CHAPTER THREE
1
“Boys and girls, this concludes the first part of our tour on the origins of life. We are now going to explore how mankind has used this gift for both Good and Evil. And by analyzing the fable of Cain and Abel, we can uncover two defining moments in history. The Bible story of the two sons of Adam and Eve represents a key moment in time as the first recorded murder. It also serves as an allegorical metaphor for the time when agriculture replaced the ways of the hunter-gather. Cain, a crop farmer, killed his brother Abel, a shepherd, when God showed favor to his brother’s offering over his.”
The rural setting everyone seemed to be occupying disappeared as the stage returned to its normal condition, with the exception of the world map stretched out across the wall. CHAD sauntered over to the map in a continued bravado of pride, his pie pipered legion of followers falling in line behind him. Stepping up to the wall, CHAD pointed to the map and started to explain its features.
“With the next stop on our journey through time, I am pleased to tell you about one of the more recent updates to our system, or better yet, maybe I should let the designer. Michael, would you be so kind?”
Again, Michael felt a bit embarrassed by the unexpected attention. Eve gave him an encouraging nod as he released her hand for the first time since the tour began.
“It was just an idea I had one day while studying for finals. I thought how helpful it would be to have a country’s entire history available in an interactive database that could be accessed from a map at the touch of a finger, kind of like having your own personal CHAD.”
Michael could have sworn he actually saw the animated man blush.
“I’m not telling them anything they don’t already know. The Touch & Go program has been a standard feature on school maps for the past three years. I just thought it up and let the technicians do all the hard work.”
“Please, demonstrate your idea for us, Michael,” CHAD said with a prideful smile. “I am sure you remember where our presentation resumes.”
“I believe we left off in what was once dubbed the cradle of civilization. So if we go to the map, touch the section of the Middle East, formerly known as Iraq, an information directory will pop up.” Michael explained as a window box popped up on the map with a directory listing the four main categories:
1.) ARCHEOLOGY & GEOLOGY
2.) CIVILIZATIONS & CULTURES
3.) DATES & TIMELINES
4.) FAUNA & FLORA
“If you touch one of the main categories, you get another list of subjects to choose from. For example, I will press DATES & TIMELINES, and you get a chronology of every civilization, kingdom, empire, monarchy, or dictatorship ever built in the region. Starting around 3500 BC in Ancient Mesopotamia with the Sumerian Kings, considered the first civilization, to the Akkadian Empire, which lasted from 2300 BC to 2200 BC, or the Babylonian Empire between 1728 BC to 1531 BC, all the way up to the beginning of the Ottoman Empire in 1533 BC and its end in 1918 AD, which led to the rise of the Kingdom of Iraq in 1932, and a good place for CHAD to resume today’s lesson.”
“Thank you, Michael. That was very informative.” CHAD acknowledged Michael’s helpful participation, who felt inclined to give a short bow after the children started clapping along with their teacher, CHAD, and Eve.
Returning to Eve, Michael automatically took hold of her waiting hand.
“An oddly appropriate place to continue the tour,” CHAD added. “Since this area of the Middle East not only represents where civilization began, it is also where it affectively ended. A nuclear wasteland since the end of World War III, this region of the globe is where mankind developed the technologies that separated modern man from his primitive ancestors. We can trace the origin of writing back to the Agricultural Revolution. The list of Sumerian Kings in cuneiform syllabic script marked the beginning of recorded history. It also revealed the true power of the written word, which along with inventions such as the potter’s wheel and other advances in tool making utensils, gave man the ability to dominate the land and his fellow man as well.”
An example of the list of Sumerian Kings appeared on the wall of the world map.
“Systems of control were needed to maintain order among the people subjected to the ruling class of landowners. Over many years, a family’s inherited wealth created nobilities passed down from generation to generation. As landowners grew more powerful, kingdoms arose and fought each other for control of more land, power, and ultimately rule over mankind. But powerful monarchies alone were not enough to keep the will of the people faithful to their kings, especially when all power and wealth is fleeting, often dependent on one’s strength to keep it.
“The greatest system of control ever conceived over the minds of men rests in his belief in a higher power. Having blind faith in a divine presence essentially provided man with a righteous cause to fight, kill, or die for, whether in justly fought battles for survival or wars devised for the greedy manipulations of kingly profits. The tricky part to interpreting the history of mankind is what I refer to as the Human Factor. You see, when calculating the age of the planet, for instance, there are certain geological measurements applied to the equation used to formulate the most accurate data attainable. But when you add in the Human Factor history is as much fable as it is fact. Someone once said all history is a lie agreed upon, but more often than not, it relies primarily on who is telling the story as to what version may be set forth as true. Some countries and empires have even tried to erase all records of their most notorious leaders, until another tarnished ruler came along who needed someone worse to compare himself to by saying, ‘at least I am not as bad as that guy’.
