History is awesome.
I like history, one of my favorite subjects. I dig the stories. I dig lessons learned about everything from government to music. As often as I look forward, I look back. I guess that puts me in the middle. I’m fine with that.
What a bad ass guitar player knows about learning.
I interviewed a world renowned guitarist, Dani Rabin, and he told me something I haven’t forgotten. He said, “I try to visualize one foot in what I know, and one foot in what I don’t know when making music.”
That still blows my mind. What he’s saying is he progresses by what he knows, as well as what he doesn’t. But he’s never all the way in either one. This leap here, both feet in what you don’t know? When you say “history repeats itself,” you reveal to the world that’s where you’re at. Because it simply doesn’t. Not hard to prove.
A couple of frequently used examples.
I hear it in reference to World War II and the nazis most frequently. This drives me nuts. The nazis didn’t have internet, they didn’t have billionaires. Without those two things alone, how is history now repeating itself? Without those things, Trump never wins. With them, how much more damage do you think the nazis would have done? That makes them pivotal factors. That makes the nazis in WW2 different.
I’ve also heard about the Fall of Rome. Rome was 30% of the whole world’s population. It was 500 years old. We’re merely 250 or so, with any luck. So..no to whatever else you think about that. Different animals.
Maybe these words don’t mean what you think they mean.
Relax, I get what you’re trying to say. I’ll even say it for you so when you’re tempted to say dumb shit like “history repeats itself,” you don’t reveal to the world that you’ve never actually thought about what you’re saying. Simply say “human nature doesn’t change.”
To that I’d say “bingo!” “Spot on.”
The part that is relatable is humans, not the time period.
The fun part about history to me is the humans! They make wacky decisions. Sometimes they win, sometimes they lose. They triumph, they suffer. Just because I can learn the facts from history does not mean I can predict the future like a dumb psychic. It means I can use the stories and deeds to improve those same qualities I have in me, another human. And that’s about all it means.
Know where your feet are.
But back to what Dani said, when I do dive into history, I’m unable to do it with both feet now. I keep one in today and all I know that’s happened since. That way I can trace the line from past to present easier. Otherwise, I might say shit like “history repeats itself.”
Return to home