWS OUTLET, WOULD SADDLE-UP TO ME AT THE BAR OR AT A TABLE, BUY ME A DRINK (WHICH ALWAYS WARMED MY HEART), AND SPIN SOME INTERESTING LOCAL STORIES. THERE WOULD BE TIMES, HONESTLY, WHEN I DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR WHAT THEY WERE TELLING ME, BECAUSE IT THEN CORRUPTED MY ABILITY TO BE IMPARTIAL. THIS MAY SOUND STRANGE, BUT I DON'T MIND BEING CORRUPTED BY HARD FACT, BUT NOT SO MUCH, WHEN IT IS NASTY, TARGETTING, POISON HEARSAY. THE PROBLEM COMES, WHEN YOU HAVE TO JUDGE THE HEARSAY; FOR EXAMPLE, WHILE YOU'RE WRITING, BASED ON ACCEPTED AND PRESENTED FACT. HEARSAY FOR ME, REPRESENTED ABOUT FIVE PERCENT IN ACCURACY AT THE BEST. IT STILL COULD CLOUD YOUR ABILITY TO BE IMPARTIAL BECAUSE SOME OF THE INSIDE SCOOP, FOR WHAT IT WAS, COULD BE PRETTY DAMNING. AS AN HISTORIAN, I GOT FEWER DRINKS, BUT I'D GET SOME NEEDED LEADS. HISTORICAL LEADS WERE FAR MORE ACCURATE THAN NEWS STORY TIPS. THE BEST PART, FROM THE HISTORIAN'S SIDE, WAS THAT NOTHING WAS ALL THAT IMMINENT, WHEREAS, I MIGHT HAVE HAD TO WRITE-UP A CRIME REPORT SEVERAL DAYS AFTER GETTING THE UNSOLICITED HEARSAY, AND IT WOULD WEIGH ON ME. WAS IT IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO FOLLOW-UP, OR TURN OVER TO THE POLICE? HOW MUCH OF IT WAS BOOZE-INSPIRED? THERE WAS A BOMBARDMENT OF MORAL DILEMMAS FOR THE REPORTER-ME, AND A FEW LESS FOR THE HISTORIAN. BUT NO MATTER HOW YOU'D LOOK AT IT, AS I DO EVEN TODAY, I'D RATHER HAVE THE INFORMATION THAN GO WITHOUT. EVEN IF IT IS USED FOR INSIGHT, I HAVE ALWAYS FELT IT IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE WHOLE STORY, NO MATTER HOW GUT WRENCHING, RATHER THAN TO TACKLE A DIFFCULT STORY WITHOUT ITS BENEFIT. I'VE AVOIDED A LOT OF PIT-FALLS IN REPORTING, BY APPRECIATING THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE EVENT AND PERSONAL ISSUES INHERENTLY CONNECTED. JUST AS THERE ARE A LOT OF PLACES AND STORIES I WON'T PURPOSELY TRODDEN-DOWN, BECAUSE OF WHAT I KNOW.....AND THE CONSEQUENCES MY FORAY MAY CAUSE OTHERS.

