Tea at Trianon: My Trips Down South

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, October 18, 2024

My Trips Down South

From The Easton Gazette:

Perhaps it was the summers I spent in these hills as a child, visiting my grandparents, or the deep connection my family has to this land that stirred something within me. Or maybe it was simply the empathy I feel for others in times of crisis. After seeing heartbreaking videos of people suffering on social media, I knew I had to act. I picked up the phone and called Bob Grill with Disaster Aid USA to offer my help.

We met at DAUSA’s headquarters in Lanham, MD, and made a trip to Costco to stock up on much-needed supplies. With my Tahoe packed to the brim, I hit the road, heading south to North Carolina. After speaking with my grandfather and several cousins, I was able to connect with Pastor Joy Moss at Skyland United Methodist Church, where we began to coordinate our efforts. (Read more.)