Connecting With History

Friday morning, León, Nicaragua. My faithful reader noticed the other day that I haven’t written on this blog in a long time. “Where have you been?” is his question. As I reflected on this question, it struck me that the last few months I’ve spent connecting with history. 

To celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary Peggy and I took a big trip – The Birds and Culture of China. There we saw many astonishing things from China’s distant and not-so-distant past. Near Beijing we walked on the Great Wall – the immensity of it is awe-inspiring. Built a couple thousand years ago, without the benefit of a single piece of motorized machinery, it winds along rugged ridges from hilltop to hilltop more than 5,000 miles, a distance much greater than that from Michigan to Alaska. How did they do that? What was life like for those construction workers? For the soldiers that manned the remote stretches of wall? Did it keep the warring barbarians out?

Near Xian we visited the Terra Cotta Warriors – life-sized warriors, horses, chariots, archers – an entire army of 8 thousand or more, each with a unique face.  They were made of clay a couple thousand years ago and buried with the emperor who first united the warring tribes of China. It was certainly a great and impressive send-off into the next life for him – and I’m guessing his real army was quite relieved to have been substituted for by the terra cotta replacements at the last minute.

What I saw in China, both ancient and modern, gave me the distinct impression that China doesn’t do anything on a small scale. When they undertake a public project, it’s not just big—it’s enormous. One could legitimately ask if China can keep up the great pace of development it is undergoing today. But in response one would have to acknowledge that China has a several thousand year history of progress and grand developments. I had the impression (from high school history?) that in the 19^th and 20^th centuries China was a rather backward nation compared to the western powers. But now I have the impression that China’s seeming backwardness was just a temporary 2 century interlude in more than 20 centuries of significant advances in culture, science and technology.

Of course there were birds to see in China, too.  We saw lots, including some extremely rare birds.  Two species, Crested Ibis and Siberian Crane, until recently thought to be extinct, and another, Jankowski’s Bunting, which may become extinct soon. China has some beautiful forests and nature preserves, but it also has big environmental problems. Industrial and domestic pollution is widespread and habitat loss is severe in places.  China is certainly not unique in this respect. God did tell us to be fruitful and multiply, and he gave us the earth to provide us the things we need to flourish—but we must remember that God never told us to ravage the earth and destroy it.  The world, and everything in it, belongs to God. We should treat all of creation with care and respect as the valuable property of another who has entrusted it to us for but a season. It would be a shame—shame on us—if we continue to wipe out plants, birds, animals, and other creatures that God gave us to enjoy life in abundance.

Three months after China we made a short trip to Peru to visit our son and daughter-in-law who were there for her brief internship. We went straight to the center of ancient Inca civilization: Cusco, Ollantaytambo, and Machu Picchu. At Machu Picchu I was again struck by the immensity and craftsmanship of this ancient city, built high on a mountain to help fend off attacks of wild animals or fierce enemies.  It’s not so hard to imagine why they built the city although it amazes me that they could build it where they did. But why did they then abandon it suddenly near the time of the Spanish conquest and after only 150 years or so of occupation? The city was never conquered—it wasn’t even discovered by outsiders until the early 20^th century—so conquest by Spain is not the answer. At least not directly. Machu Picchu is a place full of mystery.

At Machu Picchu I thought about the designers, engineers, inspectors, and construction foremen who directed construction of the city. How did the designers and engineers communicate the design specifications to the work crew? They had no written language. I’m guessing there were no blueprints or design drawings to follow. Yet when you look closely at the carved stones that comprise the most important buildings (usually temples), they display an intricate structural design that was executed with incredible precision. The walls are not made of simple rectangular blocks of stone, but rather of multi-surfaced complex shapes that fit together like an intricate 3-D puzzle. The joints between the huge stones are so tight you cannot slip a knife blade between the stones (no, I didn’t try that!). And they were all carved by hand without even iron tools for the job. How did they do that? Looking at Machu Picchu made me reassess my own ideas about how organized and capable ancient civilizations, like the Incas, must have been. Surely this was a complex and intelligent society that did simply amazing things with such tools as they themselves had discovered and made.

After a few weeks visiting family in the US (connecting with our family history again), we are now back in our León, Nicaragua home. Here we find that the expected rains of the season are both late and meager. Consequently, it is unseasonably very hot and, more significantly, many small farmers are in or near crisis mode for lack of water. We pray for more rain before it is too late for this season’s crops.

Connecting with history continues to be our central focus here in León. In just five weeks we begin our new mini-careers as professors of Nicaraguan history.  Of course, before you can teach you must study. So we are now studying Nicaraguan history ourselves. Nicaragua doesn’t boast a great center of a powerful ancient civilization, like China or Machu Picchu (and I wonder why). Instead, the recorded history of Nicaragua seems overwhelmed by outsiders—beginning with the Spanish conquest, followed shortly thereafter by 150 years of episode after episode of US involvement and intervention in Nicaragua’s internal affairs. Understandably, today Nicaragua is still trying to find its own way after nearly 500 years of excessive foreign influence—which may not be finished yet.

Well, that’s just a taste of what we are learning. If you want to know more, sign up for the history class. There you would join 8 college and university students in a semester abroad program sponsored by Dordt College in Iowa. The students will be arriving in country in just 2 weeks, so if you are going to join them, you better pack your bag soon.