By: C.L. Sill
We haven’t posted here for quite some time, so I’ll make this one quick. Luke and I are getting the blog up and running again. MTL is humming along as always and I’m finally in a position to have a little time to write.
Reenacting has changed for me in the last year. It usually does in some fashion, but this year seemed drastic. My love for the era hasn’t weaned, but I feel less drawn to take an active part in the hobby.
I think I’m burnt out.
It’s a hard thing to admit, especially when my job is to write about reenacting.
I started collecting WWII memorabilia in March of 2004, I was 13-years-old. Next month I’ll be 26.
That’s 12 years and 5 months, nearly half my life.
I’m sick of it.
I was obsessive when I began, like any of us who start the hobby at a young age. Not all that long ago I would’ve shit my pants if given the chance to hold an m1a1 carbine. Now I’ve got one in my closet stuffed behind suit jackets and worn out wingtips. I haven’t so much as looked at it in 6 months.
It’s easy to blame this on outside circumstances, I’ve listened to reenactors do it time and time again.
I’ve got a dog now, a puppy actually. We go fly-fishing together a couple times a week. She’s a real pain in the ass but I get a kick out of watching her tear downstream chasing the leaves that casually drift by in the current.
I’m in a serious relationship now. Erin is very much the center of my world (The dog, lying stretched out on the couch as I write, rolls her eyes and looks away, annoyed she hasn’t won that title).
No ones ever made me feel stronger or more confident. We make a good team. I love her to death and I’m not just saying that on the off chance she Googles my name and reads this article.
The point in all this is I’m busy, I’ve got other interests now and it’s easy to feel like I’ve moved beyond the hobby completely.
Problem is, that’s just not true.
I still find myself getting all worked up about the history behind the hobby. The “Dunkirk” trailer sent me through the roof. Cillian Murphy AND Tom Hardy as WWII Brits, with Christopher Nolan at the helm. What could possibly go wrong??
My problem isn’t lack of interest in the hobby, my problem is repetition.
For the last 5 years I’ve been reenacting the 82nd and 101st airborne divisions, respectively. Prior to that I reenacted the 2nd infantry division. I’ve no interest in German (sorry krauts), Russian is hopelessly boring and since my British accent is appalling I can’t bring myself to try commonwealth.
We’ve all found ourselves at this point. I’ve bought everything I could possibly need for my impression. I’ve been to every major (and minor) event with the same look, year in and year out.
I realize now the only thing to do is start over. Try something new, keep things fresh and rekindle the love of history that initially brought me into this strange and wonderful hobby.
I need to fight through the monotony, get off my ass and start a new impression.