“The lies of history were never more egregiously clear and piously practiced than where religion is concerned. Evidence of early man’s belief in an afterlife dates back to the Stone Age, but throughout his existence who or what he worshipped has varied with a diversity of deities and religious ceremonies. Truth or myth, the lessons we learn from the past do not necessarily rely on the story being accurate or a fabricated fable. The profoundly omnipresent and allegorical lesson established from the belief in myths, either in pagan gods or a single divinity, can be more significant than the actual facts of the matter. Blind faith in dogmatic piety guided men’s minds, spawning a morally misguided impetus to condone horrendous crimes against humanity in the name of their god or gods. A prime example of this distortion of historical facts and spiritual beliefs is the biblical story of the Book of Moses and the Exodus out of Egypt.
“In the Old Testament, Moses led the Israelites from the bondage of slavery after Yahweh, their ‘one true God’, inflicted the Ten Plagues on Egypt, ending with the death of the firstborn male child of every household not protected by the mark of lamb’s blood on their door. After the death of Pharaoh Ramesses’ II firstborn son, Moses was allowed to lead the Israelites to the Promise Land the Lord vowed would one day be theirs.” CHAD explained.
“According to biblical history, not to be confused with actual history, Moses and his people spent thirty-eight years in the desert. At first, they fled Pharaoh’s army after Ramesses decided on a vengeful rebuke for the death of his son. But through purportedly divine intervention his army was annihilated at the Sea of Reeds.”
The world map displayed on the wall vanished and was quickly replaced by a scene from the 20th century film of The Ten Commandments showing Charlton Heston as Moses parting the Red Sea, shortly followed by walls of water crashing down on the Egyptian army. The film continued to show scenes in synch with CHAD’S words.
“After miraculously escaping the Pharaoh’s wrath, Divine Intervention continued to aid the Israelites on their long journey with the burning bush speaking to Moses on Mt. Sinai, where God carved out the Ten Commandments—his Tablets of Law. However, the Lord could be an angry God when man doubted His word, telling Moses he could not to enter the Promise Land after he questioned the Lord. Nor were any of the first generation who left Egypt, because upon re
aching Canaan, they refused to go on after scouts reported there were giants living in their Promise Land. Before his death Moses named his apprentice, Joshua, leader of the people, and as a reward for being one of the only original scouts to bring back a positive report, the Lord permitted him to enter the Promise Land. Although, the Lord might have neglected to mention there were Canaanites already living in their Promised Land, who did not pray to the same god as the Israelites, and had no plans to leave without a fight.
“The first battle for control of Canaan was in Jericho, whereas quoted from the Book of Joshua, “they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both men and women, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.”. Now there is no historical or archeological proof any of these events ever took place. Historians could not even agree on when it all happened. But in this case, when or if do not matter. It is the important precedent set by these fables that guided, influenced, and condoned the actions of self-righteous future generations, who thought themselves wiser and more civilized than their ancestors. Strongly motivated by his greed for power in this world, man has always sought ways to ensure himself an exalted place in the next one. ”
A lost and dejected look seemed to overwhelm the animated man as he spoke in a soft, mournful tone.
“It saddens me to think words like slavery, rape, murder, and especially genocide ever had to be invented.”
Quizzical Sally walked up to CHAD and attempted to put her hand on his shoulder to console him, but only passed through air.
“Don’t be sad, CHAD. It’s a beautiful world now.”
“You are a very sweet girl, Sally. What you do not understand, it was a beautiful world then, too. We just took it for granted, something we must fear to never do again.”
Miss Laurence stepped up behind Sally, actually being able to place her hands on the young girl’s shoulders, and gave praise to her student. “Sally is one of our brightest students.”
“I am sure she will do many great things with her life.” CHAD said before getting back to the history tour, which started to turn into more of a diatribe.
“Whereas the first civilizations developed independently, the countries originating from them (Egypt, Persia, and Greece) blossomed into empires controlling large territories and had major influences on the different cultures they spawned.”
CHAD went over to the wall as it transformed back into the map of the world. Using the Touch and Go application, he tapped his animated finger on the country of Greece, causing the information box to pop up. He then hit the CULTURE category and another list, though much longer, appeared as CHAD began to consolidate historic events.
“Ancient Greece was comprised of several hundred, mostly independent, city states and is considered to be the seminal culture providing the foundations for Western civilization. The long list of contributions the Greeks gave the world were lasting, grand achievements that are still the basis for many practices used today. They established the first democracy in Athens, truly put to the test by King Leonidas and his 300 Spartans, who fought to the death in 480 BC at the Battle of Thermopylae to remain free from the reign of Xerxes, the Persia king bent on dominating the world. But it was Ancient Greek art, and not Persian, that spread out across the land, particularly in form of architecture and sculpture. The teachings of Greek philosophers, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, still provoke contemplative thoughts on modern day philosophy. It was Hippocrates, a Greek physician called the father of medicine, who made many important discoveries and was the founder of the Hippocratic School of medicine all doctors swear an oath to uphold. Even their economy prospered from having a well-educated society, which deduced the fundamental rules of mathematics, along with the development of astronomy and basic geometry. Using an alphabetic script, a Greek playwright named Aeschylus forever changed the way we write plays with the introduction of interacting characters exchanging dialogue, thereby creating…drama. And ever since, the written word has given men the power to rule the world. Right from the start, great works of literature, such as Homer’s Iliad and the Odyssey, inspired dreams of grandeur in historic figures like Alexander the Great, whose mother deluded his mind with tales of how he was the son of Zeus, the mighty Greek god, which led to his unwavering obsession to conquer the known world.”
