Selected Articles from
The Gull Archives

If you would like to submit an article for The Gull, please contact the Chronicler.

Home Officers Calendar News Tourneys Photos History The Gull Mailing List

Lord Thomas’s Page

Feburary A.S. 20

(Editor's Note: Lord Thomas Buttesthorn became a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism in AS XIII. Over the years he has seen the SCA grow. This article is offered on the eve of the Society's twentieth anniversary.

As everyone knows, the SCA is nearing its twentieth year of existence. It was May 1966 when, in a backyard in Berkeley, a small group of romantics decided to hold a tournament/revel with a medieval theme for a birthday party. This seed took hold and became what it is today. But, what was it? What is it? And, what is yet to come?

When I use the term "romantics," I speak of people who, for one reason or another, were dissatisfied with the world as they saw it. With its pollution, injustice, Vietnams, riots, lack of sensitivity and grace, and its devaluation of the human spirit, their world was one of drabness, horrors, and frustrations. They yearned, consciously or unconsciously, for another way, even if only once in a while in their backyards. Mindful of the medieval romances, the later romantic adventure stories, the Arthurian legends and so on, they began to pattern their events on these themes. And what were these themes? Courtesy, Chivalry, Honour, Gallantry, and a certain grace of action and thought.

Of course, what they created did not spring up full blown and perfect as a latter day Camelot. It grew and evolved over time. It wasn’t perfect, but what human society is? But it was a lot better than the mundane world to which they were reacting.

My earliest impressions, which (alas) only go back to A.S. XIII, were of a fairly tight knit and friendly group. As my lady and I made our way through our first tournaments, we were often helped by various people, who, although we didn't know it, were "important people." They were the Kingdom Seneschal, Kingdom Exchequer, and others. Undoubtedly they were busy but still took time to be friendly and to help. We didn't know that they were "important," not because they weren't visible at court, but because they didn't "act" important. One saying that was popular (and true) at that time was, "you can tell who the nobles are, they're the ones who are cleaning up after the event."

It seems to me that people were more chivalrous, courteous and friendly; the SCA more tight knit, a little like a family. But perhaps I am merely remembering the good and forgetting the bad. Perhaps there was politics then, although it wasn't as obvious. But for those of you who have been around for awhile, ask yourselves: would it have been necessary for the King to publicly excoriate those thoughtless people whose utter lack of consideration kept everyone up at a recent Kingdom event? Would behavior such as was witnessed at the last West/Caid War have been tolerated? In the wee hours of the morning, several people turned over tables at the tavern and raved at the tops of their lungs over the protests of the lady running it, finally running off into the night. Would it have happened five years ago?

I can't help wondering what one of those people who made us welcomed years ago, despite their busy workload, would have said had they overheard the conversation of two Peers of the Realm recently. One said to the other, "That's why peers only talk to other peers. Everybody wants something from you."

Awards, from being a reward for devotion to the Society and for hard work, are becoming a goal to be maneuvered for, and symbols of political connections. Rather than being part of a brotherhood and sisterhood of a dream of a better way to live in this modern, shrunken age, all too many people do not seem to understand or share this dream. They can only think in terms of their own circle of friends and their own self aggrandizement. No, the Dream is not dead, and the SCA is still in many ways what it has ever been, but in recent years it has become this too.

These are hard words. They are not the "Oh, gee whiz! Twenty years, and HERE WE ARE!" that some might expect. We have truly accomplished something in lasting this long, but what were we trying to accomplish in the first place? Yes, the SCA is supposed to be fun and it has been called a "game." But what has always set it apart from other groups for me are the ideals of which I have often spoken. It adds depth and meaning and makes what we do more than just an idle diversion from the work a day world.

It could make for an enhancement in a mundane (I use this in the fullest sense) existence and add a touch of grace and magic to our lives. If it were just a "game" as some would have it, then why do so many of us spend so much time and energy on it? If it is "just a game," then why do so many people seem to define their importance in relation to the awards they have received and their "rank?"

One task I see as of utmost importance as we face the next twenty years, is to put this into perspective. It's not a very good game if everyone isn't having fun, if some people derive their "fun" at the expense of others.

Basically, is it a game or an expression of the wellspring deep within us that cries out for a finer concept of humanity? Are we only "acting" chivalrously and honourably or is something within striving for a way of living, however imperfectly expressed, that seems like what the human spirit exists for?

If it's not a game, but a true search to transcend the meaning¬ less existence of this materialistic and apocalyptic age, then those who have their "fun" at others' expense (sometimes driving them away) are doing incalculable damage to what we call "The Dream."

In the end, I feel, if we are going to exist another twenty years; if this brave experiment in Chivalry, Courtesy and Honour as guideposts to a more meaningful existence is to endure; then we must find our way back to what we began. The SCA must not be allowed to lose that special feeling which it has had. We must all make every effort to be a little more courteous, a little more chivalrous, do what we can to add to that collective magic we call "The Dream." It is my most sincere prayer that we may all celebrate our fortieth anniversary but this can only happen if we all do our part to make it happen. Whatever meaning it will have can only be that meaning we give it. No more, but certainly no less. What shall it be? Shall we begin?

As ever, in Service to The Dream ...
Lord Thomas Buttesthorn.

 



NOTE:

Copyright of each article belongs to the original author. Reproduction rights are not given by virtue of their appearance here.

If you wish to reprint any of these articles, in whole or in part, in any medium, you must first get permission from the the author. Please contact the Chronicler, who will forward your request to the appropriate party and respond to you.

Return to Home Page | Disclaimer | Feedback