[SCA-BMDL] Salve Accolens! A Motto for the Debatable Lands

[Krista Cogan]

Hello Debatable Lands! Salve Accolens!

After receiving a couple questions, I think there's a need for some
clarification here (and thanks to Baroness Constance for providing the key
point over on Facebook):

First, pronunciation: SAL-vay ACK-oh-lenz
Second (tl;dr for below): Mottoes aren't official in the SCA, and totally
super optional to use. Also, mottoes are fun, and our Barony is amazing!

Longer explanation:

The SCA has a game side and a business side to it. There's some stuff
that's purely business side (policies, money stuff, etc), some stuff that's
purely game side (retainers, tokens for new folks, garb, etc), and a lot of
stuff that has elements of both (martial practices, Court, social media,
etc). Mottoes are purely game side, and won't ever be "official" per se.
Using it is entirely optional, as the gentle likes.

For some history, I've been enamored of the idea since one of our lovely
former Baronesses, Countess Sir Ariella, when she was on the Baronial
throne, brought up their desire in a Business meeting to have a Baronial
motto. That didn't pan out, but it was a fun idea. Other Baronies have
taglines ("Bob Reef!", "Hael Yeah!"), or a motto/moniker ("The Barony that
Rocks", "The Industrious Barony"), and it seems to bring their populace
together under their core values. People love using those there, and it
always brings a smile to faces, even outside of their populaces. Since "The
Best and Most Vibrant Barony in the Knowne World" probably isn't the nicest
tag line to actually use (even if it is true ;) ) we wanted to have
something people liked and really shows the world who we are as a Barony.

The Baronial folks who joined us at opening ceremonies at Pennsic this year
had a grand time calling out "hello neighbor!" to our Pennsic neighbors as
they marched the opening ceremonies field - we'd bonded over mutual mud
management! And we thought, you know, that's who we are. Accepting, loving,
ready to help and support each other, joyful, open hearts and open minds.
People who really, REALLY value each other. I know Mr. Rogers is a modern
celebrity, but we are a Pittsburgh Barony, after all, and he embodies that
generous, shirt-off-your-back Pittsbugh/BMDL spirit so well.

The Latin? well... we thought the English was a bit too modern, and our
Barony also values the medieval research part of things quite highly. [Side
note: if the Latin is wrong, please let us know! Quality Latin is a
beautiful thing]

I ran the idea past the Baronial members that attended a Business meeting
(and I think I recall talking about it at another), and it was very well
received, with no objections and engendering some mirth and some great
ideas - there's a lot of fun to be had with this!

As with anything game side, using it is a personal preference. I'll be
using it as a shorthand to celebrate everything that the Barony-Marche of
the Debatable Lands, as a whole, is: helpful, kind, supportive, welcoming,
fun, and loving.

Thanks for reading!
Salve Accolens!
~Bns. Hilda

On Fri, Nov 15, 2019 at 4:35 PM Stórfréttir Updates <
admin at debatablelands.org> wrote:

> There is new Baronial News at the Stórfréttir!
>
> Salve Accolens! A Motto for the Debatable Lands
> Posted by: Hilderun Hugelman
>
> Note to those reading from the email list, click on the link below to see
> a formatted version with live links at the blog website. On this, the eve
> of our third Debatable Lands Equestrian Championship (details, and
> schedule), we'd like to introduce to you our new Baronial motto! SALVE
> ACCOLENS! What does it mean? HELLO NEIGHBORS! It is the week of World
> Kindness Day, embodied by the greatest modern champion of kindness and
> courtesy, especially toward oneself and their neighbors: Mr. Fred Rogers.
> The Debatable Lands is his home Barony, and we hope that all our people
> will strive toward these ideals: kindness, courtesy, generous and open
> hearts, mindfulness to feelings, and to be helping and loving and
> welcoming. All these, we feel, are encompassed by "Hello Neighbors" -
> "Salve Accolens". We hope to enact these these ideals in word and deed, and
> hope you all will join us. We are ALL each others' neighbors. SALVE
> ACCOLENS! Please use this new Baronial motto with gusto and verity. (Also,
> it's Latin, so you can say it the other way: ACCOLENS SALVE!) See you at
> Baronial Equestrian Champs tomorrow! In Levitate et Caritate, and
> Cheers,Baron Brandubh and Baroness Hilda "Listening is where love begins:
> listening to ourselves and then to our neighbors." -Fred Rogers
>
> -----
>
> To see or comment on this post on the Stórfréttir, click here:
> http://debatablelands.org/blog/?p=4056.
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>
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