CHAD touched the MYTHOLOGY category in the CULTURE section, and a list of Greek gods from the Titans to the Olympians appeared. CHAD then touched the OLYMPIAN category, but instead of another list, several sparkling lights started glimmering over the heads of the surprised onlookers that began taking shape in form of the Ancient Greek gods from Apollo to Zeus.
“Throughout time, all history, especially Greek, has been strongly mixed with religious myths and legendary sagas. We can literally trace a direct lineage of Western Civilization through the famous mythological fables passed down over the centuries, beginning with the face that launched a thousand ships during the Trojan War, to the founding of Rome with the tale of Romulus and Remus, and onto the rise of Europe from the ashes of a fallen Rome with the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table in Camelot.”
The hovering Greek gods faded away, replaced by images depicting the Trojan horse used to infiltrate the city, the sacking and burning of Troy, refugees fleeing the lost city, and the death of Achilles with an arrow through his heel.
“Many years after the Trojan War the legend of Romulus and Remus was born. Descendants of the Trojan prince, Aeneas, who escaped Troy to settle in Italy, Romulus and Remus were twin brothers left in the woods to die by their jealous uncle. They were found by a she-wolf, who suckled and cared for them. Once restored to their regal birthright, the brothers acquired many followers and planned on building a grand city. However, a dispute over its location left Remus mysteriously killed. Romulus named his city Rome. He then proceeded to abduct women from neighboring tribes to populate it. He created the Roman legions, established the Roman senate, settled the Seven Hills of Rome, and waged war for two decades to expand Rome’s territory, until his own suspicious death, possibly at the hands of the Senate—almost seven hundred years before Julius Caesar.”
The images of Troy disappeared, replaced by ancient artworks illustrating the origin story of the famous twins and their Roman legacy. The visual images moved along in coordination with CHAD’S description of events. The scenes revealed were pictures of ancient artifacts, famous artworks, and legendary ruins, including some 20th century film clips.
“Founded as a kingdom, Rome was ruled by seven Roman kings for almost two-hundred-fifty years, before turning into a Republic in 509 BC, which then outlawed tyranny and waged wars for the next five hundred years to continue expanding their territory. By 83 BC, Rome found itself embroiled in the first of three civil wars, culminating in the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. Lucius Cornelius Sulla was a gifted general, who possessed the cunning and courage to make him an ideal ruler. He never lost a battle and won the first civil war. And even though he was named dictator after marching his armies on Rome, he used his authority to enact reforms to restore the balance of power between the nobility and the people, and then stunned the Roman world by resigning his power and retiring to private life—which is not to say, he couldn’t be ruthless. While in total control of the city, he had all those he perceived to be enemies of the state executed. One of his intended targets was a young Julius Caesar, who only escaped death with the aid of some of Sulla’s supporters. In the end, Sulla was said to regret sparing Caesar’s life, because he felt the young man dangerously ambitious and warned of a possible tyrant lurking inside him.”
A famous bronze statue of Julius Caesar in full military dress appeared on the wall map in a projected image of the infamous dictator.
“Sulla’s warning turned out to be quite prophetic. Caesar marched his troops on Rome when ordered to stand trial for treason by the Senate and his old friend, Pompey Magnus. Pompey feared Caesar’s conquest of Gaul left him a powerfully ri
ch and ambitious man. After defeating his armies, Caesar pursued Pompey to Egypt. In an ill-advised effort to appease Caesar, they executed Pompey on order of Ptolemy XIII, the child pharaoh of Egypt. Angered by the pharaoh’s arrogance, Caesar sided with Cleopatra, the pharaoh’s sister wife, immersed in her own civil war with her brother. Victorious once again, Caesar left Cleopatra to rule Egypt and was rumored to have had a son with her, named Caesarian. Upon returning to Rome in 44 BC, the Senators proclaimed Caesar dictator for life, shortly before stabbing him to death on the senate floor. Hoping to restore the Republic, the unforeseen result of their action directly led to the rise of the Roman Empire and a third civil war.
“Octavian—Caesar’s adopted heir—formed an uneasy alliance with Mark Antony—Caesar’s top general—to hunt down the Brutus led assassins forced to flee the city from the wrath of an angry mob. After defeating Caesar’s assassins, the peace between Octavian and Antony soured when Antony allied himself with Cleopatra in Egypt. Octavian, much like his adoptive father, was victorious in the end. Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide, leaving Octavian the sole ruler of what would become the Roman Empire and him the first Emperor. He took the adopted name of Caesar and the title Augustus in 27 BC (which is where the month of August comes from as with July being a form of Julius). Considered the best of all the Roman Emperors, Augustus’ reign, called Pax Romana, was renown as time of Roman Peace. He ruled until his death in 14 AD. Unfortunately, a blood lineage of ruthless tyrants succeeded him, forever staining the memory of Rome with the blood of the innocent.”