     WHEN YOU PAY ATTENTION TO ORAL HISTORY, WHICH IS BASICALLY EVERY CONVERSATION WE HISTORIANS ENGAGE, YOU INEVITABLY HEAR A CONFESSIONAL WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT TO.....AND SOMETIMES, IT'S HUGELY EMBARASSING, AND MORALLY CUMBERSOME. I'VE BEEN IN SITUATIONS WHERE I JUST SIT THERE WITH JAW-ON-CHIN, AND NOD THE BEST I CAN. MANY HISTORY MAKERS LIVED DOUBLE LIVES, AND SOME OF THESE PERSONAL BIOGRAPHIES, FROM SOME PRETTY RELIABLE SOURCES, CHANGE HOW WE HISTORICAL-TYPES LOOK AT THE CHRONICLE OF OUR TOWN AND REGION. I HAVE BEEN IN A LOT OF PLACES TO FACILITATE THAT KIND OF SHARING. SOMETIMES, TRUTH BE KNOWN, THE TELLERS OF THESE TALES WOULDN'T HAVE KNOWN I WAS EVEN IN THE ROOM, LET ALONE WITHIN EAR-SHOT. OR THEY THOUGHT A BIG-EARRED KID LIKE ME, DROOLING OUT OF THE CORNER OF HIS MOUTH, WASN'T SOMEONE TO WORRY ABOUT.....SO THEY CARRIED ON THEIR INSIGHTFUL CONVERSATIONS. I HAVE NEVER USED THIS INSIDE INFORMATION, EXACTLY AS I HEAR IT, BUT THE REVELATIONS ARE INGRAINED NONE THE LESS IN MY MEMORIES OF THOSE OCCASIONS. AS I WROTE EARLIER, THESE INSIGHTS DO INFLUENCE MY TAKE ON ALL TYPES OF HISTORY; BUT THE SOURCES ARE NEVER REVEALED. WHAT MAY BE HURTFUL TO MY FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS IS SUBTLY SURPRESSED, TO SPARE THEM THE GRIEF OF FINDING OUT DETAILS OF KIN-FOLK, WHO WEREN'T EXACTLY ROLE MODELS. IF THEY WERE HISTORY MAKERS AND THE INFORMATION NEEDS TO BE ACCOUNTED FOR, I JUST FIND A WAY OF INFUSING IT, AS A VEIN IN THE STORY THAT DOESN'T BULGE OUT OR THROB OF SCANDAL. IF YOU WERE TO READ BETWEEN THE LINES, WELL, THAT'S DIFFERENT. I ALWAYS READ BETWEEN THE LINES, AND VERY SELDOM EVER ACCEPT FACTS AT FACE VALUE....WITHOUT SOME MEANINGFUL CROSS REFERENCING. I'VE BEEN FED A LOT OF LIES AS BOTH A REPORTER AND HISTORIAN, SO ONE HAS TO BE CAREFUL ABOUT ACCEPTING THE UNSUBSTANTIATED CLAIMS OF INTERLOPERS, THINKING THEY KNOW THE WHOLE STORY......WHEN IN FACT, THEY HAVE AN AXE TO GRIND, AND WANT TO CAUSE SOMEONE ELSE GRIEF. THIS HAPPENED A LOT WHEN I WAS EDITOR OF THE HERALD-GAZETTE, AND WE GOT BURNED QUITE A FEW TIMES WITH PURPOSEFUL MISTRUTHS.

     I WROTE ABOUT THIS TODAY, BECAUSE I REALIZE WE HAVE FEW IF ANY APPRENTICES, WISHING TO FOLLOW IN OUR FOOTSTEPS. I HAVE NO ONE TO PASS ON THIS KNOWLEDGE, AND NO ONE BEGGING ME TO ASSUME STEWARDSHIP OF MUSKOKA'S FOLK HISTORY. SO MUCH ISN'T WRITTEN DOWN. IF I HAVE A SHRED OF WISDOM MORE IMPORTANT THAN ALL OTHERS, IT HAS BEEN THIS CAREER-LONG AVOIDANCE OF WRITING EVERYTHING DOWN. I MIGHT PASS SOME OF THESE SENSITIVE STORIES DOWN ORALLY, BUT NEVER IN WRITTEN FORM. I RECEIVED IT AS ORAL HISTORY, AND I SHALL PASS IT THE SAME WAY, POTENTIALLY, TO SOMEONE INTERESTED IN PURSUING AN HISTORIAN'S LIFE. I DON'T THINK IT IS LIKELY, AT THIS STAGE OF THE GAME, THAT I WILL FIND A WORTHY APPRENTICE, WHO CAN HANDLE ALL OF WHAT I HAVE EXPLAINED IN THE PARAGRAPHS ABOVE. MAYBE OUR HERITAGE IS BEST SERVED, BY HAVING THIS HISTORICALLY SENSITIVE MATERIAL GONE FOREVER, AT THE MOMENT OF MY DEMISE. THERE IS A SENSE OF LOSS HOWEVER, THAT THIS SENSITIVITY TO LOCAL HISTORY WILL BE LOST....BECAUSE IT IS THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPARATUS THAT MAKES UP THE MICROSCOPE, BY WHICH WE ASSESS AND JUSTIFY THE CHRONICLE OF THE PAST. WE CAN'T TRULY APPRECIATE HISTORY UNLESS WE HAVE ALL THE PERTINENT INFORMATION, FROM WHICH TO JUDGE A STORY.....AS MOSTLY FACT, OR MOSTLY FICTION. WE MIGHT HAVE SECRETS BUT WE OFTEN MAKE LIFE DECISIONS BASED ON THEIR INFLUENCES....AND THE SAME GOES FOR HISTORIANS. WE BEG TO BE INFORMED AND EXPOSED TO INSIGHT. THE REAL EXPERTISE IS IN ITS HANDLING.

