Commentary as History

Logic directs the flow of words easily. As long as facts are remembered correctly the story unfolds as it happened. Spontaneously. When this happens it seems a surprise afterward. A spate of words. Several hundred words appear on the page and minutes later the piece is finished.

Looking back, satisfaction. The essay says what it intended. Almost effortlessly.

When a message burns to be aired but no storyline accompanies it, writing comes with difficulty. The mind ponders awhile then stutters to make a phrase. Not enough. The message is still trapped. Wanting to escape its prison but no transport is available.

Poetry maybe? Open verse, stream of consciousness? An outpouring of ideas that brush against the message? Still no traction. No essay comes forth.

Blank page syndrome is not my problem muddled message is more like it! Unraveling it to make sense becomes the challenge and then…little by little…a phrase takes shape…a sentence…disjointed paragraph…several paragraphs…then pages.

A message has formed. What is it? What will it become?

History is like this, isn’t it? Don’t we live each day with a succession of thoughts and happenings that form existence? Isn’t that a day of history?

I don’t think so. Only many days form a storyline that may be related to history, and then only if we connect the dots. History is the story of what happened, when, involving how many interconnecting themes, and by whom? But most important, to what value or meaning did these matters unfold? Why are they of importance? Were they…are them…telling us of the importance of something else?  Why is history such a big deal?

When I was in junior and then senior high school history classes were a drag. So many dates and people to remember. And events. Until a craggy old teacher in senior year drilled into my mind – cause, effect, result – the underlayment of history. What happened? What was its cause. It had what effect and why was that important?

Taken in this form history begins to make attractive sense. Many years later I sensed emerging themes of importance. Still later I realized this was history unfolding. Happenings matter but only when we piece together the cause, effect, result of those happenings. They inform us of broader meaning. They hint at more meaning yet to air.

In college free form discussions raged at supper tables, in dorm rooms, on the lawn under a tree on a warm sunny day. These bull sessions told stories. Of real people of history. Of real events canonized in history books. Books I had never read. These folks had. They were excited. Bubbling with tales of interesting people and times and happenings.

They got history in a way I never had.

Until I realized I was living it. Today. Right now. Each day the story gets a little more complicated; sometimes twisted. Other days the drama calms and settles toward a climax and a sign of deep conclusion. Moments of conclusion. Sorting through the facts and realizing a pattern has taken root to mean something. A small factoid of history has formed. It will act on other factoids – related or not – to give a broader sense to what is emerging. A sentence of history has been written. Who will take note of it? Will it get lost in the cajillion bits and pieces that happen always?

It depends. Doesn’t it? On what else is happening and whether the ‘history’ line is focused well enough to be remembered, to be recognized as important.

One way to remember it is to ponder the point. Let the mind ruminate on it. Let it expand with emotion, logic and extensions of relevance to other topics.

The commentary wonders about such things. Is this bit of value? What do we make of it? Ought we make more of it? Threads of meaning…beginning to weave…together now…apart a bit…reappearing with a little more force…ah! Now I’m getting something. It takes form. It is more than a niggle to memory. It is…?

March 5, 2013