Famous paintings and sculptures of historic events and rulers flashed up on the giant wall screen, depicting everything from the assassination of Julius Caesar, the Battle of Actium, plus several sculptured busts of Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, and Mark Antony.
“Augustus was succeeded by his stepson, Tiberius, whose early reign of peaceful years enriched the treasury. Overtime, Tiberius became an increasingly paranoid ruler, who began a series of treason trials and executions. He eventually removed himself to the island of Capri, where lurid tales abounded about sexually deviant behavior and brutal cruelty, damaging the emperor’s reputation to the point where the people rejoiced at the news of his death in 37 AD.
“Followed by his grandnephew, Caligula Caesar started out beloved by the people for ending Tiberius’ paranoid persecutions, but a near fatal illness in all probability left him mentally deranged. Caligula rapidly turned into one of the most infamous and hated rulers ever as his brief reign of homicidal terror, extravagant living, and unrivaled debauchery led to his bloody death at the hands of his commander of the guard and Senatorial conspirators, who once again hoped to restore the Republic. The conspirators plot failed as the Praetorian Guard installed Claudius, the only member of the imperial family left to be emperor, since both Tiberius and Caligula considered him an idiot weakling and no serious threat. Despite his disabilities, Claudius proved to be an able ruler. He conquered Britain and improved much of the city’s infrastructure. He was, more than likely, poisoned by his ambitious fourth wife, who had high aspiration for her son, Nero. While his controlling, power-hungry mother might have been instrumental in Nero becoming Emperor in 54 AD, she did not get to enjoy the fruits of her labor for long. Nero’s intense hatred of his mother led to her violent murder five years into his reign. Regardless of the Romans passing a law to erase all memory of his existence, we know Nero as one of history’s most notorious rulers, who once savagely kicked his pregnant wife to death in a fit of anger.”
Historical depictions of the ancient Roman rulers materialized before the eyes of CHAD’S eager learners. Busts and statues of some of Rome’s most infamous Emperors appeared in various states of decay or demolition, like a headless statue of Nero.
“According to the Gospels, it was during the reign of Rome’s first five Emperors when Jesus Christ of Nazareth was born and spread the word of God, his father, before being crucified for our sins. Some of his followers, known as the Twelve Apostles, continued to spread his message of peace and love through Christianity. The apostles held faith in the belief that one day Jesus would return to save them from the torments they suffered under the Romans until 313 AD, when Emperor Constantine ended the persecutions after converting to Christianity. Almost one hundred years before the fall of Rome in 476 AD, Emperor Theodosius enacted a law establishing Christianity as the official religion of Rome. While the once powerful Roman Empire crumbled when the city fell seize to Germanic barbarian hordes, Christianity grew into the world’s largest religion with the belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God eventually changing the way we counted time. First devised by a monk in 525 AD, the BC/AD (Before Christ & After Death) system did not become more widely used until 731 AD, when the Venerable Bede came up with the method of counting the years Before Christ. In 1492, Portugal was the last Western European country to switch over. However, many years later the use of BCE or Before Current Era and CE for Current Era was adopted by scientists due to the religious connotations BC/AD denoted in what had become of more secular world, at least in the logical realm of scientific communities.”
Displayed across the wall scenes from the life and death of Jesus replaced the Roman Emperors with some famous artworks from the past.
“Much like the story of Moses leading the great Exodus out of Egypt, there are no historical records to prove or disprove what happened to Jesus of Nazareth. The belief in the divinity of Christ has been the subject of much debate since the day he was born, something else disputed by scholars and theologians, alike. The great divide among believers and non-believers rested in the conviction that Jesus was the son of God, which is not even the truly miraculous part of his story. As so often happens in matters of monumental importance, the people focused on the messenger, instead of his visionary message.”
CHAD appeared to ponder a thought or two before continuing.
“Maybe, if people believed Jesus was just a man—a very wise man, but still a man—someone able to grasp ahold of the true meaning of life while living in a backward time and such a strange land, his message could have reached the whole nation, without spawning a mass confusion of conflicting belief systems used to justify man’s greedy pursuit of power and glory. Don’t get me wrong, but if the simple words meant to promote peace and harmony could be converted into a complicated paradox of thoughts to protect the power and wealth men used to gain the world, then they truly lost the meaning of their messiah’s words and their own salvation, too.
“After the fall of Rome, the Catholic Church converted into a very powerful political player throughout Europe in form of the Holy Roman Empire. First becoming visible after Pope Leo persuaded Attila the Hun not to sack Rome in 452 AD, even though Attila’s decision to turn back was more likely due to the toll disease and famine took on his army. Soon the great hypocrisy of religious wars spread out across the land. Fought in the name of God to justify conquests of foreign territories, they arrogantly forced the conquered pagan tribes to convert to Christianity by instituting a death penalty for all those who refused. The corruptibility of power is absolute in its nature. Onetime persecuted for their beliefs by the Romans, some Christians continued the pattern by oppressing heathen pagans and even fellow believers. The Catholic’s assertions of the Pope’s authority as the leader of the church created a great divide among Christians who rejected the supremacy and infallibility of the Papacy. This ultimately led to a split from the church with the self-exiled followers establishing the Eastern Orthodox Church. The splintering would continue over the years into several different denominations.”