     THIS TUNE WILL BE SUNG TO "THE FAITHFUL HISTORIAN'S LAMENT."

     THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING TODAY'S BLOG. I'M HUNKERED DOWN BY THIS GLORIOUS FIRE IN THE BIRCH HOLLOW HEARTH, AND I CAN OFFER THIS ONE FINAL TRUTH......I DON'T WANT TO GO OUTDOORS RIGHT NOW.

CHRISTMAS IN GRAVENHURST -

CHRISTMAS SHOPPING HAS BEEN NO FUSS AT ALL - AND NOW COMES THE ENJOYABLE JAUNTS FOR SHEER ENJOYMENT

I AM A TRADITIONALIST. I WON'T SUGGEST SUZANNE IS THE SAME, (CLOSE BUT NOT QUITE AS OBSESSIVE ABOUT IT), BUT ANDREW AND ROBERT ARE BUDDING HARD-CORE TRADITIONALISTS. THEY LIKE TO DRAW ON THE PRECEDENTS OF THE PAST, TO REKINDLE WHEN TIMELY, SUCH AS DURING THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY. THEY WILL INSIST ON SPECIAL FOODS, AND THE LITTLE "PICK-UP" BUFFETS WE HAVE HAD, SINCE THEY WERE KIDS, AT ABOUT 9 P.M. ON CHRISTMAS SEASON EVENINGS. ROBERT IS A CHEF-IN-TRAINING, AND LOVES TO PARTICIPATE IN FOOD PREPARATION. THEY MAY NOT BE MARTHA STEWART MOMENTS, IN ENTERTAINING PROPORTION, BUT THESE CHRISTMAS BUFFETS….AS BASIC AS THEY ARE….. MOST DEFINITELY ENTERTAIN US. THEY BRING US TOGETHER IN MODEST CELEBRATION, TO RECONCILE THE EVENTS OF THE DAY, THE MONTH, AND THE YEAR. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT BUSINESS, ALTHOUGH THAT IS ALSO A FAMILY AFFAIR. WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT TO US, IS THAT WE HONOR OUR OWN HOMEMADE TRADITIONS, TO KEEP THEM STRONG ENOUGH, THAT THEY CAN BE PASSED ON TO THE BOYS' RESPECTIVE FAMILIES. I LIKE THE IDEA OF THAT PASSAGE OF FAMILY HEIRLOOMS…..AND FAMILY VALUES.

This year we have completed most of the Christmas gift shopping, and can actually enjoy the final days before the 25th, by visiting the places we like, the shops that remind us of the good old days, the restaurants we love to dine, and the places in Muskoka we have celebrated most of our lives. We will take a couple of motor trips, leading up to Christmas, and take along some picnic treats……(we are year round picnic folks, in car and out). We always take a trip up to Suzanne's old home village, of Windermere, and stop by the marina her family once owned (below Windermere House), then take a slow drive past the old homestead that was sold, following her father Norman's death, earlier this new century. We'll travel backs through Ufford where the Shea and Veitch sides of the family had homesteads (some still residing there), and possibly a stop-over at the Ufford cemetery to visit some of the dearly departed. If the snow permits. So far, so good. We don't do this to inspire sadness, about what has passed in our lives. We may be a band of historians and sentimentalists in the same breath, but we're just content to have been a part of so much family legacy that in Muskoka, goes back to the 1860's.

