When one considers the depth and breadth of the “left – right“, “liberal – conservative” ideological split in the United States today, it’s not too much of a stretch for some to consider violence as their means of achieving what they see as right. From Mary’s & my point of view, we are at a critical juncture in our 241-year experiment in democracy. It is absolutely correct for us to have different points of view and to disagree with one another. However, it is also absolutely required that we learn the spirit of compromise and togetherness as a nation in worldwide leadership toward responsible values, culture, heritage and caring for all of the world’s peoples.
Were you to choose one place to visit which would demonstrate what might happen if this spirit of compromise and cooperation were not achieved, you could hardly make a better choice than to visit the National Park Service’s Antietam National Battlefield, Sharpsburg, Maryland. Mary and I visited on the eighteenth of this past September. On the previous day, 155 years earlier, 23,110 Americans were killed, wounded or missing in one twelve-hour battle—American vs. American—the bloodiest one-day battle in the history of our nation!
As you go about your day, you will see and hear examples, even from educated people in positions of leadership, who either didn’t learn these lessons or have forgotten them. We’ve just posted our visit to Antietam on our website. We hope you’ll click the button below to read our visit story, internalize our poem, and visit this park.