The stage flooded with light, the world map disappeared, and the room returned to its normal appearance. CHAD stood directly in front of his class of knowledge seekers, emitting a serious presence of someone now wanting to solicit information.
“I would like everyone to take a minute to ponder a simple question. How do you think Jesus would feel if he had lived to see what had become of his church?” CHAD asked
.
After raising her little hand, Sally spoke with a maturity beyond her more advanced and learned years would even suggest. “I do not think he would be very happy how his followers squandered the beautiful gift of knowledge he gave his life for.”
“You are a very perceptive young lady. I do not think he would be very happy, either.”
“Is that why The Author of The Book of Tomorrows remains unknown?” Sally asked with another reflexive raise of her hand going up almost in unison with her words.
“Because of the time in which it was written, just before the fall of what we refer to as our Old Civilization, historical records from then are quite rare. So we do not know if The Author’s anonymity was by design or circumstance. Unfortunately, much like the Prophet Warrior there is a scarce amount of background information about the person we know only as The Author, other than where he was living when he wrote The Book of Tomorrows. But since most of Old California is outside the Safe Zone and a very dangerous place to travel, I am incapable of correctly answering your important query. And for that, my dear, I am sorry.”
“That’s okay CHAD. Maybe we are better off not knowing.”
“Maybe we are, Sally. Maybe we are. But let us not concern ourselves with things we may never know and get back to the things we do. Like the third historical fable connecting our ancestral lineage to the rise of Western Civilization, from Greece to Rome to England and the legend of Arthur, King of the Britons. In a time known as the Dark Ages, the fall of the Roman Empire gave way to barbarian invaders conquering most of Rome’s abandoned territories left undefended. Born out chaos, the origin of three Western countries (Spain, France, and England) each rose up like a Phoenix from the ashes of a fallen Rome to become dominating world powers in their own right and time.”
With a snap of his animated fingers, the lights dimmed once more and the map of the world returned to its wall canvas projecting the grand design for all to gander and surmise. Moving over to the map, CHAD quickly tapped out a few commands on the Touch & Go screen menu, highlighting the countries under the current topic of discussion.
As CHAD pointed out England on the map and started to explain the connecting links to the origin story of King Arthur, Michael’s thoughts began to wonder from the telling of a familiar tale onto one yet to unfold. Although he could still hear CHAD telling how the deeds of Arthur (the Roman-British general who defeated Anglo-Saxon invaders in the 5th Century, then established the Kingdom of England) were rooted more in legend than fact, Michael’s mind was preoccupied contemplating thoughts about being a good father. It all seemed to hit home when the thought struck him how proud it would make him to have a daughter as bright and full of life as little Sally. He practically blocked out CHAD’S continuing history lesson linking legend to literature with Geoffry of Manmouth’s 12th Century History of the Kings of Britain, and then onto the more magical and popular 15th Century retelling, called Le Morte d’Arthur, by Sir Thomas Malory, which became the standard for future stories.
By the time Michael turned his ponderous mind from thoughtful scenarios of a lifetime devoted to nurturing a child within a loving family environment and back to the tutorial, CHAD had covered the entire Dark Ages, during which the blight upon the land was not only brought about by foreign conquers, but also from great famines and deathly plagues; and how countries like Spain, France, and England survived their hostile aggressors to become great nations, not through forceful suppression of their enemies, but rather by religious conversion of the pagan tribes; a system of control that would prove not only fruitless, but more an impelling rallying call for Islamic raiders, who gained control of Spain and the cherished Holy Lands in the Middle East at the start of the 8th Century; which in 1096 led to the first of nine Crusades, resulting in over two hundred years of bloody massacres, merciless victories, and brutal defeats, with power shifting struggles ultimately ending in abject failure for both military campaigns and in a moral hypocrisy that forever stained the offending faiths; but the power struggles did not end in faraway lands as religious abuses, internal conflicts, and territorial disputes still reigned supreme in the homelands, with many kingdoms desperate to stabilize their nearly bankrupt economies after long costly foreign wars; and how countries like Spain would find an influx of wealth through the exploration for profitable trade routes with the discovery of the Americas in the New World, making Spain a dominant power in Europe for the next two centuries.
