Greg MD Blog

The advantage of exploring the New World was developing many new things. For us to get where we are today, there was a high price that was paid by our ancestors. The generation before us made sacrifices to bring us forward. We can only learn from our history! Should we celebrate the Pioneers today?

Over the centuries, all countries have learned a great deal from the Old World to bring new ideas into the New World. We have learned how to extract medical compounds from plants to develop medicine. Farming land over time, we gain knowledge on how to increase our food source and to import and export by trade. Reading and writing helped us to develop our educational system to expand our understanding. Education enabled us to develop a better understanding of technology for medical and scientific experimentation.

I believe that the Spanish were far more advance beyond their times in so many ways. The Spanish taught the Native Indians how to use ironwork to be able to plow the farmland to raise crops to sell or trade to other countries. The Indians learned how to make tools to increase agricultural productivity, and they learned new techniques to increase livestock production. Trading with our others, we have learned a great deal on how to crossbreed plants and trees that are native to that area. My third Great Grandfather, John Bartram, introduced Botany to North America. My grandfather imported and exported seeds between Europe and America. Through crossbreeding, we developed new plants as well as hardier and more productive versions of existing plant life. We learned how to extract compounds from plants to cure or control diseases. It also allowed us to develop new medicines.

Today we should celebrate the pioneers that paved the way for us. Celebrating them can be positive or negative, depending on the situation. Regardless of good or bad, we still have something to learn from our past. It has helped us to advance to where we are today. We can’t change or rewrite history. All we can do is learn from our history. We have lost many lives through sacrifice by religion, slavery, and/or war between countries. America eventually established the laws granting fundamental human rights to prevent slavery, and our countries followed, like the Europeans.

We have taught each other how to explore our struggles and success as we celebrate in modern times. We have lost many due to sacrifice yet accomplished many good things. Still today, we are evolving into something new, striving for greatness. I believe there is nothing wrong with celebrating explorers, conquistadors, or the pioneers that paved the way for us. Through education, the Old and New World came together in many ways.

This essay was for my English class on April 26th, 2018

Written by: Greg MD