Ramblings and musings from Turkey and Greece

I just returned from an amazing trip to Turkey and Greece, part of the required course curriculum that I have been studying the past two years at a local Christian university.

The sites were astonishing, breathtaking and moving. To think that life existed some 2000 thousand years ago and folk went about their business and common everyday life as normal as we go about ours, is to say at the least,... mind-boggling.

Life was full of business, sadness, fear, hope, expectation and passion. Innovations, systems, problem solving, and philosophical thoughts consumed the minds of those seeking to improve their way of life and question the purpose of their existence and relationship to the gods that dominated the society.

Beautiful palaces, temples, ornate sculptures and colourful frescoes spoke to me of a creative people that pursued beauty and form to adorn their environment.

Skill and craftsmanship, talent and ability that lasted hundreds and thousands of years, still impressed the onlooker.

Ruin upon ruin became a resting place for the many pieces of stone and marble that now lay in obscure disarray. It spoke to me of places that once were strong and impressive, seemingly meant to last forever, but did not.

I was impressed by the pieces that did remain - the pieces that managed to keep standing without being tipped or knocked down by earthquakes, invasions, .... other devastating occurrences.

These pieces spoke to me of strength, longevity, steadfastness, courage, ... as I looked at them, particularly the pillars, they towered high above me and I found myself drawn to them as signposts, monuments of a civilization long gone by, another world that could never imagine the one I am from, a time when life as they knew it, exisited in the present - full of emotion and purpose.

I often wonder how I will stand when the earthquakes come in my life. What will remain in me - if anything at all, that will last for centuries to come.... what will be my legacy that will be passed on .... what will my signpost indicate... what will my monument say about how I lived, conquered, and died...

Ramblings, musings from Turkey and Greece.... much to process...much to consider.