It
was the newest technology: a pair of glasses that could transport you back in
time virtually to any place, any time in history. I, being a history professor,
thought it would be fun to find out what George Washington felt about the times
he lived in and what he felt about our times.
There
was no risk or danger involved. If you died there, you merely found yourself
back here again. And at any time, you could return if you just said out loud the
words: “Go back.”
“John,
are you ready?” A technician asked me as he strapped me into a chair so I
couldn’t move during the experiment.
“Yes,
I’m ready.” I replied. My arms rested loosely on the armrests and I was poised to say the
words "Go forward" that would start my journey through time. I heard some electronic “beeps”
that meant he had activated the glasses. The last thing I remembered was his
face as I closed my eyes and felt like I was falling asleep.
When
I woke up, I was lying in a field on a winter’s day. I stood up and zipped my
jacket tighter and noticed I was not wearing a hat. I guess I had forgotten to
program one in. I felt cold and couldn’t see anything but a solitary log cabin
looming several hundred yards in front of me in the swirling snow. It didn’t
look like much, but there was a plume of smoke drifting out of the
chimney. I immediately stumbled through the snow until I could get to
the front door and knocked on it as loudly as I could. An older lady in
colonial garb greeted me with a smile.
“Mrs.
Martha Washington, I presume?” I blurted out as she stared at me
“Why,
yes indeed. Who are you, stranger?”
“I’m
John Drew and I’ve come to have a chat with General Washington. Is he here?”
She
looked me over. I was deliberately
dressed in the uniform of the Continental Army.
“Yes,
come right in and out of that horrible cold!” She opened the door a little
wider and allowed me entrance into the modest room. But nobody else was in
there but her and me.
I
looked around “Where is he?” I asked.
She
waved her arm towards the wall. “Oh, he’s out there somewhere, probably feeding
the horses. Of course, it never dawns on him that it is snowing heavily and he
might catch his death of cold! Would you like a cup of tea? He should be in
shortly.”
“Yes, that would be great.”
I
sat on one of the spindly chairs near the fireplace that was the only source of
heat in the house to try to warm up a little.
Before
long, I heard the door squeak and in walked George himself. He was covered in
snow and his eyes and nose were red from the cold.
He
took off his coat and his hat, limped over to where I was sitting and sat down
on a chair opposite to me.
“Hello,
Stranger.” He rubbed his knees for a minute. “Ouch! That old rheumatism’s
acting up again! Now who are you and why are you here?”
Martha
interrupted him. “Dear, I have a cup of tea for you and Mr. Drew and some
truffles, too.” She placed a tray in from us. He pulled her close and gave her
a quick peck on the cheek. “Thank you, dear.”
He
released her and stared at me. “So what’s the deal, Mr. Drew? Are you a
Continental soldier like your clothing says you are?”
“Not
really, Sir. I dressed up this way today so you would trust me. My full name is John
Drew and I am an American citizen from the future. I have travelled back in
time to visit with you, our greatest Founding Father. It is an honor to meet
you.”
I
extended my hand in greeting, but he did not shake it.
“What?
The future?” He picked up his cup for a sip, but his eyes never left my face.
“Are
you a liar or a lunatic, boy, to waste my time with such an outrageous tale?
Surely you jest!”
He
rose up to his full height; his eyes flaming with anger.
“Wait!
I knew you wouldn’t believe me, so I came prepared.” I took a dollar bill out
of my pocket and handed it to him.
“Whose
face is it on that money?” I asked him.
“Why,
it does bare a strange resemblance to…to me…”
George
slowly sat down again as he handed it back to me with a shocked look on his
face, both his knees creaking.
“Where
did you get this from?”
“I
told you that I am from the future….and there are millions of these in circulation.
You were America’s first president.”
“I
was? Then, we won? Apparently we made it, but are you free still? Do you still
have liberty in the future?”
I
was silent for a few minutes wondering how I was going to answer that.
“You
either have liberty or you don’t. And this fire is almost out." He poked the ashes with a crude, iron stick.
“I
gather from your silence you don’t, then. What happened? Did England or France
or Spain overwhelm us? I’ve got Baron Von Steuben coming from Prussia in a few
weeks to start training our rag-tag militia and make them into a more
disciplined group. I’m assuming we won the war, but did these military powers
overwhelm us later?”
“No,
sir, it wasn’t them. We’ve become greater, in fact, than them. The problem is
our own government.”
“Ah,
the government. That makes sense. So we are like another Rome or something,
right?”
“Right…”
“And
with the power of Rome came the corruption too, correct?”
“Ah,
yes, you could say that’s happened.” Where I was once cold, I was now sweating
from the heat of his probing questions.
“So
what happened to get us that way?”
“After our war of indenpendence, we had a civil war that ended slavery. We
grew into a big country of many states. Eventually, we had fifty.”
“Wow,
fifty! Is that so? Although, the war part is disturbing. Mmm…I think I will
release all my slaves at my death. Yes, after this cold winter is over and we’re
back home at Mount Vernon, I’ll do just that. Okay, please go on and forgive me
for my musings.”
“Yes,
Sir. After that we fought a world war against Germany. Then, we had a second
one against Germany again and another nation called Japan. Finally, we dropped
this deadly bomb on Japan and destroyed it. We have the power in the future to
fly like birds so we were able to drop it from the air…”
I
saw his hand tremble just a little as he lifted his teacup and his eyes were
wide with alarm.
“Really?”
“Yes,
really.”
“And…and
what about England, France and Spain?”
“England
was an ally during the second war. France and Spain are our allies now, too.
And so are Germany and Japan.”
“Is
that so? Our arch enemy, England, that tyrannous, oppressive empire becomes our
friend? We should never, ever, be involved in the affairs of other nations! We
will be trapped in all kinds of evil alliances and obligations!” His face
looked paler than ever.
He
composed himself and asked another question. “So we became this big country
with lots of allies... What happened next?”
“Many
years after the last world war was over, we had terrorists attack us, just as
the barbarians of old attacked Rome. We fought back, but it has left us weaker
and less united than ever. I’m afraid we’re now falling apart. We only want
benefits and hand-outs. I wonder if there is any liberty left in us at all.”
He
stared at the fire for a long time.
I
got up to go and put on my jacket.
“General
Washington,” I finally said as I stood by the door. “Do you think it’s worth it
to go on with the fight now that you know what this country’s future looks
like?”
Sadness
filled his eyes and bitter tone in his voice. “Yes, I will continue to fight
even in spite of what you have told me. I have faith in my young country.
America must fulfill its destiny, whatever that may be.”
He
mustered a smile and stuck out his hand and I shook it.
“God
bless you, sir.” I said.
“God
bless you, too, Mr. Drew. May the Lord be with you.”
With
those closing words, my mood lifted a little. However, my pride had been
destroyed and all was left was a sense of sorrow for my country. I strolled out
the door into the swirling snow. Was this meeting with George Washington a virtual
one or a real one? I guess I’ll never know. For an instant, I yearned to go
back, and fight with his armies. But I hesitated. I knew that I couldn’t stay.
I knew that I had to return. I had to tell to my fellow Americans what
happened; to encourage them to fight for liberty or it would be too late. So I
closed my eyes and whispered: “Go back…”
