“…I think that we as a civilization ought to be remembered for something other than the ribbons of concrete with which we mar the landscape.”

                                                                  Mr. Simon, downstate Cabondale in response to a cost objection to the American Folklife Preservation Act. (in reference to the cost of highways and expressways versus the cost of the proposed folklife bill)

            It seems to me some days that everyone wants their fifteen minutes of fame. It seems that everyone wants to be remembered, whether by many or by few, for something. We hope to live on even after our passing in the memories of those that knew us. The overwhelming need to create memories and participate in life is existent; the only problem seems to be that more often than not there are few who want to foot the bill for our life’s production. For making an impact surely is a costly endeavor. There has been many a war waged, some in silence, some within the highest realms of authority, for the sake and preservation of the everyday life. There is something to be cherished in how people choose to carry out their lives and there is importance in every action. For taking no action is also choosing to act, and this motion can be monumental.

            In the passing of legislation to include an American Folklife Center in the Library of congress, a whole new playing field was arranged for key player to step foot on. As “A View From the Lobby” discusses, opinions can be hard to change and the view from that of an elite often sees the common life is lacking importance, when in reality it is the base and the strength that we, as a country, stand on and were built upon. Once the legislation gets passed the work begins to determine what exactly can be considered folklife, and how execution of preservation can be accomplished without stepping on the toes of the twin endorsements.

            There is also finding the public that is willing to see that what they are doing is worth sustaining an preserving, and in many cases the convincing of funders that what may seem like a common way of life (nothing special or out of the ordinary) is a necessary recipient of funding. There are several ways to preserve as the article “Preserving our Heritage” points out. But preservation isn’t cookie cutter in the very least. It can seldom be broken into requirements and formats. Each case is contextual, and it is this attention to detail that some seem to be ‘too busy’ for.

            In our chosen field, we may very often be the lobbyist, fighting for the rights of our beliefs in life, we may be those holding in our hands the stamp of approval or the stamp of dismissal, and more often than not we will be among those that we stand up for and represent. We are the voice and the hands and the body, but we must never take for granted the power that lies inside of us. Donohue says about preservation that ‘The world is constantly changing and being changed, and so to keep things from changing, preservationists change them!” I feel that this statement reflects a lot of what, in the means of funding and legislation, is being done presently. We, as those in the fight for cultural sustainability, must remember to let the people show us what it is that needs to be remembered, sustained, and ‘fixed’.