The Relic (~6/1/2002)
As our family prepared for our trip to The States this year, my wife, Becky, led the kids in a study of the American Civil War. They read biographies and historical novels. We watched the mini-series “Gettysburg,” sensed the horrible nature of war, and developed the sense that no one really won. During our travels we visited Stone Mountain, Georgia and learned more about Sherman’s March to the Sea and the Battle of Atlanta. We visited Chickamauga and learned of the significance of Chattanooga to the South, and better understood the uniqueness of this battle that was fought predominantly in the forest. And we visited Gettysburg where we visualized the killing fields of Pickett’s Charge, the Wheatfield, Seminary and Cemetery Ridges and Little Round Top, where so many died in such a short time. It was an emotional experience! As a result of these travels, a word picture began to take form in my mind: To the farmer who plowed the field, now long silent except for the sounds of nature and t...