The Tower of London

The Tower of London is a structure of beauty, power, intrigue, and horror. It was built by King William I, better know as William the Conqueror, in the 1070’s after his coronation. He was nervous concerning possible rebellion and built the fortress as a protection and to prove his power. It took 20 years to build and has other structures of interest inside of it. The inner wall has 13 towers of protection while originally the outer wall was a moat filled by the Thames River. The moat was drained in 1843. I learned a lot here but mostly that the Tower of London is not a single building. Here is a picture of today’s map to give you an idea of it huge size.

The heart of this facility of course is the White Tower, Britain’s most famous castle.

Inside the castle is the unique Romanesque chapel, Chapel of St. Joh the Evangelist. The stairs were too much for me so my daughter took some pictures for me.

And of course the most intriguing part is, this is where the Crown Jewels are still kept. And no, we were no allowed to photograph them but I promise they were amazing.

Another interesting thing was the Royal Beast. For those who know what an animal lover I am, this was amazing, not because of the animals that are no longer there but the artists creations of these beast out of wire mesh. This evidently was the first zoo, ever, as animals from different parts of the world were given to the King as gifts from their country. Of course my favorite was the elephant – amazing life size artwork.

Other life size animals were bears, lions and an array for different monkeys.

There are still living creatures around the fortress and are well cared for…and they are noisy. Ravens. Plus they are all named.

There is a long standing legend that states that the Tower and the Kingdom will fall if the ravens were to leave. Now I am familiar with black crows and their size but these birds are huge.

Legends aside…the Yeoman Warders are the true protectors of this amazing place. They have been there since 1337. Today men and women are recruited for the Armed Forces taking on a royal oath of protection.

Another form of protection were massive cannons. This one in particular seem to have more bling that most cannon should.

Below are some of the more interesting building starting first with the main entrance.

Going through this beautiful facility, I was reminded how history can be beautiful, powerful and insanely cruel. I am reminded of how if we could all learn to be honest, kind, and caring for one another to one another, what a difference it may make in the whole world.

St. Bartholomew The Great

We saw many wonderful churches as we roamed the streets of London, but the one that quickens my heart the most was St. Bartholomew the Great. It is London’s oldest surviving parish church, built in 1123, with the Hospital of St. Bartholomew the Less. St. Bartholomew the Great is the central parish, while St. Bartholomew the Less is a chapel within the parish, situated within St. Bartholomew’s Hospital.

The priory gained the reputation of healing powers, with many people filling its aisles on St. Bartholomew Day. Many disabilities were noted as being cured, and others were cured within the hospital that is still in operation today.

This entrance was adjacent to the hospital and an entrance to the used for the St. Bartholomew Festival, on August 24, England’s largest medieval market attracting aristocrats as well as the poor.

Inside the church is a different kind of beauty, knowing the church’s era and some of its history. Several movies were filmed in this church – Robin Hood, Shakespeare in Love, Sherlock Holmes, and even Transformers.

Like most of the churches we saw, graves and tombs were above ground and on display.

But the beauty of this church was lost on me, even now, because it reminds me of the cruelty of man. An artist, Damien Hirst, created an amazing statue of gold overlay depicting St. Bartholomew’s death as he was skinned alive before being decapitated for preaching Jesus’ love.

Then you go just outside and see where William Wallace was drawn and quartered within sight of the church near the entrance of the hospital.

Have we gotten any better as human beings? I look at today’s news, and still, we see horrific ways that we treat each other. I pray that God reaches our hearts and shows us a better way.

Paint Update

A couple people have asked me how the fence was going and I am about 1/3 down the fence line. It has been a fun project but it has been so hot, (yes, it gets hot in Iowa) that I can only be out there for about an hour at the time. But this weekend is supposed to be marvelous so I hope to get a lot done…but there is also football, so we will see.

So here we are so far…

The scroll is still wet but it will have “Trust in the Lord” Proverbs 3:5.

Everyone needs to find something that they enjoy, especially when they retire and for me, I don’t sit well, so I paint and write. Currently working on book 2 of Smiles from Heaven, maybe by Christmas.

Remember as always the power and value of being kind. Every living creature needs kindness. Have a fabulous week.

