WOW! What a holiday!
Obviously, one of my stops included the magnificent Stonehenge. If you want some proof that human folks have been creating stuff for a long, long time, I suggest that you take a trip and see it for yourself.
Talk about SERIOUS creative effort! The Henge we see today was completed about 3500 years ago – with the sarsen stones hauled in from 25 miles away and the bluestones from a whopping 240 miles away.
I can only imagine the moment that some bloke first conceived this creative concept…
“Whoa! I just had a vision, man. Like, a BIG calendar made of colossal stones. We should, like, build it.”
“Dude, are you out of your prehistoric mind??!! That would take, like, FOREVER – and we’re lucky to live 30 years!”
“Don’t be a buzz killer, man – it would be wicked awesome! Who’s with me?”
“I’m in.”
“Me, too.”
“Well, the Wii hasn’t been invented yet, so I’ve got nothing better to do.”
And it was, in fact, wicked awesome.
After a morning at Stonehenge, I spent the afternoon at the nearby Salisbury Cathedral. This church has the tallest spire in England and was completed in 1258 AD.
I can only imagine how that creative conversation went down…
“Whoa! I just had a vision, man. Like, the tallest church ever! So tall, man, that the steeple will poke God right in the eye! We should, like, build it.”
“Dude, are you out of your medieval mind??!! That would take, like, FOREVER – and most of us are lucky to live to 35!”
“Don’t be a buzz killer, man – it would be wicked awesome! Who’s with me?”
“I’m in.”
“Me, too.”
“Well, the Wii hasn’t been invented yet, so I’ve got nothing better to do.”
And it was, in fact, wicked awesome.
By the way, that cathedral is covered with life-sized stone statues such as this:
I’d say those stoner dudes on the Salisbury Plains made some pretty good use of 2700 years of carving practice.
PROMPT: Rock out! Those hard bits of earth have so much poetic potential –whether you’re writing about tombstones, gravelly voices, or rock and roll. So gather no moss today and set a pebbly poem in stone.
