HACIENDA
…. OR IS IT COSMO?
My friend asked me why I was doing all this research and making a web site for my community. His personality is such that he insists everything has a reason and understanding that reason is the first step in understanding the project.
So I thought. I am not here to praise the fine schools, churches or public buildings. We don't have any of those. I'm not trying to lure tourists to eat in our restaurants and spend money in our quaint shops. We don't have those either. In fact, we generally don't like tourists. We even post guards to keep them off the beach and call the sheriff if they want to clog our narrow roadways.
So I explained that I have undertaken this project because this community has a rather vibrant story of our founding which should be told.
My friend was not convinced. He said that was a lame reason.
I said, okay. You want to hear that I need to tell this story for myself. That I need to know this place I stand today has been stood on by others, and will be stood on by more people than I can even imagine in the future. I am using the existence of the past to confirm my belief that there will be a future. That 2017 is just a year like 1861 or 1914. Like 2244 and 3891. That I too am in the founding story which began only a bit over 150 years ago. That this 30 million year old river has a future that includes being splashed in by reckless teenagers leaping off the bridge. That thousand year old trees will endure humans who naively nail signs to them saying things like:
My friend said, "Okay, you convinced me. Go tell your story."