As Michael came out of his self-imposed, contemplative trance, he turned his full attention back to CHAD, who was pontificating on what he called…“One of the strangest twists of fate in European history would have to be the extreme measures taken by King Henry VIII to ensure the legacy of his crown with a male heir. After marrying Catherine of Argon (his dead brother’s wife), the king of England broke off his alliance with the Holy Church of Rome when the Pope refused to annul his marriage so he could marry his mistress, Anne Bolen. While Catherine was the beloved daughter of Queen Isabella of Spain and Anne Bolen was mostly despised by the people as the king’s concubine, both of them fell out of favor with the king by committing the same grievous sin of giving birth to only daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, respectively—a sin which ultimately cost Anne her head. Although Henry VIII did have a son with his third wife (who he let die in childbirth), it is the morally divergent reigns of his two daughters that are remembered the most. From the womb of his good Catholic wife, Catherine, came the spawn of fiery retribution whose short, fearsome reign forever branded her Bloody Mary. And as for the supposed demon seed of the king’s concubine, Elizabeth’s time on the throne lasted five years longer than her infamous father’s and was called the Golden Age, with England becoming a dominating world power for centuries to come.”
Hans Holbein’s famous painting of the oft-married English king stood out in the middle of two equally noted recreations of his queen daughters flanking Henry VIII’S grandiose stature with telling portraits, revealing Mary’s harsh demeanor on his left and Elizabeth’s regal presence on his right.
Sally stepped forward with her head tilted back. Her eyes shifted from side to side, unable to focus on an image. She seemed to be pondering upon another important question, but instead offered a rather rhetorical observation. “It does not matter, does it? A woman could be just as ruthless a ruler as a man or just as gracious, maybe even better, if she can remain true to herself, like Queen Elizabeth did.”
“How very astute of you, Sally,” CHAD commended her insight before elaborating further. “Throughout history, those who strayed from their true selves oftentimes found bad result occurring from their good intentions, and the discovery of the Americas was such a time. Although famously credited with the discovery (another historic fable that used to be taught to children), the closest Christopher Columbus ever came to North America was Hispaniola—modern day Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The real truth of matter, he was arrested, put on trial, and convicted for inhumane acts of violence against the indigenous people, which even included some of the settlers from his term as Governor. Sentenced to prison, his benefactor, King Ferdinand of Spain, eventually freed him. Not the great discoverer or hero they used to teach about, but rather another despot ruler corrupted by power and glory.
“After a Papal intervention, Spain and Portugal pretty much owned the early days of exploration when the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 presumptuously divided the world between the two countries. In the treaty, Spain was essentially granted the Northern Hemisphere, which consisted of North America and the Caribbean Islands, while the Southern half of the world went to Portugal, receiving South America, Africa, and Asia. The first Europeans to set foot in North America were the Spanish Conquistadores, when Ponce de Leon came upon what he initially believed to be an island and named it La Florida in 1513. Spain and Portugal took full advantage of the treaty as they began to explore the Americas searching for silver and gold, but settled for slaves when disappointed by their early finds in the island areas. It
was not until moving inland they found the wealth so eagerly sought in abundant amounts of gold. First, Cortez conquered the Aztec empire in Mexico by 1521, richly rewarding Spain, and within ten years, Portugal’s conquest of the Inca Empire in Peru greatly increased their treasury.
“While the native tribes were no match for the foreign invaders, their demise was greatly influenced by the devastating effects of European diseases like smallpox, which the indigenous populations had no immune system to combat such a formidable foe. There were many countries willing to ignore the treaty, except Spain’s dominance of the oceans inhibited their efforts. It wasn’t until after the English defeated the invading Spanish Armada in 1588—leading to the decline of Spain with the inept Habsburg regime bankrupting the country—that the seas opened up for England, France, and Denmark to search for riches in the New World. In time, England rose up to become the leading world power, unbeatable at home or abroad. Nevertheless, even the mighty British Empire would find itself on the losing side after the American colonies grew into a strong, independent nation.”
The wall screen changed from representations of English monarchs to Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese explorers, showing images of conquered native empires, illustrating the rise of the British Empire with the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and depicting the colonization of the New World. Moving along with the continual momentum of the history lesson, the visual elements transformed in accordance with CHAD’S derisive monologue.
“During the 17th century, thirteen American colonies formed from British, Dutch, and Swedish settlements, ultimately all falling under English rule. Much like with the early Spanish explorers stricken with hardships from disease and starvation, the settlers depended on the friendly natives to survive before turning against them. The American colonies were unique in the world, divergent from Europe where monarchies, aristocrats, and the established church governed and ruled. Made up from many different cultures, the colonies were a place where everyone had a say in making political decisions. They based their government on a Republican ideology of equal rights, and this independent spirit would be the framework for colonial resistance to British rule of taxation without representation.
“Ironically, thirteen years after the French Indian War, when receiving France’s North American territories after signing the Treaty of Paris in 1763, England decided to exert more control over its thirteen colonies, with entirely contrasting results. By enacting unjust laws, they incited the colonist to form the United States of America and start the Revolutionary War with the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th 1776. After suffering through grueling winters, small pox epidemics, and a superior military power, the colonists finally won their independence and instituted the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights, guaranteeing everyone what Thomas Jefferson called the inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Which only continued the ironic nature of history after America was torn asunder by its own Civil War, fought over States rights to keep slaves!”