At the End, It is a First

Hello friends. Crazy title for a post isn’t it, but that is what December has been like here in Iowa. We had crazy record breaking highs in the 70s combined with February cold in the teens. No wonder people are running around with the sniffles. But today is the first snow for December. It wont last. It will turn to rain by lunch but it is a sign of what is to come. This coming weekend may prove to be what the weathermen have been telling us all through the fall – winter is going to be cold.

The changes of the weather can sometimes be a reflection of the changes in our lives, some days hot, some days cold, and what we really want is comfort in the middle. My daughter gave me a fabulous gift for Christmas. Its a sandscape picture with soothing colors of blue, white, black and a smattering of glitter, The picture is filled with water and oil and as you flip the picture, it changes in a most mesmerizing way, soothing and calming to the nerves. I have heard these do wonderful calming effects for children in the autism spectrum to help them focus. I can see why, and can sit and flip it for the better part of an hour as every turn creates a different picture.

When you flip the picture you see the oil bubbles float to the top creating small gaps for the various sands to fall through creating a mountain range of various shapes. Coming from the southeast and the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, this reminds me of the peace and tranquility of those mountains. A most fitting feeling as we walk through the last week of Christmas being reminded again about the Prince of Peace coming as a small defenseless babe.

This sandscape also reminds me of life and how it moves, sometime fast, sometimes slow, and sometimes all at once that can create a mess if we don’t have our feet grounded.

But regardless of the speed of the sands of life falling, if we stop, listen and breathe…we will feel the peace and comfort of God surrounding us.

So as we close out another year, let us focus on a new year to come with sands of beauty as God gives us the strength to stand firm in however they fall.

Regardless of how your sands may look to fellow man, to God they are all beautiful. So share your beauty of your creation with others so that they too will understand the beauty of their own sandscape. And as always, remember to be kind. It helps unlock those doors of fear.

Tuesday Photo Challenge, Sculpture

Here in the midwest, there is not a lot of sculpture around. You have the occasional old building gargoyle or the lions on the concrete steps up to the older houses so I was amazed when I saw this one the other day. I rode around the block trying to find where I could park so the I could see it up close. I knew eventually I would be able to use it and sure enough, Frank, of Dutch Goes the Photo, has given us a sculpture prompt for the TPC.

It stands 20-25 feet high with a large metal sign making it a good 30 feet total height. And it is totally carved from an old tree that probably died where it once graced this lovely home.

statue

The home is now home to Freedom Homes Ministries, a place to help those who need a second chance at life.

Remember, there are many times we all need a second chance to start over. God gives us a new chance every morning, so smile and be thankful for all the love he gives us and share it with others. The kindness and love you share spreads out like ripples on the water, so throw those pebbles of love often and watch them spread out bumping into other ripples creating a sea of love and kindness.

kind ripples

Wall Beautification, TPC

I love how it has become so acceptable to turn old city building walls into works of art. One day this fall, when it cools a bit, I am going to take a walking tour to find as many as I can in our area. This weeks photo challenge from JansenPhoto was Wall so I went in the direction of refurbished walls.

The wall below is a newer street art on a local bar at one of the busiest sections of the street near the bridge. I wish I had taken a picture before and after because the wall was in bad need of painting. Well they painted it and the likeness for nighttime view is pretty close.

Pub Wall

I saw a few weeks ago a brand new one starting up right downtown on the back wall of the symphony practice building and I thought how very appropriate. It is being done by the Metro Arts Youth Apprenticeship Artist. It is not fully complete but I thought I would share so you really appreciate it when it is complete and I will repost it.

Symphony Wall

Art is a major form of creative passion and there are many forms that can be created from music, painting, photography, sculpting, writing, cooking, gardening… I could go on forever. Art is anything thing that is created by one person for others to enjoy. Think about the master creative artist…God, who gives out these gifts of creative arts because of his passion for creating. He created us and he wants us to share in his passion. So we should all enjoy these wonderful gifts and use them to encourage others to be happy and kind and to brings smile to all.

So remember to smile, be kind and enjoy all the beauty of creation and the art of those who enjoy creating art.

artflower — SHARE YOUR GIFT THROUGH KINDNESS