When we motor back, undoubtedly there will be a round-about of my old stomping ground, and I'll probably stop and admire the roadway, up on Bracebridge's Alice Street, where we used to live….and where I played a million games of road hockey. I'll slowdown when we pass those places where there are still some ghosts, wandering about, reminding me of youth, romance, milestones, and friends lost in time, and life. I'll be able to see the shadows of time lost, as silhouettes against the brightness of the season, and feel an inner rekindling, upon seeing where a kiss was stolen, my hand slipping in hers, the embrace that might have held for a lifetime….but didn't, and all the other romantic moments, to the present, and my affections to my partner, Suzanne, who knows the writer's passion for holding these memories as story-lines………fearing that if they were ever severed completely, he would float away in the atmosphere, as a walker becoming untethered from the international space station. She understands what the clock tower of the old federal building means to me, and the ribbon rails that run below, and the river that winds under the Hunt's Hill bridge that I walked four times a day through most of my youth.

Our motor-trip will end in our present hometown, where we have made so many more precious memories and important family traditions. We will pass by the places where we used to walk with the boys, hauling them to parks by sleigh or wagon, and we'll retrace the steps of a young, fearful family, unsure whether changing hometowns was the right thing to do. We won't be able to avoid recollection, of some very lean years, when Santa Claus was not going to be able to fulfill even part of the present list, and other times, when these snowy adventures, removed us temporarily from the troubles of the day. There will always be a positive outcome, and a rekindling of those times, when we disallowed ourselves from becoming obsessed with unfortunate realities, as it was too important for the wee lads, to put on a brave face; and fulfill, as much as possible, the festive culture of the Christmas season. These were not times we look back upon with chagrin. There wasn't a circumstance of economics, we hadn't built debt by debt, with full knowledge of the risk we assumed by doing so. When we think back, and try to reconcile our near disasters, well, it's part of our tradition of resilience to deal with prevailing circumstances, versus being entombed by circumstance. It was in this hometown that we struggled for most of a decade, to deal with the counter-balance of recession and a former real estate consequence and collapse. It was in this hometown that we succeeded in finding our strength in each other, and it was this little burg, in South Muskoka, that gave us so many reasons to be thankful and positive about the future. When folks wonder aloud, why we get involved in fundraising, for local charities, we can only answer, that Gravenhurst is our home, and everyone here is a neighbor……and those in precarious circumstance today, need a little help pulling themselves free again. It's the least we can do, as we were afforded many kindnesses here, as well.

This is a week of recognition, and restoration of traditions, old and new. It is a modest and inexpensive adventure, passing by all the places etched in our memories, and being truly thankful we had those important times…..when human spirit, family and community is pulled together like a draw string on a precious packet. When our family hears and reads the incessant critiques of our town, without even the slightest reverence for its past and present successes, and credit for the thousands upon thousands of families nurtured here, it makes us angry, and I suppose it shows. While I won't back away from making a critique myself, when warranted, I will never do so, at a distance that shows a flagrant disrespect, for the honest good graces of this South Muskoka community. As the presses continue to roll, and coffee shop pundits make predictions for an even sadder New Year, we take considerable comfort these days, by the fact benevolence shown, to organizations such as the Salvation Army Food Bank, clearly demonstrates to the contrary, that despite the perception of some, we are a sinking community, quite the opposite holds true……and there's much evidence that mottos like "full-speed-ahead," and "soldiering on," aren't tired old sayings at all. Take a good long look out there, and you'll see what I mean.

We should be thankful of what we have in Gravenhurst, of good neighborliness and unstoppable, ever-flowing benevolence to the less fortunate. That's a tradition we know about by immersion, from both sides, not based on periphery involvement.

As a final note, the boys will remember clearly, those days of lesser resources. I can remember how excited they were, when Suzanne would make up a little picnic, with some hot chocolate, and we would take the old jalopy for a trip around town to see the beautiful Christmas lights, adorning homes throughout the neighborhoods of this good old town. We afforded enough gas money to make three or four motor trips, up to and including Christmas Eve, and it was a simple, honest, uncomplicated celebration of our traditions, and the tried and true festivities of all the homeowners, who so generously, gave us a little Christmas treat, at their expense.

We Curries are thankful for our hometown traditions, and we hope you will find time, during the holidays, to look kindly upon the place, the neighborhood, the community in which you dwell, as it really is a recognition that is needed here……to remind the naysayers and critics, who find it difficult to identify attributes, that our town will survive regardless of dire prediction. To them, we offer a hardy "humbug." To everyone else we say, "Merry Christmas neighbors. And a Happy New Year.