As CHAD finished expounding upon the strange twists of fate throughout history, the wall screen paused from flashing images of the Founding Fathers’ fight for freedom and displayed copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
Once again, Sally stepped forward and pointed out her thoughtful observations. “There seems to be quite a few similarities between the ideas put forth in these original documents and our New Constitution.”
“And you would be correct in saying so, Sally,” CHAD agreed. “When the Prophet Warrior wrote the New Constitution based on principles learned from The Book of Tomorrows, he knew we could not just blindly dismiss all the good mankind accomplished over the years. Instead, they incorporated all the morally good, common sense values into our new civilization, while leaving out any prejudicially negative beliefs once used to breed a nobility of hate that was predominantly responsible for our downfall. The old saying about how ‘you don’t want to throw out the baby with the bathwater’, I believe will give you a little more perspective on what our recent ancestors were faced with when rebuilding a new world from the shambles of the old. While drastic changes had to be implemented to prevent a repeat of past mistakes, the Prophet Warrior knew certain truths would always be absolute, which he preserved in the foundation of our new society.” CHAD explained.
“Of course, after the tour, you are more than welcome to view our New Constitution located right here in our Modern History section. Regrettably, the original has been lost in the nuclear wasteland that was once our nation’s capital.”
Michael’s thoughts started to stray again, only this time his mind wandered towards an early exit from the tour, and thanks to Constitution Sally, he was just given an ideal excuse to leave. It wasn’t because he didn’t appreciate American history, just the opposite. It was the most inspirational time in mankind’s growth as a species, creating a place where the individual rights of its citizens served as the strong foundation that built America, but also where it almost ended. At the height of all our accomplishments, the 21st century should have been a time to celebrate our place as a leading nation, instead of being the most shameful time in American history, something that always depressed Michael.
Not wanting to spoil the mood, Michael was about to lean over to ask Eve about leaving, when he felt her soft breath whisper in his ear. “What do you say we go take a look at the New Constitution? Then go get something to eat before heading back.”
“You must be a mind reader. I was just about to suggest the same thing.”
Eve smiled along with Michael, pleased he also wanted to get going. Only her reason for leaving was different from his.
CHAD also took notice of the young, would-be couple and offered them an easy out. “Of course, our two guests are free to carry on with their special day. I am sure they have other interests besides history to talk about, and I do tend to get a little long-winded.”
“Though it has been a wonderful trip down memory lane, we should get heading back,” Michael said with a pleasant smile.
“Don’t worry about us missing out on anything. We will be sure to stop by the Modern History Section before leaving.” Eve said.
“You would not want to deny yourself the pleasure one gets from viewing such a monumentally important document,” CHAD said.
As Michael and Eve exited stage left, CHAD carried on with his mission to educate the young.
“Now where did we leave off? At the beginning of the 19th century, the United States of America started to expand across the land after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 allowed settlers to travel west to seek their fortunes, and the Monroe Doctrine in 1823 prevented foreign powers from claiming American territories, truly making it our country. Arriving in unison with that pioneer spirit, the Industrial Revolution brought with it substantial public works projects in the vein of the Erie Canal and innovating inventions—the cotton gin, the telegraph, and the railroad—that helped connect and divide the nation.
“But the prosperity for some Americans came at the high cost of freedom for others. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 led to the deaths of thousands of Native Americans along the Trail of Tears, and within thirty years, the African slave trade increased by 2.5 million, due to the South’s need for plantation workers. While a moral outrage was brewing in the Northern States with abolitionist newspapers, the hypocrisy of living in a free country started to boil over after a Connecticut schoolteacher’s anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, became the best-selling book since the Bible. It inspired women to protest the Fugitive Slave Law that allowed slave-owners to reclaim their property anywhere in the country. Only five weeks after Abraham Lincoln was elected the Sixteenth President, eleven slave states seceded to form the Confederate States of America in 1861, igniting a bloody Civil War over the next four years, nearly tearing the nation apart forever.”
Before continuing, CHAD paused to take an imaginary breath. He glanced at Michael an
d Eve leaving as Eve shot a look back over her shoulder, giving CHAD a sly wink that Michael didn’t notice.
Still too caught up in history to notice, Michael went through the rest of the tour in his head. It was like a favorite, old book he read over and over again. The problem was he wished the story had a better ending, knowing the big difference between truth and fiction was that fiction had to make sense. How America went from being an economic global power manufacturing and supplying much of the world’s trade goods at the start of the 20th century, to a morally corrupt and bankrupt nation heavily responsible for the events leading to the end of the old civilization barely a quarter of the way into the 21st century, just did not make sense.
After the defeat of the Confederate South ended the Civil War, the Reconstruction Era began with the abolishment of slavery and the re-admittance of the once rebellious southern states. Within the first three decades of the 1900’s, we went from boom to bust. The discovery of oil led to affordable cars and the manufacturing of inexpensive steel to great cities that scraped the sky, while modern marvels connected the nation through electric lights and a transcontinental railroad. Nevertheless, we soon found ourselves immersed in the human frailty of repeating past mistakes. Lost in our search for wealth and power, we brought about the Great Depression and our eventual demise. Sometimes even our good intentions spawned opportunities for wrong to prevail as it did with the 18th Amendment. Enacted on January 16th 1919, the Volstead Act basically served up organized crime the murderously profitable gift of Prohibition.
