|
 I
visited Manito, Illinois on the 3rd of July. They had a fabulous
small-town USA celebration. Facepainting, bubbles, corndogs, music,
games, and more.
Wikipedia: “The term history comes from the Greek ‘historia’ an
account of one’s inquiries. Manito’s festival had plenty of
historians to explain and describe our country’s past.
The first was Mike Anderson from Jacksonville, a family entertainer,
storyteller, musician, author, etc. You are all going to be so
jealous you weren’t there. Mike plays the mouth harp, an instrument
from long ago. He’s so good at it that he became the actual sound of
Disney’s Winnie the Pooh’s buddy, Tigger’s…. bouncing tail. Yep. The
bong! bonGG! BONG! comes straight from Mike’s mouth, and I got to
meet him! How exciting is that? Plus! PLUS…. Mike also makes the
sound of Bullseye’s feet from “Toy Story”! I mean, how electrifying
can one artiste be?
I’m not being sarcastic. It’s the small things in life that amaze
and astonish. As if that wasn’t enough, he proceeded to tell stories
about our beloved USA. For instance, President, Abe Lincoln, had a
very high-pitched voice. One would expect a booming intonation, but
poor Abe’s was high and rather nasally. Instead of being embarrassed
about it, Abe proudly used it to his advantage and spoke loudly so
his voice could be picked out of the crowd.
Mike also informed us the song “Jingle Bells” was not written as a
Christmas song at all. James Pierport wrote it in 1857 as an
inspiration for sleigh races. Yes! It’s the car drag races original
start. It is about the excitement of winter sleigh rides and sleigh
races. One verse is “Now the ground is white. Go it while you’re
young. Take the girls out tonight. Sing this sleighing song. Get a
bobtailed bay. Two Forty for his speed. And hitch him to an open
sleigh and you will take the lead.” Seriously……It’s the predecessor
of the teenage drag racers….in a convertible…. pulled by a horse.
Think about it, “Dashing through the snow in a one-horse open
sleigh…O’er the fields we go…laughing all the way. Bells on
bobtail’s ring, making spirits bright. What fun it is to ride and
sing a sleighing song tonight, oh!” It’s the prototype song to The
Beach Boys, “Little Deuce Coupe”, and Ronny and the Daytona’s, “GTO”.
Who knew?!
Next up to engage the audience was Curt Johnson, from Wyanet. He has
authored books on and has preserved and shared the tradition of
Illinois gun making, making him a notable figure in the state’s
firearms heritage. He spoke about the American long rifle and its
role in the American Revolution.
As he clarified our history, the following story captivated and
enthralled me:
“One of the first noted uses of riflemen in the American Revolution
began when General Daniel Morgan commanded a company of Western
Virginians in the “Beeline March to Boston”. They arrived in Boston
on August 7, 1775. The Virginia Gazette September 9, 1775, relates
that these men gave an exhibition of their skills upon their
arrival. A man held between his knees a board five inches wide by
seven inches long, with a paper bull’s eye the size of a dollar. A
rifleman at 60 yards without a rest, put eight bullets in succession
through the bull’s eye.”
to top of second column] |
Now take into account that bull’s eye was a coin dollar not a paper
dollar. Also consider that 60 yards is the length of a Boeing 767,
or 18 blue whales placed nose-to-nose, or more than half an NFL
football field. Now, would you be willing to stand with this target
between your legs for your friend at an exhibition? I. Would. Not.
Here’s more about the rifle they were shooting: “Their reputation
for long range and fine accuracy soon spread across the frontier.
Men who lived in remote settlements clamored to buy them. On the
frontier they became a tool of survival, putting meat on the table
and providing protection against large predators and hostile
Indians. Each rifle was as individual as the Frontiersman who
carried it. There was no standard caliber. The maker supplied a
bullet mold with each rifle that was matched to that rifle. They
were never intended for military use. They could not be fitted with
a bayonet and were too slender and delicate to be used as a club, if
it came to hand-to-hand combat.”
They fought courageously for their lives and their country with a
fragile gun. They couldn’t even bop the enemy on the head. How did
they survive?
Thirdly on the agenda, was Ron Eckberg from Walnut, a pastor,
singer, songwriter, and author. He and his wife had recently
returned from visiting the D-Day battleground that took place on the
50-mile coastline of the Normandy region in France. Launched on June
6, 1944, it involved simultaneous landings by U.S., British, and
Canada forces on five beachheads in Normandy France.
Ron felt so blessed to stand on the ground where thousands of heroes
fell that day, he wrote a song about it. His singing brought tears
to my eyes. We can’t imagine what those men went through for our
freedom. Plus, we can’t imagine what their families and friends went
through back here when they received word of their loved one dying.
Ron went on to elucidate, support and defend the progress of this
great country of ours via word and song. No one else could have done
it any better. Just when I though my heart and soul was over flowing
with pride, he sang a beautiful rendition of Lee Greenwood’s, “God
Bless the USA”. Yep. I’m proud to bleed red, white and blue. I pray
you are too.
I absolutely adore small town USA. Don’t let the next exhibition,
performance, or presentation go by in your town. You never know what
you will learn. We have so much to appreciate from the beginning of
our great country until now. GOD BLESS THE USA!
L. Maxine McQueen
may be contacted at
maxmac.1@juno.com
|
