History.
Hands down, my all time favorite class. The one I couldn’t wait to get to. I attended Catholic elementary schools growing up. It wasn’t until I started high school that I went to a public school in Chicago. I remember my fifth grade teacher, Sister Vivian. She was a tough old bird but she knew History and how to teach it. She brought it to life. Every time she taught this class I was absolutely mesmerized. I could almost visualize battle fields from the Revolutionary War, hear the battle cries of the Suffragettes and feel the excitement of listening to President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
American history was my favorite but World history was fascinating. There is so much of it! I am no good at remembering dates, perhaps because it’s numbers and I was never good with numbers. By the time I reached high school and was able to pick my classes, history of some kind was always on my list. Again, I had great teachers who knew how to teach this class. I can only assume they loved the subject as much as I did.
I had the pleasure of visiting my father’s homeland, Sicily, some years ago. After visiting his home town we travelled to Rome and Pompeii. Now there is some history! I marveled at mosaics found in an ancient palace in Sicily. And everyone knows the history of Rome but standing in the very spot that Ceasar stood in was just surreal to me. But when I got to Pompeii, I was speechless. There are still marks where the chariots rode in the streets. It was so amazing to me.
Of course, every place I’ve ever travelled to has its own history. It’s always a wonder to discover. I have visited Belle Meade mansion here in Tennessee, Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage plantation home, the Natchez Trace Parkway, Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and Clarksville’s own Fort Defiance Civil War Park. Chicago has an extensive history. Norfolk, VA and New York were some of the birthplaces of our nation. I’ve seen them all but there is so much more to discover that I will probably never get to. So I’ll just have to be happy with the history books and try and talk to as many elderly as I come across. They are a wealth of information.
What does history look like where you live?
Dipped In Sparkles 
History was a favorite class, too. Lawyer Guy majored in history, I minored in it (PoliSci major). Only and her other half both have their masters in history and museum studies. She’s trying to get out of the corporate world and back in musuem work. He teaches high school AP history.
For such a “young” state–we were the 46th star–we have a rich and varied history. Indigenous peoples long before “white” settlemen, French explorers, Spanish conquistadors. The Trail of Tears. The Five Civilized Tribes. The SW and Plains Indians who were settled here. Ft. Sill (where Geronimo was held for awhile). Robber’s Roost (western outlaws). Famous cowboys and lawmen and outlaws, including Belle Starr. Boy was she something else! We made history in agriculture, oil, gas, even coal mining. The Chisholm Trail crossed the state about 30 miles from my house (and within two miles of the house I grew up in.) We had German POWs at Ft. Reno during WWII. Big tornados, floods. The Murrah Building (OKC) bombing. Heck, we even have Nordic runes carved into a cave down SE.
But yeah, I get what you’re saying. I’ve been a lot of places across the US. I’ve been to England, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. I’ve been to Mexico, Jamaica, Columbia, the Panama Canal. The only places I’d still really like to visit are Scotland and Ireland. And maybe Wales. Missed them on the study tour of Europe. Sadly, I don’t travel well anymore. Age, eyesight, and an allergy to stupid people. 🤣 So I, too, live vicariously through books, movies, and documentaries. Good topic today!
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Rich history indeed! Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I think my overseas travelling is over but I’m still game for a good road trip.
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Love this!
I remember going to Rome and touching the walls in the buildings we toured. Dad laughed at me until I told him I was touching things that were thousands of years old. We have nothing like that here in the States.
Honestly, I would love to tour all the historic places in the US. The deep south, Colonial New England, the old West…I want to see it all.
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