Read the excerpt from "Pilgrimage.” At the museum, we marvel at their clothes— preserved under glass—so much smaller than our own, as if those who wore them were only children. We sleep in their beds, the old mansions hunkered on the bluffs, draped in flowers—funereal—a blur of petals against the river’s gray. The brochure in my room calls this living history. The brass plate on the door reads Prissy’s Room. A window frames The river’s crawl toward the Gulf. In my dream, The ghost of history lies down beside me, rolls over, pins me beneath a heavy arm. Pilgrimage, "Elegy for the Native Guards", "South" from Native Guard by Natasha Trethewey. Copyright (c) 2006 by Natasha Trethewey. Used by permission of HarperCollins Publishers. What does this excerpt express about the impact of the past on the present? The past should be viewed and experienced without emotion. The legacy of the past leaves important marks on the present. Humanity must progress forward to the present from the past. Learning about history can help humanity avoid past mistakes.