Teens

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Is History Boring?
By Dan Blankenship
© 2007 Dan Blankenship


“Man, can history class be anymore boring? I mean who really cares about the Hittites, the Egyptians, or the Sumerians? After all, those people, and all of their useful information died off thousands of years ago, right? Shouldn’t we be more concerned about today’s world, today’s people, and today’s inventions?”

That was me talking, twenty years ago, back when I thought learning about history made about as much sense as putting warning labels on hot cups of coffee, informing consumers that the coffee inside the cup was hot.

Today, I understand a great deal more about the world around me because I have softened my negative view of those who have come and gone. My world is a direct result of the mental, physical, and spiritual efforts of the men and women who have already made the world a different place.

Those Hittites I belittled as a teen; they were the first people to work with and develop iron and steel. I drove to school in a 1977 Grand Prix made out of…that’s right…iron and steel. I rode the bus, also made out of iron and steel, when I wrecked my own Hittite influenced transportation, but that’s an entirely different column.

Moving on, during my teen years, I never experienced a world war. Part of the reason I never had to adjust to a world full of military strategies and conflicts was because mankind, long ago, had developed peace treaties. Too bad mankind can’t skip the killing part of a war and just get down to the treaty part. Again, a possible topic for a future column. But guess who signed the first peace treaty, setting a precedence that has lasted for more than 3,000 years? Yes, it was the Egyptians. They signed a peace treaty with the Hittites.

And finally, what is so interesting and worth writing about concerning this long-gone group known as the Sumerians? Oh, that’s right, historians claim the Sumerians invented writing, something I absolutely love to do. So I guess I should give them some respect, even if they invented my favorite hobby in 3,000 BC, well before I was around to take advantage of the new medium.

It’s taken me a lot of years to become fond of history. And today, if you read this column, whether it be by accident or sympathy, I challenge you to look up a piece of history you’ve been meaning to investigate. I try and do this once a week, just to learn something new that might inspire or enlighten me.

The planet is a big place. Its history is even bigger. Become a fan of history and you will have a much better understanding of the current world you live in. God has given mankind the gift of recorded history. It is a tool we should not ignore. Proverbs 10:14 (NIV) says, “Wise men store up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.” Eventually, I got tired of being that fool.

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