The Sins of the Past

In my previous post, I express some anger and disappointment that our ancestors used Religion as a pretense for invasion. I also condemn the colonists and refer to them as the real savages, as opposed to the Native Americans. However, after I let these thoughts sink in a little deeper, I began to feel remorse for even having them in the first place.

This entire class has been extremely thought-provoking and has helped give me another lens by which to view my world. My eyes have been opened to the struggles and history of Native American people and I will never forget what we learned here. I hear Thomas King in my head telling me that I have heard the story now. While this is true, I would not be here blogging right now if the colonists had not decided to settle and “manifest destiny.” American history is filled with violence, oppression, and ugliness. It is truly sad that these things happened. But, the one thought that creeps into my head and makes me feel guilty is that I wouldn’t be here right now if these terrible events never occurred; none of us would.

Right now, I feel like a colonist trying to justify sins with hypothetical statements. Maybe things could have been done differently. Maybe the colonists could have tried to coexist with the Native Americans. Today might be better if that happened. But, maybe not. Maybe the sins of the past helped create the present we enjoy today. The world is far from peaceful and we are all still struggling to get along. But, you are here and I am here. Let’s do what we can to make it better.