After we reluctantly got involved in the First World War, which destroyed many of the old European empires and monarchies, our hand was forced the second time around. Still recovering from the stock market crash of 1929 and the subsequent years of economic depression, with the only aid coming from government-sponsored programs in FDR’S New Deal, the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor woke up the sleeping giant. Soon after the world felt our mighty roar in the form of devastating atomic blasts, forever reshaping the way we fought wars. Using the Red Scare of Communism, we found new enemies lurking in dark corners. Thought to be a great threat to our capitalist democracy, we gave our enemy a new face with the rise of the Soviet Union as the only other military superpower. These fears led to a forty-year nuclear standoff and near annihilation during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The Cold War did bring about two modern day military crusades in an attempt to prevent the spread of communist rule throughout East Asia in the war torn countries of Korea and Vietnam, with each conflict ending in colossal failure. The assassination of President Kennedy and other high profile political leaders brought about the social protests of the Sixties and Seventies, giving birth to a counterculture crying out for civil rights, while protesting against forcing the senseless sacrifice of American sons fighting a very unpopular military conflict in a faraway land.
Michael always thought the real tipping point for the loss of faith in the government was when two reporters broke the story that brought down a corrupt President and all his men with their coverage of the Watergate break-in. Nothing was the same after that. As the information age was born, some journalists, filmmakers, musicians, and authors attempted to enlighten a disenfranchised public filled with nothing but apathy for a broken system. Unfortunately, the nation was open to the mechanizations of corporate power players left unchecked and eager to fill their coffers. The contagious nature of greed spread out in the Eighties infecting the Me Generation riding a wave of materialistic pursuits all the way into the valley of silicon in the Nineties, when technology advanced the methods of creating wealth to the point where the bubble finally burst. The 21st century turned into the Disinformation Age as the split between conservative and liberal agendas led to a stolen election with catastrophic consequences. The terror unleashed by fanatical religious zealots on September 11th 2001 influenced our fear-induced response to the vicious, unprovoked attack, and became the catalytic reaction that would lead to the end of our old civilization.
The sad story of our downfall began with a promise of great hope, which always depressed Michael and the real reason why he did not want to stay for the conclusion of the tour. A small sigh of relief escaped him as he entered the Modern History Section with Eve at his side unaware of his mental battle to get his mind out of the past. But, it was as if the story took on a life of its own and demanded an ending, even a tragic one. And like most tragedies, a villainous plot comes to fruition before collapsing on the purveyors heads. Of course, there was always a doomed sympathetic main character—to which a liberal President of mixed Hispanic-African-American heritage, seeking a second term after overcoming a political minefield of opposition in restoring the fading respect of our nation to its people and the rest of the world before his assassination, definitely fit the part. Since every story needs a villain, and ruthlessly ambitious political opponents usually made great ones, an extreme Right-Wing, conservative female Governor from Montana (who managed to capture the public’s attention through a heavy façade of a down-home country gal, ‘just trying to help out’) heartily rose to the occasion, setting forth a series of treacherous schemes that elevated her into the Oval Office. Fraudulently packaged, she proved to be no more than a Presidential meat puppet with corporate Godfathers pulling her strings so they could increase their control over oil reserves in the Middle East by blaming them for the previous President’s assassination. It wasn’t until a conspiracy implicated the New President in the death of the old one that the walls came crumbling down, throwing the world into total chaos. Soon wars raged all over the globe, at home and abroad. And just when we were on the brink of wiping away all signs of our existence, something diabolically miraculous happened. A crazed environmentalist’s deadly virus killed off half of the world’s population, devastating man’s ability to wage war, and in the process preserved our remaining natural resources. The Environmentalist committed suicide during a video manifesto he streamed live on the internet. Clearly infected by it, he confessed to creating the virus, taking responsibility for the desperate act, but not its conception.
It always bothered Michael the last unsolved mystery behind mankind’s downfall was not that the insane plan actually worked, but where the idea came from to do it. A feeling of having just opened his eyes overcame him, along with the realization he never shut them. So lost in contemplative thought, he did not notice walking past the portraits of famous figures from recent history that lined the walls of the Modern History Section and was startled to find himself standing in front of the New Constitution display.
“Is something wrong?” Eve asked after feeling Michael’s faint shudder.
“Oh, no, just caught up in the past, I guess.”
“The world has a way of reminding us of the important things we should never forget.” Eve pointed out.
“It’s just a shame we tend to ignore those instinctual memories embedded in our genetic make-up.”
“It is nice to have reminders, though.” Eve nodded to the display case.
Michael fixed his eyes on the new and improved founding document with words of wisdom written by a rouge warrior destined to become a wandering prophet who would one day unearth The Book of Tomorrows and save the human race from extinction.