“They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.”- Dino Christianpolus.

I live, like many people in this world, in an insignificant place, a bit of geography once used and now forgotten. When I tell local people the name of my town, they snicker, especially those who reside in the more popular tourist places in my county.

This is to be expected, as it is human nature to rank things. As members of the animal kingdom, our survival has always depended on our observation skills as we size up a situation to decide whether to fight or flee. As the accumulation of resources has become so important, we have come to rely on materialism to assess the value of a person. We have refined that process to focus on outward signs, such as a person’s zip code, median income, education, and even the type of car they drive. With commercialism and its advancement by means of the constant internet influences, have we become a heartless, shallow band of consumers trying to control events and others for our own benefit and advancement? I came across the theory that states we attempt to control others in two ways: formally or informally. The first way is to set group rules and laws. The second is more cruel and may be even more powerful. It is done by most of us in the form of name-calling, gossip, rumors, ridicule, and, sometimes, exclusion. It, too, is a group activity, but without the purpose of improving things. Its purpose is to cause persons or groups of persons to become diminished or powerless. At the time of this writing, our world has reached the height of human conflict. This is brought about by formal government and institutions, but also, informally, by human nastiness and our tendency to devalue the lives of others.

Recently, I discovered a forgotten place in my town. A small place on a 1855 map with the strange name of Nauvoo.

I have spent the last year searching and searching for the story of Nauvoo, the little abandoned hamlet six miles east of my home. I have collected and read many books on the history of my area, my country, and, occasionally, foreign lands in an effort to find the meaning and the significance of this strange name. I have met interesting people along the way and discovered many new places and perspectives. It’s been quite a journey.

I am doing this project because I don’t want my town’s worth diminished or buried. I have always loved where I live, with its beautiful countryside and friendly, caring people.

And maybe I am doing this for myself. I don’t want to be buried in the negativity of the world. I want to know the forgotten people who lived before me. I want to absorb their courage and strength. They were the seeds that have brought us to this, our 250th year. I want to have hope.

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